Flea Market Rescue, DIY Tripod Floor Lamp
- By Joan
- June 19, 2024
- 2 Comments
Flea Market Rescue, DIY Tripod Floor Lamp
Dating back to a flea market I went to in August of 2019, I am finally doing something with this old surveyors tripod. It got buried deep in my garage. It wasn’t until I cleaned out the garage that I finally decided that today was his day for an upcycle.
My garage really isn’t that large but I do have many layers of projects to upcycle…at least I did until I had the great garage clean out.
Of course it’s going to be a floor lamp.
The tripod was one of my many finds from that August of 2019 flea market. Most of the other goodies have already been upcycled or recycled.
As for what happened to all of those other finds, you can find them all here…a dolly coffee table a log floor lamp, padded seat, wire spool table, a bar cart, the shelves made from desk drawers, lamps made from jack stands, a star made from tobacco sticks, whale weathervane from a jack, coffee table from silo doors, and a pair of raised stencil headboards from a free roadside find.
This was the top of the tripod. I would have liked to have drilled a hole thru the top and threaded a lamp wire down thru the hole. Unfortunately none of my metal drill bits even put a dent in this metal.
On to plan B.
Plan B, was to cut a piece from an old oak table leg to which I could attach all the lamp components then attach the wood cutout to the tripod.
Either buy an old lamp with all it’s parts intact or a lamp kit available from Walmart, Lowes, Home Depot or Amazon.
I won’t go into all the nitty gritty details here on how to wire a lamp, instead I’ll refer you back to one of my past posts with step by step instructions. Don’t worry, I’ve included lots of pictures.
In order for your wood piece to sit flat on the tripod, you will have to cut a slot for which the wire can sit from the center hole to the edge. I used a circular saw and a plunge cut.
Making sure the cord is nestled in the channel you cut, apply a liberal dose of E6000 or Gorilla Clear construction adhesive to attach the wood block to the tripod. Clamp securely until dry.
This old surveyors tripod had some serious metal points on it’s feet where it would have been stuck in the dirt to keep it from moving.
The metal cutting blade on my grinder made short work of the points. Now it was just a matter of gluing on some plastic caps to keep the rough cut metal from scratching the floor.
Restore a Finish will condition the wood to be like new. It’s so easy, just wipe on.
The lamp is finally finished with an oversized white drum shade.
The lamp has now found it’s home in the corner of this den where you can find 3 more of my past projects. The window cabinet, shutter shelf and tins with new lids.
I would love to know if you’ve tried your hand at building a lamp. It really is way easier than you can imagine.
Until next time, stay inspired.
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well done! Glad you got rid of those points on the legs. Not good for wooden floors!
Love your lamp, thank you for the detailed explanation! I never came across a decent tripod, but will keep looking 🙂