Brown Stained Glass Lamp Repair

We've moved back to our Midland Park home and finally got our computers hooked up!  So I'm back with another blog posting recounting a recent project.
This will cover the repair and cleaning of an older brown lamp .. Here's the process ..

This lamp belonged to my customer's mother.  It had been stored in a dusty attic for many years and was in need of repairs and a good cleaning.  When it came to me, there was not much light coming through the glass.

This side of the lamp had several broken amber pieces and green pieces.

Another view of the damaged side.

Here I'm making a template for the replacement glass after I've removed the cracked piece and cleaned off the old solder and foil from the borders.

Using an oil-filled pistol grip glass cutter to cut the new piece of amber glass.

Using running pliers to snap the glass along the score.

 Using a fid to burnish the foil onto the new piece of glass.

Now the piece is in place.  I've already added new foil to the inner border.  I'm brushing on liquid flux.  This is a catalyst which helps the solder to flow freely over the foil.

Now I've soldered the outside of the dome to lock the new glass in place.

Now I'm starting to remove the cracked green pieces and remove the old solder by melting it off with a hot soldering iron.

I've cut the new piece of green and I'm now grinding the edges.

Back using a fid to burnish the foil. The self-adhesive foil comes in rolls as shown, in different widths and with 3 choices for the interior color.

Now I'm cleaning off the borders of a cracked amber piece which I just removed.

Soldering the new piece in place.

After all the new pieces are soldered, I clean them off thoroughly.  Then I apply black patina as shown.  This instantly turns the solder black.

Here's the formerly damaged area, fully repaired with new replacement glass.

As mentioned earlier, this lamp was in great need of a good cleaning.  My husband Eric and I brought it outside and brushed on an industrial strength cleaner.

We put in lots of elbow grease, both on the exterior and the interior of the shade.

There's a puddle of brown water at the base of the lamp.

We used a garden hose to spray off the residue.

It's amazing how much dirt and grime came off of the lamp.  Even the brass cap is shiny again.

Here it is, still in the driveway but considerably cleaner and more attractive than ever.

Eric also re-wires lamps on request.  This one had dried wires which are dangerous.  So he replaced the wiring and added new sockets.

And here it is, fully repaired, re-wired and cleaned.  Now the light can shine through and the lamp can be enjoyed again for many years to come!   Thanks for entrusting this heirloom to us, Sandra Lynn!

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