I've ordered the bearings and will start on the spindle as soon as I've got a current project out of the way. I need to buy/make a couple of tools for this anyway.
When I start the build, I'll open another thread as this one is getting bloated.
Thanks to everyone who contributed to this, it really is a committee design.
If anyone spots a major flaw in my plans, speak up quick!
Cheers
Steve