If you are looking for lathe chucks you can buy backplates and machine them to accept commonly available chucks – but if you are looking for tailstock drill chucks looking at lathes.co.uk they appear to be 0MT which are harder to locate.
As a simply built lathe it is possibly easier to renovate than some designs, but are these skills available to you? because paying someone else to do so could be expensive.
A fully equipped Flexispeed Meteor 2 sold on eBay earlier this year for £835. This for a machine at least 40 years old is probably about the same as it would cost to buy and equip a modern mini lathe – except you will have to search for and perhaps modify or make parts and accessories instead of walking in off the street and buying them.
As to whether it is suitable for the task you have suggested – probably, depending on the prototype you choose. Just checked the drawings for the 7 1/4" Tich and you could fit the wheels and cylinders on either lathe!
The mini lathe may have a larger capacity, but if the flexispeed is backgear equipped it may be more suitable for turning wheel castings if they fit on the machine.
Go figure!
Edited By Nick Clarke 3 on 24/11/2018 22:01:03
Edited By Nick Clarke 3 on 24/11/2018 22:09:40