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Thanks orson - will have to look.

Nelson, did you get this finished off?

If not, this might help... I think the setter likes lots of highlighting. Once you get the first diagonal bit, you should see a pattern forming - and the rest gets slightly easier. (Well, it did for me!)

Any more hints for the highlighting please - i can see "ends" in a diagonal??

Also 40a and 33d don't seem to work together unless both ends change?
For 40a i have sash and axel for 33d ??

The bit immediately before 'ends' is involved too.
The endings of 40 and 33 do both get changed.

Help please I am 1 adjustment short!
I have adjusted the ends of these:
Across answers: 7, 12,13, 29, 30, 35, 36, 39, 40
Downs: 7, 8, 33, 34

The last adjustment is not at the intersection of two answers. you need to find the character to get it.

I'm also curious as to whether there's any significance to the specific adjustments to be made. They don't seem to follow a pattern, or spell anything out. I guess there needn't be, but it would make the puzzle feel more complete, I think.

Also, 30 across - is "ate" the Scottish portion? (I don't see it in Chambers) and "etas" (which seems plural) the "rank" (which seems singlular)?

Clue was "Small Scottish portion rejected - it's rank!"

Ta.

'Tate' is in Chambers, a Scottish portion , pinch,tuft.

To make the quotation/character work I need an L at the end of 37a, but I have an R. And changing it doesn't seem to make a real word. Where am I going wrong?

I changed the R to an L - the final word isn't in Chambers, but I don't know if Inquisitor answers always are? The preamble mentions 'real' words and 37 A (changed) is a surname. I think the change has to be there because of the symmetry, layout of the highlighting.