Anyone built a lightsabre?

OrcaDesignStudios · Posted: Mon May 30, 2005 7:33 pm Post subject: Anyone built a lightsabre?

Has anyone here ever built their own lightsabre? I'm thinking about giving it a shot.
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Ratteler · Forum Member Joined: Jun 10, 2002 Posts: 548 Location: NYC

In 3D, or in real life?

I've built some interesting ones IRL.

For the hilt, I've been trying to find a CNC lathe for years that wouldn't cost a fortune to operate or own. If you on a severe budget, you can get some nice result by getting a chrome pipe at a auto supply super store. Good luck cutting it and drilling holes in for activators though.

They also sell a metal silver tape for detailing that can do a VERY nice job for brushed metal bands and other saber nurdies.

To keep the blade in the hilt, I got some foamy rubber tubing from a garden supply section of a Home depot. It was a little difficult to jam the bade in, but once done it stayed solid.

I used tech looking gear shift knobs for the base, and attached it to the end of Mag Light to Light my saber.

I was even playing with the idea of an inside out flashlight based on LED technology and running off of "button" batteries hidden in plain sight.

Or if your Sith... an actual laser pointer witha wide beam can do a hell of a job.

For the blade, I went to a plastic shop and got a clear acrylic rod.

The trick is to either get them to polish one end clear, or both... and or to heat the other end until soft and roll is like a glass blower... but that does cause a bit of bubbling.

The benefit to the acrylic rod is that you can smack the holy hell out of it in a saber battle and it really stands up to it.

The drawback is that these blades must sit at least half way into your hilt. Deeper is better.

This makes a Luke ROTJ style hilt almost impossible since the emitter is on top of a rod that is thinner than your blade.

I thought of a work around that involved drilling a hole the size of the rod in the center of the blade, but this is going to kill your lighing. If you're really intent on making a ROTJ saber, I would suggest 2 Emitters, one witht he center cut out and some of that metal tape around the actual saber blade for rod. It will be a little thicker than it should, but it works.

The second Emitter assebly would be bladeless and would sit on for belt hanging.

The cool thing about my design is that you can use White LED's and change color of your blade with Gels.

I actually used Sharpie markers to color the blade by just coloring the polished end that faces light. :twisted:

The blade was still clear, and when lit people freaked out that it was colored.

The light is ALMOST as bright as some of the cool neon tube ones you've seen, although it's useless in day light. But you should see Neon boys gringe when me and my buds go at it ROTS style with the crack of our blades echoing down the street. They practically hide their sabers cause one swing from us would send their $300 blades to the grave yard. Their going "tick, tick" while we're actually realing from the blows to our blades.

I've only cracked chips off of one blade so far and it was still 99% in tact. Not bad for a $15 Light Saber Blade.

OrcaDesignStudios · Posted: Tue May 31, 2005 10:27 am Post subject: Re: Anyone built a lightsabre?

Yeah, I meant in real life -- 3D ones are so simple I think they're every scifi geek's first 3D model

I can't see myself building one with a blade, I just want one I can stick on my shelf (to collect dust with all my action figures lo). And to see if I can actually pull off a half-decent one. I was thinking I'd try one inspired by Obi-Wan Kenobi's from ANH, since the movie prop itself was something like 95% hardware store parts (plus a Graflex clip and the "skin" from an old hand grenade).
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www.OrcaDesignStudios.com

Joseph_OBrien · Posted: Tue May 31, 2005 10:59 am Post subject: Re: Anyone built a lightsabre?

Never built one myself, but I do have a sweet Master Replicas Vader saber on my shelf, and it's sweet.

Jim, if you want some pointers on how the original trilogy sabers were constructed, try The Parts of Star Wars at http://www.partsofsw.com/. It's fascinating to see how thrown together they are.

Hasdrubal · Posted: Tue May 31, 2005 4:01 pm Post subject: Re: Anyone built a lightsabre?

That's like what we call a giant "LAAAASER".

Sorry, I couldn't resist. I am evil ya' know. :pottytrain5:

GlitchGirl · Posted: Tue May 31, 2005 9:16 pm Post subject: Re: Anyone built a lightsabre?

Plumbing supplies.

I've got several friends in the local Star Wars Syndicate who've built sabers that look pretty darn good (minus the blade of course) and just about all of them used a lot of plumbing supplies for parts.
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itisitex · Forum Member Joined: Sep 01, 2002 Posts: 177 Location: Tx

A group that i was stationed with in japan made a couple for a 2 minute sabre fight we filmed i think they were made with pvc pipe and diffrent colored tape of the hilts and wood rods for the blades that where held in with a screw. wow brings back memories eight sabres four of which were used by the one guy at the same time. They held up to the beatings we gave them. you can always look on www.theforce.net.
look under the fan film section.

Ratteler · Forum Member Joined: Jun 10, 2002 Posts: 548 Location: NYC

http://www.beyondcomicsinc.com/video.html

Hehe... We've all done that.

These were done with just hilts before I started the acrylic thing.

I'm Oh Big One.

OrcaDesignStudios · Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2005 11:47 am Post subject: Re: Anyone built a lightsabre?

Well, I hit the semi-jackpot. I went to this place near me called the Re-Use Centre -- basically a junk shop on a warehouse-sized scale. I managed to get the three main components plus some extras for my hilt for a grand total of $2. That included a length of chrome pipe, a section of PVC brain piping (incl. the top part similar to the one used in Obi-Wan's sabre) and a calculator and cell phone for parts. I'll make a trip to the hardware store sometime in the next few days to try to get a few more parts. I already have a basic design in mind and know what I need to complete it, so getting the parts shouldn't be too difficult.
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www.OrcaDesignStudios.com

OrcaDesignStudios · Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2005 11:48 am Post subject: Re: Anyone built a lightsabre?

Of course, I meant to say DRAIN piping. If they sell brain piping, I have yet to find any.
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Jim Harnock - ODS
www.OrcaDesignStudios.com

Aremis · Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2005 1:44 pm Post subject:

Well, I think the British are the ones that need some Brain Piping when it comes to making their own SW sabers.

http://ca.movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/eo/20050526/111715152000.html
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Hasdrubal · Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2005 3:47 pm Post subject: Re: Anyone built a lightsabre?

Check this out for shine-ola and grins. :cyclopsani:

http://hasdrubal.actionbabecentral.com/plop_no_7_oct_1974.jpg

Master Yoda refused this poor guy admission to the Jedi School. I wonder why? Hmmmmmmm?