DIY Baseball Lamp

In this instructable, I show you how to make a simple baseball lamp. This super easy DIY baseball decor project adds needed light fixtures to a man cave or baseball player’s room.

There are many things which are difficult to explain with words and images, so be sure to checkout the video tutorial.

Supplies

Lamp Kit

All Thread Lamp Pipe Kit

Irwin Combination Square

Band Saw or Jigsaw

4 Baseballs

Disc Sander or Orbital Sander

Digital Caliper

Drill Press or Cordless Drill

Drill Press Vise 4"

Hardwax Oil

Handheld Router

Router Bit (v-groove)

Hot Glue Gun

Lamp Shade

8" (length) x 8" (width) x 1" (thickness) square piece of wood

I used a piece of scrap IPE in my shop.

Step 1: Home Plate Dimensions

First, find or cut any piece of wood that is 8" x 8" square to be the base of the lamp (home plate).

You can change the size of home plate as long as you follow these measurement guidelines:  Back of home plate = x. Each side of home plate = x / 2. The 2 remaining sides are set at a 45 degree angle until they intersect.

Furthermore, the standard size of home plate is 17" (Back) x 8.5" (straight side) x 12" (angled sides).

Step 2: Cut Home Plate

First, trace home plate on your chosen piece of material with a pencil and a combination square. I chose a scrap piece of IPE wood.

Next, cut out the plate with a straight cut using a jigsaw or bandsaw. Remember, always cut outside the lines.

Step 3: Sand to Line

The really cool thing about cutting outside the lines is you get to sand up to the line accurately. Sand home plate up to the lines using a disc sander, drum sander, or a hand sander.

Medium grit-sanding pad or paper work well for sanding excess.

Step 4: Mark Center of Baseballs

First, make a mark on the baseballs in the same general area with a pencil. 

I chose an area on the ball that would minimize the logo/emblem once stacked on each other. Also, I chose 4 baseballs because they fit on the threaded rod perfectly with about a half inch of thread remaining on each side.

Step 5: Measure Lamp Rod

Use a digital caliper, regular caliper, or any measuring device to measure the width of the threaded rod. As you can see, the rod one is 3/8".

The threaded rod serves as a nice metal tube for the electrical set of wires to go through.

Step 6:

Secure the ball with clamps or a vise. Next, drill a hole using a drill press or hand drill on the mark with a drill bit slightly larger than the rod.

The holes I drilled were too small for the rod to fit, so I stepped up to a 1/2″ bit. 

Step 7: Lamp Rod Assembly

Place the baseballs on the threaded rod and secure them in place with the lock nuts/washers that came with the lamp kit. Next, make sure to leave about a half inch of threaded rod on each end.

This allows you to easily secure the remaining lamp pieces and it can be attached to the base plate.

Step 8: Thread Wire

Carefully thread the wire through the rod. Next, attach the remaining pieces for the DIY baseball lamp kit to one side.

Step 9: Find Center of Home Plate

Find the center of the plate using a combination square, speed square, or tape measure and mark the center with a pencil. This is where you will drill the hole for the threaded pipe.

Step 10: Drill Hole in Base

Drill a hole using a drill or drill press the same size as the threaded rod, which was 3/8" in my case. This hole can always be widened later if needed.

You may want to place a scrap of wood on the underside of the plate to prevent tear out.

Step 11: Roundover Edges

Use a router with a 1/4" roundover bit on the top edges. You can also use an orbital sander, or sandpaper to accomplish this as well.

Step 12: Wood Sanding

Sand the entire plate using 80 grit, then 120 grit, then 220 grit sandpaper.

This will provide a very smooth surface.

Step 13: Apply Finish

Use a damp rag or paper towel to remove the dust from the wood and raise the grain. Apply your favorite finish to the wood for the DIY baseball lamp. 

Step 14: Conceal Wire

Use a router with a straight bit or v-groove bit to cut a 1/4" channel on the underside of the plate to the hole. Don't cut too deep - just wide and deep enough for the lamp cord.  This provides a channel for the baseball lamp cord to rest in order for the lamp to sit flat on the surface & to hide the cord. 

Also, I used a v-groove bit set at 1/4" deep. I kept the line as straight as possible, but didn't concern myself with it too much because this will be on the underside of the plate.

Step 15: Attach Lamp Rod to Base

Pull the excess lamp wire through the hole in the base from the baseball lamp.

Test the rod to make sure it fits in the hole.

There are a few ways to secure the rod to the plate. Since I used IPE, I was able to simply screw the rod into the 3/8" hole I drilled. As a result, it fit perfectly. 

If you are using a softer wood like Pine, you will need to secure the rod to the plate using the provided nuts/washers in the kit. The kit contains detailed instructions on how to do this.

Step 16: Hot Glue Wire in Place

Before proceeding to this step, get a light bulb and test the baseball lamp to make sure it works.

Once the rod is secured to the plate and you verified the lamp works, use glue to secure it inside the channel. I recommend you use hot glue b/c it dries within 5-10 minutes and can easily be removed if needed to do repairs to the lamp.

Step 17: Final Assembly

Install the remaining baseball lamp hardware for the top of the lamp along with a shade of your choice. 

I used the lamp shade from the lamp I replaced and it worked fine.

Step 18: Conclusion

I hope this instructable provided you with value. Please feel free to leave a comment if you have any questions - I'm happy to help.

Be sure to checkout my YouTube channel and my website for more DIY tutorials.