Light fixture repair question

We have this cool lamp in our kitchen that died. Took it down, sent it for repairs, but we lost a piece along the way (our fault, not repair shop). It’s the piece that holds the glass globe around the bulb.

The way it works, there’s a plastic disc you screw onto the outside of the bulb fixture, which has a wide shelf that keeps the glass globe in place.

No problem, we got a replacement disk from a local lamp store, except it doesn’t fit. It’s too small by maybe a millimeter, enough to not be able to use the disk. Lamp store said it’s a universal size, though. But our lamp is from Ikea… no longer made (long discontinued), but is the size different in Europe than it is here in the US?

Pics of the disc are here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/filmyak/

Any ideas on how to get a disc that works? Or even what the thing is called so I can do a proper google search?

Well, I was going to suggest you just get a new nut (the part you lost), but it seems you already tried that.

If it’s that close to fitting…literally within a millimeter, you might try bulking up that top section (the final resting spot of the nut) with some teflon tape or something else to make it just slightly bigger. This is, of course, assuming it still screws up and down the socket.

If that didn’t work (or in addition to that) you could try putting everything together and then putting some zip ties under the nut so it can move anywhere or slide down.

Beyond that or any other ways of rigging it all to stay put, if you really cant find a replacement the next option will be to replace the entire socket.

Does it slip on or are there threads?

If it slips on then maybe some heat would let the plastic stretch? I’d suggest a high dryer on hot. For a few minutes.

I found a website called Grandbrass that seems to refer to that part as a ring.
I’m not sure what the cap is, but here’s a ring on it’s own.

You’re best bet might be to take the socket to a Lowes or a lamp store so you can just try out a couple of them and get the right one the first time. Otherwise, just replace the entire socket.

You said that the lamp was from IKEA but discontinued. Perhaps you could buy another lamp from there just to get that ring?

Sorry… the ring I have is too small to fit on the fixture. Not the other way around.

Thanks for the links! Going to go measure and see if the new one may fit a bit better. If not, I may be going back to Ikea for a new lamp… what a way to buy a $1. fixture. Ugh.

Go back to the lamp store and see if they can sell you a socket it fits. It does fit the globe?

I hate it when I can’t find parts for stuff.

I just went through rigging available faucet knobs to fit mine when the 20 year old ones cracked.

I suggested going back to IKEA and buying another lamp because I have an eight-dollar IKEA lamp with such a ring in it (although who knows if it will fit your lamp). It might actually be cheaper to buy another IKEA lamp than to replace the socket.

Have you tried using a piece of emery cloth to slightly enlarge the opening, or would that not be an option due to the piece having threads?

Well, filmyak… What did you have to do?

Damn it, man! Don’t leave us hanging like that.

Did you, ‘git-er-done’?

And how did you fix it? :confused:

LOL, you sound like my wife. “Honey, have you gotten the lamp fixed yet?” No. Because I’ve been busy. Or because I suck. One of those two. =)

However, due to the non-marital reminder, I suppose I’ll order the ring today and see if it solves the issue. Gotta do it on the phone… that lamp store wants to charge me $10 shipping for an 80 cent item. Phone call should correct that. I hope.

They might not. It doesn’t have to do with the cost of the item. We ship out via UPS and looking at my rates, if I ship something 1# or less, we’re going to charge $13.91 to people that are in out closest zone and that’s only a nominal charge above what UPS charges us. As I often find myself telling customers, UPS just isn’t that cheap when it comes to shipping very light or single (cheap) items. I usually try to get them to order more to spread the shipping out. For example, as I said, the shipping on one pound is $13.91, but on, say 5# it’s $14.59. Only a 68¢ increase for that much extra weight. You might just have to consider the ring to be $10.80 if you can’t find a way to get it locally.
If you can get them to throw it in a padded envelope and take it to a post office and charge you whatever the post office charges them, that might work, but I’m not sure I would cross my fingers since the postage is a couple of dollars and they’re not going to drive it over there for free (we get asked this all the time), so they’ll likely just tell you UPS is the only option.
OTOH, maybe I’m just being cynical.