Hanging Lamp Design

Hanging Lamp, Fabric Shade

I came up with this hanging lamp design many years back when the only power tools I had quick access to were a small hobby lathe, a drill press, scissors. and a sewing machine. 

A simple lathe turned hub for the bulb socket and power cord, and six lengths of 3/8" hardwood dowel are all the wood parts needed.  

Lathe-Turned Hub

Making the pattern, cutting out the shade panels, then sewing them together with slots to slip over the dowels was the hard part.  I had to remember a few sewing tricks I learned when I was a kid watching my mother sew clothes for family members. The seam edges between each panel are hidden in the dowel slot. 

Light On

I have 5 of these I made.  The hub and the fabric used each slightly different.  The lamps have no switch, so I use touch plate switches with each one.  The lamps plug into the control boxes for the switch, which then plugs into a wall outlet. In every room where I have one of these lamps the touch plate is set where it is easy to reach.  

To drill the holes I used this adjustable angle fixture to hold the lamp hubs under my drill press.  I positioned the hub, drilled a hole, rotated it 60 degrees, then repeat 5 more times for each hub.  I carefully marked 6 evenly spaced spots on the hub for the center of each dowel hole.  

Jig Rising

The hubs are 2.5" diameter and vary between 2.5" and 3.25" tall. 

It took some drafting skills I learned in high school to figure out the pattern shape for the cloth shade panels.  Nothing special about the fabric I used. A couple seem to have faded a bit near the top close to the bulb.  When assembled there is a gap between the hub and the cloth for any heat from the bulb to rise up through. 

I now have a rotary axis on my CNC, so making the hubs is an easy repeatable step should I want to make any more. While I can't drill angled holes on the rotary axis, I can have the CNC mark where each dowel center is before taking it off the rotary axis.  The shape could also be a hexagon rather than a cylindrical lathe turned shape.  This would tighten up the detail continuity of the design. With flat sides rather than a round shape it would be easier to drill the holes for the dowels accurately.  The hub shape could also be modified to better relate to any pattern the chosen fabric may have.  Choosing the fabric before finalizing the hub shape is recommended. Or simplify it to intentionally not compete with the detail in the fabric. 

The shade panels are 12.25" tall + another inch for a half inch hem on top and bottom. 12.75" from seam to seam on the bottom edge 2.5" from seam to seam on the top edge. Extra is needed for the slots for the dowels.  The dowels angle down from horizontal roughly 35 degrees. 55 degrees up from the vertical axis of the hub. These specifications are all arbitrary.  You could change the slope and size of the shade.  

I may make one more as I have a box of fabric scraps, plenty of wood to make a hub, and several 3/8" dowel sections that need a project to justify their existence.  Perhaps I could use a different fabric for each panel to make the shade, eh? 

Finding the right socket and cord hanging lamp kit is the last challenge.  Mine have a 15' cord.  Most I've seen are designed to hang with just a decorative bulb. Too much unneeded plastic around the socket.

Some lathe turning, hole drilling and sewing skills required for these hanging lamps. A fun and creative project given the variety of available fabrics out there and fairly common light hardware used.  I recommend using a dimmable LED bulb that will work with the touch pad switch.  Not all LED bulbs are the same. 

Comments welcomed!

4D 

Small Boxes from Hardwood Scraps

 As I now have more trays than I need, yet also more scraps to use up, it is time to move on to making boxes from the thicker scraps.  My trays.

Clamping the boards down to CNC the box varies depending on the block and what shape of box I want to make from it.  Some were held in my low profile vise.  Some were wedged in place, and some were held with clamps on the left and right when the board was longer than the box being cut from it. 

Assorted Boxes

To get a good fit for the lids I used the same inside vector that I used to pocket out the box to make a rabbet on the lid perimeter.  A 3 degree tapered end mill was used, but I told the software it was a 1/8" end mill.  That let the lids slip on easily but snap/wedge tight.  I cut the lid shape 1/16" too large, then trimmed them flush to the box shape with a flush trim bit on my router table. 

Lids On.

Several nice scraps of hardwoods were used, including Ash, Birch, Bubinga, Cherry, Koa, Maple, and both red and white Oak. 

Making small boxes was an easy way to use up several scraps.   A long scrap I would cut in half and glue the halves together to make a shorter thicker scrap more useful to make a box from. Thin scraps got used up to make the lids.  Sometimes the same wood as the box, and sometimes a different wood. The little red Bubinga box has a lid made from a Koa scrap.

Comments welcomed.

4D 

Mortise and Tenon Miter Joint?

 This sample languished forgotten in the bottom of my box of Sample CNC cut joinery.  I was sorting out that box and nearly threw it away as it appears to be a simple miter joint.

