I picked up a pair of old industrial, gooseneck office desk lamps circa 1930s at an antique flea market for $15 last weekend. They needed to be cleaned and have their cords replaced. The great thing is you now can order new vintage-look, cloth-covered cords for only $7 on line.
I got one rewired today and put it on a table I made out of an old drawer to light an old mallard boot scrape.
Next up is this one, which has a scalloped base that reminded me of a Kosmic metal bait. That’s a lot of vintage for $7.50 plus a new cord.
Finished the scalloped lamp this evening. The new cloth covered cord would not fit through the hole in the lamp base so I had to bore it larger with a metal drill bit.
Outstanding restoration, love it. I am obsessed with changing to LED bulbs due to the energy savings. They make an Edison LED bulb now. I am down to 600 kWh/month (in non-air condition months) compared to 1000 kWh avg for my neighborhood, despite having an electric dryer.
Matt Wickham
Collector of Casting Weights, KY Reels and KY Tackle
Wonderful! Very nice job. I recently purchased two similar restored goosenecks from a local antique shop. Not as nice a job as yours but passable and one is the lamp I work under on my mission oak reel-work desk.
Thanks. I picked up a third gooseneck lamp with ornamental base on eBay for $26 and after a bit of Kramer’s Best Antiques Restorer all-natural oil, got this result:
I’ve used Kramer’s for a few years now on metal and wood to restore the luster to antiques. They advertise on the label “museum quality,” and I can see why,
Midway Tommy D wrote: ↑Thu Dec 15, 2022 10:44 pm
Mike,
Looks really nice! Have you tried that stuff on any sun bleached/UV dulled plastic yet? I wonder if the oil would bring back the original sheen.
Tommy,
I used some Kramer’s on these old tobacco pipes. It rejuvenated the wooden bowls, but so-so results on the oxidation on the vulcanite/Ebonite pipe stems (recommendations for removing the oxidation range from soaking in OxyClean to Magic Eraser or fine grit sandpaper). I will try Kramer’s on some UV dulled plastic. Good idea.
I was given one 70 years ago as a boy and it is still going strong. The lesson is quickly learned however not to touch that metal shade as it gets really hot after being on for a while.--LOL
I love to get old reels, work on them until they run as smooth as silk and the take them fishing using pre-1960 plugs, mostly surface fishing for Largemouths after dark.
Nice job Mike, I also use a couple in a display case. They need to be rewired but being a retired electrician it’s not high on my list. I use LED lamps, keeps the heat down and easy on the old wire!