An assembly for forming a parison within a mold of a glass forming machine includes a plunger cylinder having a first end configured to be received by the mold and form the parison and a second end. The cylinder is configured for movement along a translational axis. An alignment plate defines a bore through which the cylinder extends. The alignment plate is configured to be affixed to a fixed member of the forming machine after movement of the alignment plate in a plane perpendicular to the translational axis to align the translational axis of the cylinder with a centerline of the mold. A height adjustment plate is spaced from, and hung from, the alignment plate and configured to support the second end of the cylinder. The height adjustment plate is movable relative to the alignment plate to cause a corresponding movement of the cylinder along the translational axis.