Floor Lamp

WIth the dog days of summer approaching, my mind wandered to lamps and I though about making something.
There has been some interest in this lamp from about 10 years ago posted "over there" so I though I should move it here.

I still hate the shade (Much happier with my latest shade designs) but it is what it is.
(original post with a couple of more pictures and comments added)



Twas my first lamp and this was built on kind of a lark.

We had an el-cheapo pole lamp that my wife kept bugging me to somehow dress it up. My intent was to basically use the parts and make a cyborg version with wood. I then got to looking at some pictures of Mission style floor lamps and…. well, you know how it happens.

The wood is Red Oak with Bartley's Jet Mahogany gel stain.

I rarely design something to spec. I usually get an image in my head and then see what dimensions of stock I have around the shop that can be used. I knew I needed something about 6' tall with an overhang for a recliner.
I also like working with LED lighting and have made a fair number of custom glass art frames to highlight my wife's fused glass projects. They are also wonderful in that you are not limited to standard lightbulb shapes and sizes when designing.

Not knowing where it would end up being used, I allowed for the shade to adjust from a bit over 3 feet up to 5 feet.

So it began, an adjustable overhang floor lamp that uses LEDs. The LEDs are some left over Bridgelux units I had on hand. This lamp style could have used a standard bulb, but where is the fun in that?. The LEDs are mounted to an old computer CPU heat sink to keep things cool without the need for a fan. They do put out a lot of heat and need cooling to get the 50K hours of expected life.

The LEDs are the yellow dots (phosphorus coating over a UV emitter) on a small white aluminum heat sink, about 1" sq. The rest is a standard mount to provide electrical connection and a lens to cover the device.

I used a 450ma power supply in the base, but my wife screamed when I turned it on, said it was a bright as the sun. Toned it down with a 350ma supply and all was better.



This was low-profile enough to fit at the top of a typical Mission style shade. Making the shade was the hardest part. After three attempts I finally got the dimensions and angles close enough so I wouldn't hate myself every time I saw it (cutting with compound angles is not fun). Calculating the angles and such is easy enough, especially if you use some of the available calculators on-line. The problems begin when you need to set a table saw to 27.23 degrees. You can get close, but any errors in the angle and/or the length of the parts will be compounded (and problems begin).

I feel the shade may be a tad oversize for the general scale of the lamp (there is always next time to fine tune the dimensions).
The shade material is mica sheet. It has a nice glow when the light is turned on. It could use more details to break up the surface but at this point I was just glad enough to have something that wouldn't fall apart.

Also think the mica was too dark and I now use the next available "density" for better color.

In my mind, Mission style stuff begs for copper. The wires are run through 3/4" copper pipe that I experimented with trying to patina. There is also another pipe used as a counter balance, without which the lamp would be very tippy.

The pipe carrying the wires was fumed with ammonia then heated with a propane torch. This turned the copper a very deep blue, but it lacked the 'crustiness' I wanted. I then used some salt/vinegar to get the crusty green. It needed more work but I thought it was good 'nuff and left it at that. I wasn't working with any master plan, I just tried something and then tried something else. The lead filled counterweight was done in reverse, first the salt/vinegar then a misting with ammonia. Way too ugly. I'll eventually strip it down and re do it so it matches the lamp post pipe.

The center "block" in the post keeps the lean structure rigid and provides a place to break out the wiring for a power switch.

The parallelogram pivoting system was easy enough, 1/2" dowels are used for the pivots and some #6 copper wire used as pins to keep it all together. The wires are enclosed in a slot cut into the lower arm. The slot was then capped with a matching piece from the same board, essentially making a hidden hole through the arms center.

Overall I think this may be a project worth trying again. Aside from making the shade, the rest was actually quite simple and used minimal materials.

I wish I had better pictures, there literally was no place around the house to take pictures without background clutter.