Glad I'm not the only one to have this crazy idea....

[rafezetter]

on a hunch I googled "sewing machine lathe" and this is one of the hits:

http://www.practicalmachinist.com/vb/antique-machinery-history/singer-sm-lathe-218316/

 

[AndyT]

I'm pretty sure I've got an old copy of the Woodworker showing something similar with bike parts - which might be easier to come by these days!

 

[dickm]

Yes, there was a similar idea using bike parts - Phil somebody, guy with a walrus moustache who made all sorts of slightly "novelty" items. Some time in the 1980s, from memory.