I’ve been the proud owner of a government surplus 1970s-era magnifying desk lamp for more years that I can remember. For most of that time, it sat unused in a closet collecting dust but I finally found a use for it – as a magnifying light for my Dewalt 788 scroll saw! But the trick was to figure out a way to mount it. This relic of the past has a 1/2″ thick rod at the base that is designed to fit into a matching hole on the desk surface. Once the rod seats in the hole, the whole lamp apparatus is able to swing freely to the left or right.
DIY scrollsaw mount for magnifying lamp
I came up with a simple mount made from scrap 3/4″ red oak. It’s 16″ long and mounts to the stock Dewalt base via two 5/16″ carriage bolts. For extra stability, a 3/4″ spacer on the inside of the main support piece butts up against the body of the scroll saw. For the pivot hole, I glued together two pieces of 5/8″ material and then drilled a 2″ deep hole in the top using the drill press. This piece was then glued to the outside of the main support. Of course, I had to chamfer the edges, sand the whole thing, and then paint it black to match the scroll saw stand. I simply had no choice…
Close-up view of mount
The magnifying lamp fits nicely in the mount hole without any obvious wobble. And it swings freely. I’ve cut several projects with the lamp and I’m pleased with its performance. I had a slight concern that the saw vibration would cause the lamp to also vibrate but that has not been an issue so far. I’m keeping my fingers crossed…
The light base fits into a 1/2″ hole