PURPOSE: To disperse wear flaws, etc. generating in a roll uniformly in its axial direction and to improve its durability by moving a roll in its axial direction, after moving the roll supported by a supporting roll in the direction of a pass line, and bringing the roll into contact with the supporting roll thereafter.

CONSTITUTION: Cylinders 10, 11 installed oppositely at housings 7, 8 are synchronously extended and contracted in the mutually reverse directions, to move each leveling roll 2 in the line direction through guide rails 9, hooks 6, a d roll chocks 5 thereby separating the roll 2 from a backup roll 3. Next, rocking levers 17 are rocked by extending shifting cylinders 15, to shift each leveling roll 2 in its axial direction through a holding frame 12 and the chocks 5. Thereafter, each roll 2 is brought into contact with the top of the roll 3 by extending and contracting the cylinders 10, 11. By peforming properly said operation at every pass, the defects generating in the rolls 2 are uniformly dispersed in their axial directions respectively.