Light Bulb Lamp: Another Option

I too saw the post of the light bulb lamp ad got started working on my own. I was hoping to put out an instructable before anyone else did, but BUMPUS beat me to it (cheers mate!)

THIS POST IS NOT MEANT TO PRESENT A "BETTER" WAY, IT SIMPLY PRESENTS A DIFFERENT WAY.

This instructable covers the entire process, from a new light bulb to a new lamp. It includes the hollowing out of the bulb. However, you'll need to come up with your own base for the lamp.

Special thanks to nm918273 for the original instructions on how to hollow a light bulb.

Bigger thanks to my little bro Tanner for shooting the pics.

I did my best to include a lot of photos and detailed steps.

Hope you enjoy it.

~Tom

Step 1: Materials Needed!

Materials:
-Light Bulb
-Salt
-Pop Can
-Old Sock
-Lamp Oil

Tools:
-Needle Nose Pliers
-Flathead Screw Driver
-Exacto Knife
-Big Ol' Nail
-Scissors

Comments

[abstracted]

awesome...here are a couple of my versions

[jvet]

Very cool, the only thing i first noticed is that a european lighbulb is different.
the glass blub is completely closed, the electronics are cast inside the glass, its an way to make te lamp more effecient and safe. im only looking for a good solution to refil it !

[bensspace]

i used to have a friend that was in a gang he died a few years ago but he used somthing like this to set fires

[honigkuchen]

all the glass that had to break during this process really refused to do anything. maybe for the german lightbulb I used that looked a little diffrent from the one you are using.

[wilderness]

oh, and i forgot to say - you might find the white coating doesn't come off with just salt, too - i guess it's a different material. I got it off with salt and water, but sand and water might be better!

[wilderness]

Hey Honigkuchen,

if German light bulbs are like English ones, then they're much more stubborn than the American ones seem to be, but it's still possible to do this. Use something soft to protect the bulb, grip it firmly by the metal part, and tap th black glass repeatedly, very hard, using controlled force and a small scredriver or other instrument. Eventually the glass will start to crack, and by combining the various tricks mentioned above you should be able to clear out all the black glass. It took me about 20 minutes per bulb, with a 50% success rate (the bits you're trying to break are much stronger than the part you want to keep whole...)

I recommend wearing glasses or goggles and working somewhere easy to sweep!

Have fun,
Jethro

[nafango22]

couldnt you use water to clean the bulb?

[Rmstrjim]

Water alone will not remove the residue, you need an abrasive media or thin-necked toothbrush/pipe cleaner. (fiddly, just use the abrasive)

[CYNICALifornia]

I guess, but I'm not really sure. The salt is super quick and efficient. Plus, you dry time and no water spots. Know what I mean?

[b1tbang3r]

 Does anyone think it'd be possible to make your own actual electric light bulb out of a burned out one?? I mean, yeah you could just buy a new one, but it'd be fun just to try. Kind of like if you were to take the old filament out and fill the entire thing with mineral oil (which is surprisingly not conductive) and then put in a new filament. I really wanna try it just to say I did..... maybe I will..........

[everage]

I just finished mine, its an awesome idea. It actually made me join here. I used two magnets, a small one inside the bulb and one hidden under a tealight shell. Now it stands stable and i can lean it over to a side without worries.

eve

[Eag;p]

molotov-cocktail

[Whitedude0728]

lol exactly what i was thinking.

[nobody_95]

mee too

[El Mano]

That's really cool. You could also make some sort of wall mount.

[tippmannphreak]

Umm. This looks like something that would be on the anarchist cookbook. haha. Good instructable nonetheless

[s_allen40]

"..looks like something that would be on the anarchist cookbook" Come again ?

