Marvin3242

Member
Hi all!

So for my next project I decided that I wanted to build something from Tatooine. I also have been hankering to build something at least slightly functional, and this is what I came up with:

Screen Shot 2017-06-24 at 10.12.19 PM.pngScreen Shot 2017-06-24 at 10.12.13 PM.png
View attachment 738532Screen Shot 2017-06-24 at 10.12.07 PM.png

Its a moisture vaporator lamp!

Well, technically its based around a candelabra socket :facepalm

Its scaled to fit around 1/4" aluminum tubing and be constructed out of standard size dowels, washers, and square stock. Eventually I may even try and make it a 3D Printed Kit. Its not an exact screen accurate scale model, but with greeblies and stuff added I hope it'll give the desired effect. The entire project thus far has been very affordable (sub $50) and I'm already thinking about possible improvements.

I've already started construction and its going well, but I'm currently flying out to Nebraska and won't be making much progress until I get back, so I thought I would go ahead and share now.

Thoughts? Comments? Concerns?
 
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Really cool!:thumbsup I think maybe the shade should be the color of sand. And maybe you find a way to add two light bulbs inside ;)

Thanks guys. The lamp shade and color is just there for testing purposes only :D i think a sandy tan color would look cool! And two lightbulbs=2 times the awesome! But idk the wire is pretty tight inside the tube. The cool thing is, this could be scaled up to be a full lamp or even a floor lamp
 
That's a brilliant idea! :thumbsup One of those "why didn't I think of that" ideas.
I think it'd make an incredible floor lamp. Desk lamp sure, but a floor lamp YES!
 
Ohhhh that is awesome. Floor lamp for certain! Starting with one of those cheap torchiere style lamps in white would make it all pretty easy. That is just brilliant (see what I did there?)! [emoji106][emoji106]
 
So I thought I would share some of the progress I have made. I'm currently in the design process for the floor lamp. With the desk lamp, however, I've run into a snag: I dont own a miter saw or drill press, so all of my cuts aren't perfectly square and most of my holes aren't perfectly centered, even when using a center punch and successively larger pilot holes. I also am having quite a lot of tear out. I'm currently searching around town for someone who does have one, maybe I can trade them with a finished lamp :D

Anyway.

My renderings above were all based on the dimensions of the objects I intend to use, using different diameter dowels, washers, and a simple candelabra kit.

IMG_9298.jpgIMG_9299.jpgIMG_9301.jpgIMG_9300.jpgIMG_9302.jpgIMG_9306.jpgIMG_9307.jpg
I started by rough cutting all my lengths of dowel. Here you can really see what I mean about the tear out and lack of square cuts
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I then started attaching various greeblies, to give it some visual interest. This is just a prototype, so if I overdo it its all very low risk
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What do y'all think? For a prototype I'm pretty pleased with the progress :). The tear out and edges really bother me, so hopefully I can remedy that soon. If anybody has some ideas or solutions please let me know!
 
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Hey @Marvin3242 ! You might try a higher speed setting on your drill (the highest), a fully charged battery, and a new drill bit to lessen the amount of "tear-out" you're experiencing.

You might also try a different style of drill bit like a Forstner drill bit.

Drill your small pilot hole completely through your dowl with a conventional drill bit.

Drill half way through the dowl following your pilot hole with the Forstner bit.

Flip your dowel over and drill out the other half of your final hole (following the pilot hole again to keep you centered).

Your choice of wood will also play a part in how much "tear-out" you encounter, but cutting the hole with a Forstner bit from each side should help lessen the amount of it that you get in your final piece.

As for the chunky cuts across the dowel, I'd use an X-Acto saw, or the like (finishing saw, pull saw, fine toothed hack saw, etc.) to cut your dowels. Sure it'll take 5 times longer, but you'll have a much prettier edge.

That or just cut over long, and sand to size! ;)

Good luck on the next batch! Your prototype is looking great so far!

p.s. You have some very interesting work stations. I hope you're careful where you lay your tools, you might end up brushing your teeth or combing your hair with the wrong kind of instrument! :eek
 
Drill your small pilot hole completely through your dowl with a conventional drill bit.
Drill half way through the dowl following your pilot hole with the Forstner bit.
Flip your dowel over and drill out the other half of your final hole (following the pilot hole again to keep you centered).
That or just cut over long, and sand to size! ;)
p.s. You have some very interesting work stations. I hope you're careful where you lay your tools, you might end up brushing your teeth or combing your hair with the wrong kind of instrument! :eek

Hahahaha very good point about the work station! My bench was a bit busy and with the number of projects that were going on I kept running back and forth between the sink (for painting water) and the bench. Finally I got tired and decided to just take the pics there and be done with it :facepalm:wacko

And I will definitely give that a shot with drilling from both sides! Thanks for the helpful info!
 
So I was fortunate enough to find a friend with a miter saw!
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And what's that I see? No saw tear out! All the cuts are nice and square, too
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Anyways, between 4th of July festivities last night I managed to run outside and give some of those recommended drilling practices a try and it worked splendidly. Needless to say I will be using that approach throughout the rest of the build. I also went ahead and pulled off some of the greeblies on the prototype in order to transfer them the final version
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