Work Lamp Recommendations

[elkhorne]

A few years ago, I was in one of Jack Brooks classes at WKU and Dave Miller was a student in that class. Anyone that knows Dave will know he is a master tool builder and innovator. He had a what I call a Light/Power Stand that was very handy. I photographed it and came home and eventually made one for myself. It uses an old 3# coffee can, a coulee of pieces of 1/2" conduit, a metal outlet box a good heavy duty outlet, a good condition 6 to 8 foot section of grounded heavy wire from a worn out appliance or power tool, some wire nuts and associated conduit fittings. The conduit/receptacle box are set in place with wire to hold them temporarily and the can is filled to about an inch of the top with concrete and allowed to harden. Check the vertical conduit pieces stay vertical until the cement sets and then leave it for a day to cure. The next day, you can wire the outlet and paint it if you like. The rear vertical conduit is used to hold any variation of a swing arm lamp you have or can purchase and I have gone to 100 watt LEDs but the bulb selection is personal preference. The neat thing about this unit is that it is very stable, has an extra plug for your use, and has an area in the top for storage of anything you need it for. The following are some photos of the one I made.
   

[Longshot]

A swingarm lamp is probably the universal solution for focused, benchtop lighting.  The above rig looks pretty handy.
I use a cabinetmaker's type bench, which is too thick for the mounting clamps that come with most swingarm lamps, but it has two rows of benchdog holes the length of the bench.  I made up a dog, drilled a hole in it sized to the stud on the swingarm, and can now use the dog to position the lamp anywhere on the bench, while sacrificing minimal surface area. Works for me.