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Thread: Ballast for a Lamp
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14th October 2019, 10:49 PM #1
Ballast for a Lamp
Hi WWF,
I need some ballast to stop a lamp I am building from toppling forward. I am thinking somewhere between 5-10kg is required.
I will recess the ballast into the underside of the base.
Anyone got any suggestions on a cost effective solution and where I could pick it up from?
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14th October 2019, 11:07 PM #2.
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A local steel merchant has some very interesting shapes of scrap available from time to time.
They do a lot of laser cutting of holes in various materials so they generate lot of scrap discs. in steel, ally and SS.
They charge $1/kg for plain steel and more for other materials.
This is one I used on a Halogen workshop lamp that I converted to LED operation.
Goer.jpg
The disc is 280 mm in diameter, 14 mm thick and weighs ~7.7 kg.
It's overkill by a few kgs but it does mean I can put it on any flat surface and it stays there even with the lamp arm (~1kg) at full extension.
The disc is actually Bisalloy steel - its pretty hard and was a bugger to cut the threads in it to attach the lamp.
I was going to paint it but it rusty coating gives it a semi-steam punk look. Besides it is only a workshop.
I've used a many such discs in my workshop.
Base.jpg
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14th October 2019, 11:17 PM #3
Concrete, cast iron or lead are the normal materials used for that type of base weight. Concrete is the cheapest & easiest to cast but has the least mass. Lead has the most mass and is relatively easy to melt and cast but is expensive. Cast iron is the favourite for commercial production; cheaper than lead and can be made into smaller weights than concrete but is pretty much out of the range of a non-commercial setting.
You may be able to make a hybrid, whereby you bury heavy materials such as rebar in a concrete shell.Nothing succeeds like a budgie without a beak.
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14th October 2019, 11:42 PM #4GOLD MEMBER
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Workout/gym weights are typically $1/kg on gumtree, or brand new about twice that in Kmart.
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15th October 2019, 11:08 AM #5
They should be good for that as they have a hole in the center to mount with a bolt and washer. Of course the base will need to be made to suit the weight. Workout weights are also handy about the shed for some glueups.
Regards
John
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