As a lather, my reaction is that you won't grip tight enough to resist the forces of cutting.
Try cross-posting to uk.rec.models.engineering?
I have to make a bunch of small parts on my lathe. No real problem because I
> have an old Toshiba lap top turning the handles for me.
> I could stand there all day chucking up the blanks, but then I thought, how
> much better if I could automate the chucking process and make myself a bit > redundant.
> The problem seemed to be opening and closing the chuck, then I thought I
> might use centripetal force. Anyway, I've started making a sort of 3 jaw
> chuck with 2 fixed jaws and the other sprung lightly shut, but having a fly
> weight to pull it tight.
> Motor off = a loose grip while I feed it.
> Motor on = a tight grip while I cut it.
> Has anyone else played with anything like this?