Worth it?

I found a piece recently but kind of balked at the price. I've gotten too many things that I've thought were "steals" that turned out to be otherwise.

It's a glass fishing float converted to be a swag lamp. It's one of the largest glass floats I've seen and the glass is orange. Whoever made it cut a circular hole in the top and the bottom and installed a light socket that takes a long skinny bulb. The glass is in netting as they usually are, the bottom of the netting has a small tassle that looks old. The glass looks like orange glass, the netting could be fairly new (looks clean), the tassle looks old, the wiring looks pretty new and the chain I didn't look closely at.

It's a large glass float lamp for $90. I asked the lady if she knew it's history (from a restaurant? made recently?) but she didn't know much about it. Worth $90?? Thanks!

You could make it yourself for less, but it would require a lot of skill. Plus: how much is your time worth?

I'd say it's worth it.

DEAL!

$90 bucks...Sounds like a deal.

Around here the very large vintage glass floats with netting go for about $100-$150 CDN at auction(not including the additional 30% fee), then re-sell for up to $350.
I once sat in on one and watched over 20 of them sell. I thought $150 was too much at the time and passed on a purchase. Now I'm definitely regretting that decision. $90 is good, and you don't have to risk breaking it to make a lamp!

A large (12-16 inch) float with net is gonna cost you $75-120. If you try to make it into a lamp, you WILL shatter it and have nothing. Most float lamps are not floats at all, but other globes with a net around them. Most of what's in bars are not actually floats but must be made by OA or someone to look like it. You'll notice the thin string on the net, not heavy rope as would be used. So what you have would be rare if it's a thick glass float cut and made into a lamp. If so, steal. If not deal.

On 2003-12-16 14:00, Swanky wrote:
A large (12-16 inch) float with net is gonna cost you $75-120. If you try to make it into a lamp, you WILL shatter it and have nothing. Most float lamps are not floats at all, but other globes with a net around them. Most of what's in bars are not actually floats but must be made by OA or someone to look like it. You'll notice the thin string on the net, not heavy rope as would be used. So what you have would be rare if it's a thick glass float cut and made into a lamp. If so, steal. If not deal.

Thanks everyone. My recollection (I need to start taking a digi camera with me on my expeditions) is that the netting was string and not rope. I did think that the wiring looked rather new. I'm gonna do a google and see if I can turn up anything on new float lamps. Thanks.

sorry about reviving an old thread, but I thought I could add some assistance.

Yes, as mentioned, original glass floats are very expensive, and if this in fact was an original, then $90 for the lamp is an AWESOME deal.
However, I would venture that the glass float in question is a re-make. I was given a 1.5ft diameter, orange tinted, rope tied re-make glass float from a friend who sold it at his store for something like $18! (THAT is a good deal). But it shows you that if he is selling it for $18, what did he buy it for? (this wasn't one of those cheesy looking remakes eather - it looked GOOD!)

I've always thought it would be neat to buy one of those round lamp post glass bulbs (from HD for like $8) and make a hanging glass "fishing float" swag lamp out of one of those. I'd have to learn how to tie that knot tho... :)

"Hey! Careful, man! There's a beverage!" - The Dude

[ Edited by: Polynesiac on 2004-02-09 17:30 ]

[ Edited by: Polynesiac on 2004-12-15 01:52 ]

Well, a year later and I go back and the lamp is still there. So I got it for $75.

Probably not a real glass float but I don't know. It is pretty heavy. Obviously the netting isn't from a real float. The netting isn't as clean as it looks in the pics. The globe is about 12" in diameter. There's a hole drilled in the top only and the string is attached to a rusty metal ring at the bottom. The wiring actually looks pretty old and the chain is rusty.

There's a guy at a flea market here that sells glass floats and he makes the netting himself. I may see if he can redo this with a more traditional fishing netting.

I was just looking through the postcards at tikiroom.net (looking for floats) and came across this pic of the Trader Vics in Scottsdale AZ 1966.

The blue float lamp in the upper left has netting that is extremely similar to that on my lamp. Even appears to have the metal ring and tassel on the bottom. Guess I'll leave that netting as it is.

Kono - I like the lamp the way it is...totally swag! AND a good deal at $75

I'll bet that float is the same repro floats I use for my float lamps.

Good score - I wouldn't change it a bit!

Thanks Polynesiac. I'm not going to change it now that I've seen the TV postcard. That is pretty much identical to my lamp except its blue and mine's orange. The netting is spot on incl the ring and tassel at the bottom. If I can get a good deal on a big float I may try and make myself another float lamp. I'm going to practice on some of the cheaper and smaller ones from Old Time Pottery and see how it goes.

Just checking this thread to ask if anyone has suspended a lighted pufferfish inside a glass float and if so...HOW THE HELL DID YOU DO IT!!

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=7028&forum=7