Making A Taper Lamp

This story begins at the mill in search of extraordinary curly maple, a hunt for the finest materials to make a special lamp.  The mill is always a great adventure;  free roam to explore large stacks of the most beautiful hardwoods in search of perfect timbers - first choice from the finest materials - a privilege I don't take for granted.  It didn't take long to find the maple, a timber 2.25" thick x 6.5" wide x 9' long, kiln dried with exceptional curl; a little black walnut, a little more mahogany and the trip was complete...... but way too short.          

Curly maple timber..... the start of a Taper Lamp.....

first..... a light surfacing to check grain, color and discover imperfections that need to be worked around.....

.... a couple days elapsed time to allow the wood to adjust to a new environment.....

...... time to layout the lamp sections within the best grains....

..... then cut the timber to a manageable size......

...... and now to rough surface the timbers, fresh cuts to flatten the surfaces and see the grains and colors more clearly.....

....then some finer surfacing by hand for closer inspection...... 

..... first by a hand plane.....

......then by fine scrapers......

...... and finally, cutting the sections from the timbers that will form the lamp body and checking the grains for match....

... at last, all three sections are cut, time to match the grain sections.....

.... once the board sequence has been set it's time to resurface the sides that will be joined to remove twist and make perfect joints....

.... one last check for grain orientations....

...micro surfacing the sides to be joined with scrapers and sandpaper....

..... perfect joints without stressing the boards.....

...preparing to glue the first two sections together....

......... first two sections glued together.....

... and here you can see all three blocks glued together; this forms the complete rough blank for the lamp.....

...next, to square the block.  Up to now, with the exception of surfacing, the boards have been worked at a fairly rough level; now precision becomes important.  

the block, squared and ready to bore.  The grain and curl pattern for the finished lamp is beginning to show.  

.... The longitudinal center of the center board is center for the lamp, this is rarely the center of the block so this point needs to be determined precisely on both ends and then bored clear through the block.  This becomes the passageway for wiring and establishes the centers for turning.

  

..... once the block is bored through, the ends are temporarily plugged for holding points, so the block can be turned exactly on center.  This lamp is a spindle turning (turned between two centers).   If center of the lamp was not located correctly, the boards would appear out of alignment on the finished lamp......

...... once the glue has set for the plugs, the ends of the plugs are removed to form smooth end surfaces.  Then the longitudinal corners of the block are removed to avoid lots of drama during the initial turning to a round and once that's done the block is mounted into the lathe for turning but it's not quite ready to turn.....

This block now measures 6" x 6" x 18" and weighs 8-10 lbs. Initial turning will be at approx 650 rpm so it is a fast moving, substantial mass and it's significantly out of balance.  With large blocks like this, before turning begins, I like to do some preliminary balancing with a spokeshave and hand plane by removing excess material in key areas; it results in much smoother initial turning to a round.     

... it's surprising how little material needs to be removed for a big difference in balance.... and then the turning begins, first bringing the block to a round which is done in manageable sized sections...

until the complete block is round and balanced for higher speed turning.  Turning at higher speeds gives a much cleaner and smoother surface.

....the base end needs to be smoothed with a slight concave for a good level footing....

...then the hollow area for the base weight and cord entrance needs to be marked.... more on this later.....

...diameter of base needs to be sized to the correct diameter....

...length of the lamp is marked.....

.....and then the top portion is brought down to the correct diameter for the top of the lamp.... more on this later....

.....and once that's done, shaping the lamp body begins....

...the lamp sides are slightly arched, to achieve the correct arch I use a long straight edge and shape the sides down until the gap from the straight edge at the top and base of the lamp are ~3/8" (the photo shows the gaps at about 3/4").

... once the correct shape is cut, it's sanded to smooth the surface and blend the shape into a gentle arch..... and then the initial polishing sanding begins....

.... and here is the basic shape of the lamp after some initial polish sanding, the grains are becoming more apparent.  The curl in this lamp is quite pronounced, grain and curl matching came out very well and the curl appears to wind around the lamp body in a shallow elipse.... the curl will become more pronounced once the lamp is finished (the higher the gloss, the more pronounced the curl) but there's still a bit of finishing to do on the lathe before that.....

...back on the lathe, time to finish the top so first, the lamp is measured to the exact height....

