The K'Nex Lamp

K'Nex lamps offer a combination of light and motion. K'Nex are plastic Tinker Toy like connectors and rods, but there are also gears, chains, pulleys, wheels and axles. When combined with conventional bulbs, sockets and a bit of wiring, they can make beautiful lamps.

There are now three K'Nex lamps. There were two wall mounted lamps, The Original K'Nex Lamp and The Remote Control K'Nex Lamp. Now there is a new table lamp, Promenade for Julia.

There is also a Kenner Girder and Panel Lamp which gives a very soft light and offers a touch of retro style.

Promenade for Julia

This is a small table lamp or desk lamp. It gives off a soft glowing light, and it presents a promenade of crazy creatures strolling under the whirling umbrellas. It was designed as a birthday present for Julia.

Roll your mouse over the picture above to see how it looks in the dark.

See the complete Promenade for Julia movie in Quicktime (8.6MB).

Promenade Movies (Click to Play)

UPDATE - We are putting together some info on how to build this lamp. If you are curious, check out this series of construction photos.

The Original K'Nex Lamp

The K'Nex lamp has two 60 watt incandescent lamps controlled by a dimmer and an on/off switch for the K'Nex motor. The lamp has a number of moving elements, including a radar scanner, a double helix, flapping wings, and an animated chain suggested by the bridge in Miyazaki's Spirited Away

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If you have a Quicktime viewer on your system , you can see the lamp in motion:

- a short snippet

- the full cycle

The Remote Control K'Nex Lamp

This lamp is has a single 60 watt bulb for illumination and two servo motors controlled by a K'Nex dragster remote control radio handset. Yes, really. You can drive the main "ferris wheel" forward or backwards and you can drive the top mounted radio clockwise or counter clockwise with the touch of a lever, even from across the room.

The lamp is shown in repose on the left. Here is a Quicktime video of the lamp in motion.

If you would like one of these lamps for your own home, drop us a line. We can make one up for you, or we can send you a kit and let you build your own.

K'Nex is a trademark of K'Nex

Check out their website for more conventional K'Nex sculpture.

Other K'Nex Links

K'Nex Building Toys, Parts and More

Martin's K'Nex Homepage - some amazing constructions

Mark Nahabedian's K'Nex Page - an old friend and Digicomp fan from MIT days is into K'Nex

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