I hope to be posting (or sending in to the moderators) information to help people create their own lamps.  Please remember that I am still starting to experiment on my own, so I won't have all the answers (not at least from experience).

I do have one question.  The classic lava lamp shape serves a very real purpose, to allow for cooling at the upper end, so the lamp lava will cool and fall.  I want to make some bigger ones, but I am at a loss for what types of glassware to use (or even if I could use clear acrylic tubes).  Can some of you experimentors, help this old chemist with ideas?  

I keep worrying about glass cracking from differential heating (hotter and more expansion at the bottom, colder and less expansion at the top).  

Ideas?
Eric

P.S.  I am experimenting with mineral oil right now.  Let you know when I find something out.

Globes that would work with lava lamp making are long cylinder shaped globes or the traditional shape would work.
I have actually transferred the contents from a lamp that had bad sticking problems to a bottle that had some brand of tea I don't remember the name of, but the bottle is kind of the shape of a Sobe bottle and it works great. I even used the cap that came with the bottle to seal it.

You mainly have to make sure the glass is thick enough to handle the stress.
Other than that you should be ok.

W_J

absolute bottles work well.

I saw some old giant perfume bottles (like 2 feet tall) and wondered how those might work.