Paul, the most effective way that I have found to remove cosmoline is with mineral spirits and a paint brush. That will cut it quickly and will get it out of the threads of lead screws, etc. Finish cleaning it with WD-40 (full of surfactants/detergents) and then oil it up with way oil.
I did remove the compound to clean it up and clean under it.
Ref. feet for the stand, I advocate using the 1/2" threaded holes since they are outboard. This gives you the most stability and you can get some TECO style leveling feet for it. Search the forum and you will find loads of info on that topic. I believe the larger holes in the stand are for anchoring the machine to concrete if so desired. You likely know that the 1/2-12 holes are Whitworth and you should chase them with a 1/2"-13 tap. I highly recommend you do that while assembling the stand. There is a thread here on that topic.
You likely know this already but just in case, here's a tip - when searching this forum use Google since the forum's search engine is almost worthless. Here is an example for searching the forum on the topic of feet for a PM1340. In a Google search box use "teco feet pm1340 lathe site:
www.hobby-machinist.com". Do not include the quotes.
Regarding the interlock on the cover, must be something new. My machine was delivered late last year and does not include that. I am not sure that I would have left it in a control scheme anyway. There are times I want to observe the gears, belt, hall effect sensor, etc. while it is running.
Enjoy that new machine.