27" Grande Project?

[PinkFloyd Effect]

I'm new to this site, not a collector just a retro do-it-yourselfer. I acquired this Grande lamp for free from a neighbor I think it is really cool being so big but it came with a burnt bulb and a boxed burnt bulb so...2 burnt bulbs. I got discouraged when I realized it used a 100W bulb which is too much to run consistently just for effects which is when I started doing research on how to "green" the lamp up. 

Not sure if anyone can decode these numbers to tell how old the unit is I believe it is all original.

In my research I realized you can re-goo them and the kits have lighter wax which requires less wattage then the factory goo does so I plan on doing this I saw kits on eBay for about $30 not sure if that is enough for one of these sized lamps. I want white lava since my walls and furniture are white which goes good against the stainless it will make for a very contemporary lamp, then I'm not sure if the re-goo kits keep the water clear for much longer periods of time but I'm unsure I may want the water to be Caribbean-teal color like the liner on a pool. 

Then I was thinking about trying to insulate the base to make more efficient use of the heat loss through aluminum which is a conductor of heat. I will install a twist knob "pot" style dimmer on the base of the lamp itself, as far as the bulb goes not sure if they more a better light bulb then the basic 100w they sell for use in these? I thought about retrofit combining LEDs and a heating coil but probably would not make any difference in electricity consumption. They don't make a better designed coil ring I should install with the goo kit do they??

Long term goal with the lamp is to turn it into a usable bedside end table like the colossal/colossus lamp probably the same width glass ring with a smaller hole in the center for more usable table area. The thing I can't figure out is how the glass rings stay on the floor sized lamps does anyone have any close up pictures of how it is mounted? 

I can't even find one on eBay for sale, I assume they don't make them anymore? Here are two I found on Google which I Photoshopped feel free to use them elsewhere on this website in a gallery or something...I corrected the color of the images and then added depth of field to them:

 

[PinkFloyd Effect]

The globe glass is made of the same quality between the metal base and plastic base versions right?? 

Now I gotcha about the single blob up then comes down with the 8oz...I must say this yellow 20oz you sent me flows pretty good the blob coming down mashes into the ones going up and changes its flow direction I do not really get that with the grande actually I find the grande has a very slow flow even when warmed up but when I had that 150w clear bulb touching the base it really moved!

Regarding this custom double lamp idea will these flow okay on a slight sideways angle? I am going to Photoshop a rendering of what I am thinking of. 

How would you guys go about removing the grande caps? A screwdriver with a rag and tape over the end and a hammer came to mind (don't mean to scare you Jeff lol). My globe has a few cracks that do not penetrate the glass or leak probably from when the cap was originally installed because my lamp has not been opened. Only my globe has these cracks Jeffs is completely free of them -see below   

[Rodrigo]

Use a small flat head to pry the cap open and remove it. Be careful not to crack the glass like it may have already happened lol

[PinkFloyd Effect]

Ahhh! There is no space to get anything in there to pry with, all that could be done was tap up with a wide flat head. It flucking broke the first light tap I made!! 

Look this is the very first indent I left all it took was one tap! Maybe it was a little close to the glass but I am amazed how easy it cracked!! Guess I owe Jeff my globe now....

[Rodrigo]

The problem is you shouldn't be doing any tapping. I used a sunglasses repair kit flat heat screwdriver to fit under the metal cap and slowly pried around the globe and then pulled the cap off by hand, never had the need to tap.

[PinkFloyd Effect]

I couldn't see anything ever fitting under it, tapping seemed like the only option and it only took one mild tap. 

[Joanne]

OMG :( so sad ! ( i have been following this and was so hoping for a miraculous transformation for both the lamps ! ) I have one that needs to be either goo kit or filtered , now im scared ! I was actually getting confident reading everyone elses goo kit adventures ! now .... um not so much

[PinkFloyd Effect]

I'm going to try the local glass shop to even out the break so I can recap using the factory plug...the globe is still usable and the metal cap hides the plug. 

[Rodrigo]

If you could get it cut smooth it would be really nice, especially if the plug still fits. The cap should cover it all.

And Joanne don't let this discourage you!! It's not too hard you just have to be very careful and never tap the screwdriver, just get something as thin as possible to start to undo the metal lip, once you get under it once it's very simple from then on.

[Jeff]

Ahh crap...the story of my life.  If I didn't have bad luck...I'd have no luck at all :(  Well the lamp was no good to me the way it was...but I'm bummed out.  Maybe someone on here has an empty one they'd sell cheap?

[Jus]

I'm so sorry about your globe! I wish I could have posted this earlier, but one way to get the top off (when not even the thinnest blade is able to slide between the glass and the metal top) is to use a small cutting wheel on a grinder to make a vertical slice into the metal.  Then you can get a blade in edgewise.   

[PinkFloyd Effect]

I have a few Dremel tools, I thought about drilling a hole in the center of the cap and inserting one of those spring-hangers that open when you stick them in a hole. 

[Rodrigo]

That sounds really invasive as well, small flat head is the way to go, I'm telling you. I pried mine open in 2 minutes at 3am after staring at it while smoking herb..