Articulated Lamp.

Today was the day I would fulfil a promise made to my better half and create a lamp for the place that she enjoys to read.

For this project I had a few pieces of laminated oak I had salvaged from a chair made by a popular Swedish home store. I also had a lamp fitting from an old lamp which my helper for the day happened to break some time ago.

The tools I used where, Table saw, Sander, Drill/drill Press, Hand Plane and a few basic tools almost everyone has. This could have been done minus the power tools with more time needed but similar results achieved.

I decided on the desired width of the arms for the lamp and set the table saw fence 20mm from the blade to make my rip cuts. Taking my time to pass these through the blade as the ends where curved and the saw required to be raised at these points.

Over to the drill press where I clamped the paired pieces of the arm and drilled with a 6mm drill bit ready to receive the M6 bolts and wing nuts in the two elbow joints for the final assembly.

Once this was all complete I took the pieces which would make up the foot for the lamp from part of a pine door which was left over from a previous project which I have not covered but may document at some time. I squared the ends and ripped off the detail which made up the door panels.

Two more small pieces where ripped at the same width as the oak arms. One for the top of the lamp and the other I thought I might use for the bottom but I didn't require this in the end.

Once I had jointed the edges of the feet for a seamless fit with a hand plane, I then applied glue and clamped the two pieces which will later make up the foot.

While the glue was setting I took the oak pieces which make up the arm and began sanding all of the pieces and shaping the ends to match the curved ends the chair arms all ready had.

Some time late and the glue has dried and time to remove the doors original finish off the two parts which make up the feet. I then put a chamfered edge using my block plane on the tops of both parts to soften the look and I quite like the simple style of this.

I then took one of the small pieces to provide a brace for the top of the lamp. I planed the depth of this to make the oak arms and sanded it to replicate the curve of the oaks end. Glue and clamps applied to this part.

Now comes another round of glue for the feet, I just eyeballed the location of the top piece which looks centred and further back to provide more stability to the lamp. Clamps applied and time for some lunch with my son while everything dries.

After a wee bite to eat I went I took the foot and the bottom of the lamps arm and marked where I would need to mortise ready to receive them. Over to the drill press to bore out most of the material to the desired depth for easy chiselling. Chisel and hammer in hand I then began removing and squaring the mortise.

I then drilled some more holes for the lamp wires through the foot and three more in the arms.

I wiped down all of the pieces ready to receive two coats of Danish oil. One liberal coat applied I then waited 15 minutes wiped off the excess waited 3 hours which I think is plenty time and repeated this process for the final coat.

Once everything was dry after an night in my shed my son and I assembled it using the two M6 bolts and wing nuts, cable pulled through the pre drilled holes, lamp shade fitted and plug connected.

Time for a bit of posing next to his hard work and time to deliver it to its final resting place for the Mums enjoyment.

Thank you for taking the time to read my Instructable and I hope you enjoyed it as much as we did making it.