..... the top of the lamp gets fitted with a turned, solid brass cap and a small, very precise flange needs to be cut on the top of lamp so the cap fits correctly... if the flange is too small, the cap fits too loosely, if it's to large, the cap doesn't fit... and it's a blind cut meaning, don't know how the fit will be until it's too late to correct an error..... so this cut better be right :) ..... the cap is measured very closely....

..... the depth is 3/64"...... and the width is just slightly over 2".  The cap needs to rest on the top of the flange so depth has to be precise..... and the width has to be just small enough to allow a little swelling from the finish and still have a lightly snug fit......

.... calipers are set to the exact diameter needed.....

.... and the waste area of the lamp block is used to get the precise diameter...

... then the flange area is cut to exactly the right diameter....

.... the remaining waste area is cut down so the precise height of the flange can be measured and cut.  Once that's done, the top bevel on the lamp body is cut and polished.  The brass cap should now fit snugly on top of the lamp and the bevel should allow a reveal for the rounded edge of the cap.... we'll know shortly.....

.... then the bevel at the base of the lamp is cut and polished....

.... and the hollow in the lamp base is cut.  This area is where a cast iron weight is concealed and the wire chase exits the lamp.... more on this when the lamp is assembled....

... cutting this hollow is fairly difficult because its hard to reach and needs to be sized correctly, the top portion of the hollow needs to be concave so the weight is seated correctly.  Once cut, the hollow and the base area of the lamp are sanded for finishing......

..... some final sanding/polishing for finish and at last, the lamp body is completed on the lathe.....

....the point of no return..... once the lamp is removed from the lathe, the remaining tenons on the top and base are removed... the lamp can't be returned to the lathe after this......

... the top tenon is trimmed with a chisel to perfectly flat so the brass cap can seat correctly.....

...... a trial fit of the cap..... very nice fit.... the cap rests very flat on top of the flange,  less than 1/64" lateral play and the top of the bevel allows just enough reveal of the rounded edge on the cap.  Once finish is applied the wood will swell slightly and the cap will fit perfectly...... not bad for a blind cut.... not bad at all :)

....... one last polish all over, the lamp is signed and numbered, then the first coat of finish is applied which is an oil.  The final finish will have a light satin patina so a different finish is used for successive coats.  The first 2-3 coats of finish usually don't look terrific because the wood absorbs the finish unevenly at first...... but, but, whoaaaaaaaa, already the grains are starting to pop.  This is just the beginning but it's when all the tedious attention to detail starts to pay off and when a handmade lamp really starts to shine over others....    

...... the first finish coat needs to dry very thoroughly so extra time is allowed for this.  Then it's rubbed out and the second finish coat is applied.  Between each coat, the lamp is rubbed out with 1500 grit paper; after the 3rd-4th coat these rubs actually polish the finish more than the wood.  Ultimately the lamp will be rubbed out to 3000 grit which is actually finer than an automotive finish. 

Here is the lamp in it's finishing fixture after 3 coats of tung oil.  The lamp needs to be positioned vertical when finish is applied so the finish flows out evenly around the lamp....

...... the brass hardware is normally received with a standard machining surface so it needs to be polished.  I use solid, turned brass hardware, it can be polished to a mirror finish and there's no worry about the plating wearing off or corrosion developing over time.  Each piece is buffed with jewelers rouge on an industrial buffer then a coat of clear lacquer is applied.... beautiful..... it's the way lamp hardware is supposed to look.

... then the lamp body is hand rubbed with 3000 grit to remove any fine dust particles in the finish and polished with special wax.  The finished piece is inspected for both visual and tactile qualities, no flaws in the finish and silky smooth to touch..... and now it's ready for assembly..... 

..... the lamp receives a threaded brass pipe/conduit which runs vertically through the lamp from base to top and forms the chase for the wiring; the switch/socket screws onto the top and a weight is attached at the base.  The pipe needs to be cut to length, ends polished and cleaned inside to remove the dirt and oils from machining.....

.... then the lamp is assembled and ready for wiring.....

... here you an see the base weight and routing for the wiring.  Each lamp is numbered and signed......

.... then the wiring is run through the lamp and the socket is attached....

.... and here is the fully wired lamp ready for testing.....

.... the wiring is tested then the harp, shade and finial are installed.  The finial for this lamp is dome pattern 8 and made from the same curly maple as the lamp.... 

...... and voila..... it's completed..... that's how a handmade lamp is made.... and because of the materials and craftsmanship, it will last until long after table lamps become obsolete....

.... and now for the next one.....