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The starting piece for this awesome lamp was a 1950's Speedway Meteor Drill . The Speedway Manufacturing Co, was founded in Cicero, IL , USA in 1886. In 1954 the company was acquired by the Thor Power Tool Company, becoming a division of this firm.  In 1958 manufacturing was moved to a new plant in LaGrange Park, Illinois. Thor was gradually assimilated by the Stewart-Warner Corporation starting in 1964.
 
History lesson over now a little about the restoration. 
 
For something that was almost 75 years old this drill was in near perfect condition and it still operated. Unfortunately it wasn't electrically safe as its wiring had rotted so we elected to turn it into this stunning lamp. The main body is aluminium so we gave it a light polish and then two coats of clear lacquer to seal in the finish. We adapted the inside of the drill so we could add a piano black high gloss bulb holder.
 
The lamp was then wired with 1.5m of antique style braided cable and an inline on and off switch.
 
For a lamp a nice as this we really needed a nice base and mount. For the base we used a piece of 100year old barn wood which was fine sanded and then waxed. We then made a custom steel mount which we had professionally powder coated in piano black.
 
The lamp is finished off with a 150mm LED double cross tube bulb. The lamp is earthed and has been PAT tested for electrical safety.
 
This is a truly stunning lamp, perfect for a desk or sideboard. It's a real conversation piece with some fantastic history.