logan carriage binds in the middle

Carriage is smooth at the headstock end and at the tail, and right in the middle it goes heavy. Same spot every time. I oiled it. I backed off the carriage gib a little and now the ends feel sloppy and the middle is still the middle. I don't want to scrape a bed if the bed is fine and I'm just being dramatic.

Middle-only is often a high spot on the bed or a gib that's riding a wear ridge, not 'the whole gib is wrong.' If backing it off makes the ends sloppy, put it back and stone the gib where it matches that middle spot. Don't stone the bed yet.

Indicator on carriage, finger on front way, run the tight zone. If needle jumps there, bed or a nick. If needle is quiet and the handwheel still goes heavy, it is gib or the rack screw dragging. Two different fixes. Measure before stone.

Needle is quiet. I feel dumb and also relieved. It's the gib picking up a ridge of oil-varnish or something, because once I pulled the gib and stoned the shiny line off it, the middle went away. Bed is ugly but it isn't the bind. Putting this here so I don't open the bed next time I panic.

Good. Leave the bed alone. Ugly and straight enough is a working lathe.