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light

Got the light hung, but as you can see a number of the lights are not straight, anyone deal with this type of light before and have any idea how to make them straight? Just to clarify, I don't mean up and down, I mean they are twisted side to side.

Chris O
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robl45
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    Is there any adjustment/movement of mounting points(lights and top)? The second light on the right seems way off being tilted like that. – crip659 Jan 13 '23 at 00:09
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    one or both of the cables are twisted – jsotola Jan 13 '23 at 00:31
  • Agree, cables are twisted. You need to straighten them before locking them into the housing. These light fixtures are super time consuming. I bought metal scaffolding to do mine. – Fresh Codemonger Jan 13 '23 at 02:21
  • I don’t believe any adjustments at the lights. Not mentioned in the manual. This is how the cables came. I guess I could try turning them at the top. Taking it down would be difficult – robl45 Jan 13 '23 at 02:25
  • Just seeing this fixture makes me want to be a very tall cat. The sparklies! – Harper - Reinstate Monica Jan 13 '23 at 03:28
  • the cable needs a slight twist away from the twist. – Tiger Guy Jan 13 '23 at 04:46
  • One way these could become twisted (if they were actually correctly adjusted at the factory before shipping - not a given) is if a ring got turned through the cables in handing (packing, shipping, unpacking, mounting) before mounting - i.e. rotated in the vertical plane 360 degrees. – Ecnerwal Jan 13 '23 at 14:48
  • Looks to me like there's some preload in some of the cables, either at the ceiling or on the rings. See if you can gently twist the cables to get the rings more in the alignment you prefer. – Huesmann Jan 13 '23 at 15:42
  • For whatever reason, one cable is sightly shorter than the other. Note that this would not be a problem if the lights were suspended from a single cable that is mounted to the exact center of the ring. – SteveSh Jan 13 '23 at 16:04
  • yes, I did adjust the cables last night to even them out as there were slightly un even on most rings, thought that might make a difference, it didn't. I will try to twist the cable at the locks as people have mentioned although one lock has an issue and allows the cable to slide a bit so I don't know if that one will work. – robl45 Jan 13 '23 at 18:13
  • i would add little super magnets in spots you can't see, like the bottom of the "donut hole" that weight and re-balance. It will also tend to self-correct; i once noticed a crooked one during move-in at an apt i rented and it was better when i moved out. – dandavis Jan 14 '23 at 08:31

2 Answers2

2

I installed a similar light fixture. Mine was quite a bit more fidgety as each of my rings are suspended below the next and have to align 90 to the previous.

My first attempt had the lines crossing or twisting. I ended up rigging up some chains to hold the fixture away from the junction box so that I'd have enough room to adjust each wire.

My fixture and I imagine yours has little locks on the inside of the housing that hold the wires. These locks not only prevent the wires from dropping down but they also hold the wire with the current twist.

You need to have the wires without twist before locking them.

Good luck! At least you don't need to be on a 10' ladder on a 16' scaffold to access yours. I also had to trim my wires for the correct height of each ring.

Instructions on the light were about as helpful as what you could imagine writing down having never installed a light like this before.

light jig

Fresh Codemonger
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  1. At the top of the power/suspension cables, is there a support that can be turned, perhaps by gently using pliers?
  2. Cheat: Using thin transparent fishing line, tie a knot around each support cable and adjust, though it will be a fidgety operation.
  3. For the misalignment in the plane of the cables, gently bend the cable to correct the tilt. Again, fidgety.
  4. Give up -- install a fan so that the lamps swing in the breeze -- it's kinetic art!
DrMoishe Pippik
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  • I tried 3. didn't make a bit of difference which was surprising to me. there is nothing as in 1. They are just locks to stop the wires from sliding. – robl45 Jan 13 '23 at 00:42
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    Do like #4. Sometimes it is better to make something into a design feature than trying to hide it. – crip659 Jan 13 '23 at 00:56
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    Could you get us a photo of the "locks' and add that to your question? I'm having trouble visualizing that. – keshlam Jan 13 '23 at 01:11
  • The locks are at the very top on the metal. You can see them on the photo if you zoom in. You just push up on them and the cable comes down. – robl45 Jan 13 '23 at 02:22
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    Then you should be able to unlock, twist the cable (perhaps while extending and retracting it again), and relock. That's what I'd try. The photo looks to me like only the center lamp is out of alignment...? – keshlam Jan 13 '23 at 02:50
  • I tried this yesterday it’s better but still a ways to go One of the locks doesn’t lock right so I think they replacing it so I do not want to go crazy on this one if I have to do again – robl45 Jan 14 '23 at 16:35