Sorry for the delayed response guys...
Gerard, That apron diagram is the closest I have seen - and it is the first to actually show an idler assembly! Unfortunately it is still not how my apron is constructed; in that diagram the location to mount the idler it is off to the side vertically (not between the upper and lower shafts), and also has a strengthening shoulder and holes for mounting screws to hold the idler shaft in place. On mine, the hole is vertically centered between the lower and upper shafts. Also, there is no shoulder or holes for mounting/securing the shaft.
But I really appreciate your efforts to help me, thank you! Also, I visited your site and love your shop and projects,
very nice work!
John, thank you for your post. I am amazed at how many different arrangements there are for the apron on these units. That one, like most, does not have an idler.
If you look at this image, through the idler mounting hole you can see the lower gear that drives the idler. The gear that seems to be just above that is actually the crossfeed gear - it is up against the front of the apron, it is not lined up vertically with the driving gear on the worm wheel shaft seen at the bottom. If you look hard, you can just see the tips of the gear on the upper shaft that is lined up vertically with the bottom gear - this is the clutch gear that needs to be driven. So the idler is just a little bit smaller than the hole.
View attachment 60352