[loki233]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Anarchist_Cookbook  

basically tippmannphreak is saying it looks like an improvised incendiary device, like a molotov cocktail  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molotov_cocktail

[MrLouque]

 Sweet instructable, got to try it

[Awsome Fairy]

What fuel is better: Paraffin Oil (aka. Kero), Metho/Alcohol or Oil. What do they smell like, how flammable are they, if it spills out of a light bulb and brakes what one would do more damage? All those kinds of things I want to know Thanks

[PKM]

Paraffin/Kero smells weird (slightly sweet and petrol-y), has a very bright but slightly sooty flame. As a pure liquid it's not actually very flammable but if it soaks into carpet or something it will be.

Meths (that purple stuff) smells like neat alcohol, has a much dimmer flame (not great for lighting unless you make a mantle or something) but is much cleaner burning. It is *very* flammable, meths spills are dangerous so i wouldn't recommend it for an unstable lamp design like this one.

Lamp oil (if that's what you mean by oil) smells better, burns a little cleaner than paraffin and has a nice bright flame but is more expensive. I don't know how flammable it is if spilled.

I wouldn't try burning other types of oil, veggie oil has some water content so spits/crackles a lot, smokes and doesn't smell very good, and I haven't tried engine oil or other types but I'd steer away from it. Paraffin or lamp oil are probably your best bet.

[sharlston]

veggie oil is fine all my lamps run off the stuff

[carcharhinus]

does anyone know if you can make colored lamp oil by simply adding food coloring?

[sharlston]

yes but the flame wont be coloured

[sharlston]

if you made the wick go throught the colouring aswell as the oil then yes

[CYNICALifornia]

Food coloring is water based, so probably no dice. I've seen colored oils before though.

[AustenQn]

cant it blow up?

[Falling_Jihad]

wow this looks like the potential arson cause to me. lol cool stuff though i think i would much rather have a larger base than that though.

[kreeperjoe]

Great Instructable! question would you happen to know of any ways to make oil's at home that give off a pleasant fragrance? im going to make more just so i can put them in some geocache's

[Bigev]

Geocache! Brilliant! I love these, and can never find enough excuses to make them.

[ewilhelm]

This project was mentioned in Popular Mechanics's 10 DIY Gifts for Friends and Family.

[MJTH]

Wood there be any possibly of the bulb cracking because of the heat?

[CYNICALifornia]

I've burned my light bulb lamp for many hours and have had not problems yet. Thus far I'd answer your question with a 'I doubt it', but am always open the possibility of a freak accident. (Like the invention of silly putty)

[kate the librarian]

Thank you for the clear instructions! This was my first attempt, and it was perfect. I ended up using a decorative halogen bulb, and an old wash cloth for the wick, as the sick turned out not to be 100% cotton! Ha. I had trouble finding a good base, but ended up setting it in a bowl of sand and river rocks I'd been using for candles, and it's beautiful! Thanks again ;)

[Fungible]

Many stores also sell totally clear bulbs, if you want to save time and skip the clearning. Salt is a clever way to do it, though!

[Spinergy]

Yep, easier to start with a clear bulb. Also... the spherical "globe" type bulbs would make a very nice lamp.

[Fungible]

Good point - the globe bulbs would look very nice, and also likely be a lot more stable, as they'd be less top-heavy, since they're uniformly curved.

[rotf101]

Hm. I was just thinking. Maybe a floodlight might have been easier? After all, you wouldn't need a stand for it. =)

[Newblit]

Tried that already problem is that you can't get the white off of it I ended out breaking the glass because I was using pieces of broken glass because the salt wasn't abrasive enough and the glass barely even working. After I broke the glass I tried scraping it off with my finger nail, that didn't even work so you can't do it unless your flood lamp is totally clear already

[Pyrocantha]

I saw glass "bulb" containers at Hobby Lobby today. The brass part unscrews and you fill it and decorate it, whatever....It was rather heavy and had a flat base. All you would have to do is drill a hole for the wick, fill and go. Takes all the "Brainwork" out of it, but is is safer for clutzes like me!