Steampunk Floor Lamp

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  Step 1

  Mark the inside of the pickle bucket with a pencil at 4 inches from the bottom.

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  Step 2

  Run a few lines of painter’s tape above the 4-inch marks. This will be your guide for the height of the cement.

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  Step 3

  Screw the 8-inch-long pipe into the flange.

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  Step 4

  Connect the reducing T fitting to the top of the 8-inch-long pipe. The side opening is where the power cord will exit the finished lamp.

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  Step 5

  Attach a wad of painter’s tape to the bottom of the flange. It doesn’t need to be a lot, just enough to keep it in place.

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  Step 6

  Stick the flange to the center of the bucket.

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  Step 7

  Spray the inside of the bucket with a light coating of cooking spray. This brilliant tip will help remove the hardened cement once it dries. It will also help remove any excess cement you may spread onto the pipe.

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  Step 8

  In the second bucket, mix the quick-dry cement according to the package directions. Usually, a 10-pound bag of cement requires about 2 cups of water, but you may have
  to add a little bit more if your mixture is too stiff. Always add the dry cement mix to the water, and not the other way around or it will be lumpy. Use a thick stick to stir with, and wear gloves to protect your hands. You’ll know the cement is ready when it’s the consistency of oatmeal.

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  Step 9

  Transfer the mixed cement to the first bucket with the putty knife a few scoops at a time. Smooth it around the pipe and try to get it as level as you can using the blue tape as a guide.

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  Step 10

  Lay out the pieces in the lamp kit. A typical lamp kit for converting a bottle into a lamp will contain: a lamp cord, a socket with an on/off switch, a socket shell, a check ring, a threaded rod, and a few ribbed rubber spacers.

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  Step 11

  Insert a tight fitting rubber spacer into the threaded end of the bushing coupling.

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  Step 12

  Push the threaded rod into the white ribbed bushing as snugly as you can with your hands. This will hold your lamp socket securely inside the coupling.

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  Step 13

  Screw the reducing coupling straight down onto the bushing coupling and the threaded lamp rod.

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  Step 14

  Screw the bottom of the socket cap from the lamp kit onto the threaded rod inside the reducing coupling. Twist it as far down as it will go.

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  Step 15

  Push the cut end of the lamp cord into the threaded lamp rod through the bottom of the socket assembly.

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  Step 16

  Slide the socket cover forward to expose the screws on either side. Attach the cord wires to the screws with a screwdriver and slide the cover back down.

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  Step 17

  Gently push the socket pieces together and pull the excess cord through the back of the assembly. Give the outside of the lamp assembly a good spritz of the flat metallic soft iron spray paint to match the other fittings.

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  Step 18

  With a pair of scissors, cut the male end off the lamp cord. It’s OK. It’s not plugged in.

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  Step 19

  Lay out the 8-inch-long pipe, two T fit- tings, the close nipple, the 6-inch-long pipe, and an elbow fitting.

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  Step 20

  Thread the lamp cord through the pipe pieces. It’s probably easier to thread and attach each fitting one at a time, but I wanted to show the order for assembly.

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  Step 21

  Tighten the pipes and fittings together and pull all of the excess lamp cord through.

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  Step 22

  Add the 10-inch-long pipe with a cap to the open end of the T fitting on the top lamp arm, and add the 21⁄2-inch-long pipe with a cap to the open end of the T fitting on the bottom lamp arm.

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  Step 23

  Once the cement for the lamp base is completely dry, probably about 24 hours, gently lift the base from the bucket. The cooking spray should have done the trick.
  If it does stick, don’t panic. Simply use a box cutter to cut the bucket off the concrete base. You can use a heavy grit sandpaper to smooth out any rough spots.

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  Step 24

  Attach the 3-foot pipe into the top of the reducing T fitting in the top of the lamp base.

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  Step 25

  Push the lamp cord through the top of the 3-foot pipe in the base.

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  Step 26

  Use a pair of needle-nose pliers to gen- tly pull the lamp cord through the side hole of the T fitting. Be careful not to puncture the cord with the pliers.

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  Step 27

  A compression adapter is the perfect fitting to extract your lamp cord. They are easiest to find in brass, so just give it a shot of flat metallic soft iron spray paint so it will match all of the other pipe fittings.

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  Step 28

  For the power cord, use a pair of scissors to cut off the female end of the fabric-covered extension cord. For safety reasons, make sure it’s not plugged in.

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  Step 29

  Thread the newly painted compression adapter over the cut end of the fabric- covered extension cord small end first.

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  Step 30

  Use a pair of scissors to cut back some of the fabric covering from the cut end of
  the extension cord, then split the inner cord in half about 3 inches. Strip back the white plastic to expose the copper wires under- neath on both sides.

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  Step 31

  Connect the power cord wires to the lamp wires by twisting the copper ends together. It doesn’t matter which side is connected to which, just be sure to keep the two wires separated and not touching.

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  Step 32

  Connect the power cord wires to the lamp wires by twisting the copper ends together. It doesn’t matter which side is connected to which, just be sure to keep the two wires separated and not touching.

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  Step 33

  Push the connected wires into the
  T fitting. Slide the compression adapter up the fabric cord and screw it into the open hole of the T fitting.

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  Step 34

  Attach the elbow on the top part of the lamp to the 3-foot pipe as tightly as you can.

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  Step 35

  Use a screwdriver to attach the lamp cage to the lamp socket.

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  Step 36

  Insert an Edison-style lightbulb into the socket and close the cage.

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  Step 37

  Plug it in, and switch the light on.

  Pat yourself on the back because you just built an awesome steampunk floor lamp.
  That wasn’t so hard, now was it? I told you that I’d walk you through it.

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