Looks Simple

Pulling it apart reveals the inner mortise and tenon that hold it together.

Surprise Inside!

The tenon was cut from what is normally cut off to make a miter joint. Mating mortise cut on the other side face. There is no weak cross grain in the tenon. This tenon also keeps the faces aligned when gluing up the miter. While I cut both sides on my CNC, I'm pretty sure this could be duplicated by a clever craftsman without using a CNC. 

Very much the best of two joint types working together to make a strong connection where there is normally a need for added reinforcement. 

With wider boards, each side can have a tenon and a mortise.  Identical cuts using a CNC.  Tenons on each side slide into the mortises on the other side. 

Comments encouraged!

4D 
 

 

Small Trays Made From Leftover Scraps

I have A CNC. I have a bottle of wood glue, and several clamps. I also have several small odd shaped wood scraps begging to be used for something useful.   

Small scraps glued up can make larger boards. Here are a few shallow wood dishes/trays all made from glued up scraps.  

This first oval dish was cut from three maple scraps glued together. I used my CNC to cut the top recess and rounded edge.  Then used my router table to bevel the side 11.25 degrees, and follow that up with a small 45 degree transition to the bottom.  

Oval Tray

This second tray was the best shape to make from two glued up corners saved from a hexagon table top cutout. 

Diamond Tray

This walnut version was made from several walnut scraps. Add in patching two screw holes with walnut dowels to increase the potential final size. For this one I used the modelling tool in Aspire to create the center recess. It also has a 45° chamfer on the bottom edge.  A rounded rectangle.

4" x 6"

This 4" x 4" Cherry example required several bit changes, and used the VCarve toolpath to make the crisp inside corners of the dish. It used up the left over corners from a round plant stand cutout. Its shape echoes the shape of the glued up corners. 

V-Carved Cherry Dish

Several bit changes were required.  Bits used (in order) were a 3/16" end mill to clear out the center area of the dish, then a 60 degree V-Bit to slope the sides and create the sharp inside corners. A 1/4" end mill cut a clearance path for the final bit and profile out the final shape.  Last bit used on the CNC was a side cutting V-bit to put a groove around the sides as shown below.

VCarved, V-cut, and beveled. 

As with all of these trays some follow up work was needed.  The waste perimeter was roughly cut off using my bandsaw.  A flush trim bit cleaned up the bottom edge on my trim router table.  Lastly a 45 degree chamfer bit beveled the bottom edge. 

Beveled bottom and side groove.

Lastly, an octagon dish. Made from one scrap board nearly 11" long and 2.6" wide.  It had a rough bark side.  I cut it in half and glued the good sides together to make a roughly 5" x 5" block close to 7/8" thick. The inner and outer sloped sides were 3D toolpaths.  The center of the top was a pocket toolpath to bring it down to the bottom of the inner sloped sides.  Hard maple with tight grain cut nicely on the CNC. 

Octa Dish

These are small examples of the value you can find from small scraps of wood left over from previous projects. Glue thin scraps together to make thicker boards that may be more useful. Any scraps with a straight edge can usually be glued up to make a larger board.  A trip across a jointer may be needed to face the edges for the best glue joint. I have a small benchtop jointer that is perfect for this task. Its small expose blade gap between tables make it safer than larger jointers with a larger expose blade gap to slide over. 

So save those odd scraps.  When boredom or inspiration strikes take a few and glue them up to make a larger board that can become something useful.  

Comment encouraged!

4D

Steep Dovetail Corner Joint

 

Face to Face

This is a sample I made to show my Furniture Design students one way to connect wood at a steep corner.   A variation was used to connect the top of A-frame legs on a CNC controller cart the students made. The parts slide together, so technically this is more of a French Dovetail solution. 

Open for Inspection

Careful layout of vectors was require to guide the dovetail bit.  Each half had to be clamped at an angle so the bit could travel level through the ends. My compound angle clamping fixture was used for that task. 

One half slides down into the other

There is a taper to one side of the cuts to compensate for the wide top sliding down to the narrow base of the dovetail shape. This joint only slides together in one direction. 

Tails into Slots

Once together there is no play between the halves,  Snug tight.  This sample has been abused for inspection by students and is a bit worn.  A little glue and the dovetail interlocking would make a very strong steep corner joint. 

Snug Together

I am considering using this joint for the corners of a triangular mantel clock box frame.  With a shallow dovetail corner variation at the top of the triangle. 

All Stood Up

Ends were trimmed so when assembled the end would be flat across. At the top the dovetail pattern is evident and interesting. 

I realize this steep angle is a rare occurrence in projects.  Knowing this joint is possible and how to cut it though keeps it on my menu of options when designing furniture and accessories.  

Comments are encouraged. 

4D