Ikea Light Madness

[George Guadiane]

Some of you may know about the LED lights available at Ikea... $9.99 each (I bought 16 - a few too many).
In any event, I always have light issues, so I thought I'd gang them up and use them at the lathe, and maybe even be able to line them up and use them to back light THIN turnings. That is yet to be seen.
I used a piece of walnut to make this articulated arm thing, took a few hours, as I made it as I went along, figuring it out as I went.

Brandon my (step) son cut the wire cage off of its main shaft and then cut it short so that I could use the post to mount the arm on. I drilled the walnut JUST snug and there were stubs left on the post, so the fit was tight... The pin holder for the shaft is a bit sloppy, I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do about that, but this was what I came up with...

Comments and Critiques welcome.

[David E Keller]

It looks like a hydra!:eek: Pretty creative way to shed a little light on your turnings.

[Greg Just]

I saw these in the Ikea catalog and thought about buying a few. The Ikea isn't real close so I don't get there very often. There was a special from Peachtree a few weeks ago and I bought their's and I am disappointed in the output.

George - are these bright?

[George Guadiane]

I saw these in the Ikea catalog and thought about buying a few. The Ikea isn't real close so I don't get there very often. There was a special from Peachtree a few weeks ago and I bought their's and I am disappointed in the output.

George - are these bright?
Um, how can I say this???

Oh, I know:

YES!!!:D

[gary Zimmel]

Being an extremist I can relate to this....
Sweet job George.

[David Gilbert]

I was at Ikea in Philly two weeks ago and bought three of these lights. I may have to buy some more but doubt that I will compete with George. I did get one in each of the colors (red, black and silver). They aren't real bright but you can position them within a few inches of your turning so they work out great. They also seem to be pretty indestructible I looked on the web and it appears that these 4.2 Watt units might be equal to about 24 - 28 watts from a tungsten bulb. These lights are at a very nice price point for their performance.

Cheers,
David

[Alan Zenreich]

I posted a page on my web site that shows the various ways I'm using these lights in my shop. I've only purchased 15 of them so far <vbg>

Because I'm not allowed to link to the page here <shrugs>, if you'd like to see some photos including some magnetic bases I've made, go to my web site it's my last name plus .com, and then to the What's New page. Select LED task lighting and maybe get a few ideas of how you might use these lights.

[jason margeson]

ingenious use of the light! I have the same one except its a floor model. GF might get mad if i took it out of the living room though:D

Surprising amount of light comes from those Ikea LEDS

[David DeCristoforo]

That's downright scary!

[alex carey]

love it, great execution.

[Ray Bell]

Alan,
What is the tray on top of your lathe motor?

[Duff Bement]

There goes your "POOR LIGHTING EXCUSE":D

[Alan Zenreich]

Ray,

The tray is a magnetic base parts tray from Harbor Freight. I have them strewn all over the shop. They are great for holding small parts, chuck keys, drill bits, collets, screws etc.

Every once in a while the store has them on sale for $1.99 and I pick up a stack of them.

[Fred Belknap]

First thing that came to mind was the movie, "War of the World" :D

[George Guadiane]

First thing that came to mind was the movie, "War of the World" :D
Fred,
That fact almost stopped me from buying any of the lights in the first place and/or building the contraption - but I'm glad my childhood drive in movie experience didn't prevent me form proceeding. I really like the setup so far!

[George Guadiane]

Fred,
That fact almost stopped me from buying any of the lights in the first place and/or building the contraption - but I'm glad my childhood drive in movie experience didn't prevent me form proceeding. I really like the setup so far!

I managed to get the lathe hopping around pretty well with a large, somewhat off balanced piece of East Indian Rosewood and I can now say that the lights bounced a bit, but stayed almost exactly in place. The more I use the setup, the more of the lights I use and the more refined the positioning gets... I could almost turn all of the other lights in the shop (um "STUDIO") off and still have good light on the lathe.
Next, I'm mounting some on my bandsaws and grinder.
Alan Z, I picked up a couple of those magnetic trays (from an Ace, for more money, but) I used the clear plastic packaging to make covers for them, holds my little magnetic stuff AND keeps the dirt out. Thanks for having it in the picture, it made my life a little better!

[Christopher K. Hartley]

So George, what happens when the tentacles from this dust monster reach out and grab you and mount you to the Mustard?:eek:

[George Guadiane]

So George, what happens when the tentacles from this dust monster reach out and grab you and mount you to the Mustard?:eek:
I might finally get some REAL work done? :)

[Chris Stolicky]

Run. Its ALIVE.....

I like the idea and it will be interesting to see if the arms stay stiff enough over time and don't get droopy like some of the flexible lights on other tools. Finally, a good use for that bracket, huh?

Good to see you and the future pen turner this past friday.


I have to ask, on pic 3, "Kukui Shampoo?" Is this similar to the "Hunts" oil? :D

[Harvey Schneider]

these 4.2 Watt units might be equal to about 24 - 28 watts from a tungsten bulb

Light from LED's is very directional, so although the total light output may be equivalent, the brightness will be better.
To put it in simple terms, tungsten puts its light out in all directions while LED's put all their light out in one direction. So the tungsten light is spread thinner.
I suspect that I have made this as clear as mud.
An example:
I have a 1 Watt headlamp that is so bright that it is painful to look at (don't do that at home). I can stare at a 25 Watt tungsten bulb with only minor discomfort.
Harvey

[George Guadiane]

Run. Its ALIVE.....

I like the idea and it will be interesting to see if the arms stay stiff enough over time and don't get droopy like some of the flexible lights on other tools. Finally, a good use for that bracket, huh?

Good to see you and the future pen turner this past friday.


I have to ask, on pic 3, "Kukui Shampoo?" Is this similar to the "Hunts" oil? :D

Yes, after YEARS of wondering how to use that thing, this opportunity came up!
The shampoo bottle has VanAqua water based poly in it. I like to reuse plastic wherever I can.