lightining tube?

[hrdwarhax]

i posted this at fx sabers but wanted more opinions

i know im one of many who cant wait for TOR. and i know im not the only one who LOVES saberstaffs. and i know im not the onlyone who likes to be creative with sabers. well here we go. as far as i know, im the first one to try to create a lightining chamber. (oooooh ahhhhhh).

http://i457.photobucket.com/albums/qq299/Pangscar/SIsaber.jpg (http://i457.photobucket.com/albums/qq299/Pangscar/SIsaber.jpg)

the top saber is what i am going to attempt. it will have red blades blue, white, and purple lightining.

here is my basic concept. the easy stuff

http://i1016.photobucket.com/albums/af287/dynasty104/firstpic.jpg (http://i1016.photobucket.com/albums/af287/dynasty104/firstpic.jpg)


the key

1. bh1
2.choke 2
3.4 inch extension
4. pommel 5
5. 1.5" ID clear polycarbonate tube
6. custom cut shroud
7. 8/32 anodized thumbscrew with copper colored cap
8.trim ring 3
9. activation box 2

my first idea to make lightining was sideglow fiberoptics. but that would require me to make something to hold the fibers then keep them in place, and not very real looking in my opinion.
next idea was thoes purple novelty plasmaballs, upon further research, thoes turned out to be dangerous.
my idea now is to take a 1"diameter polycarbonate rod and stick it in the pommels then engrave lightining on the surface. if i lit both ends of the tube, would the lightining look real? i mean would it glow?

[Ronan]

Ask J-LO about those fiber optic that was used in a light-whip.

Thats what i would use, i think its called side-glow but can't recall.

[iamdrake]

Streetglow used to make a product that looked like lighning in a tube... maybe you could find one that would work.

This is what it looked like
http://img832.imageshack.us/img832/3927/4150qiakw2lsl500aa300.jpg

[Sunrider]

You have your work cut out for you. ;) MTFBWY :)

[hrdwarhax]

thanks friends :P ill keep people posted, oh and have people played around with tail light blackout paint stuff much?

[KuroChou]

What you're looking for is a crackle tube....

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTYm__vOkZ_XGlYG1K4Tf8-vuDunHv70Hzo3Jex2gs3MIF1dMI&t=1&usg=__5NC1W_X3QvJ7saV1n5rSw6RLTSo=http://www.strattman.com/products/crackle/images/crackle-IMG_3515.gif
http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQwFs1nYXNQKHGbuyq2X1i428_Bvye5x pVmAPQZQRSd5-Ddd3o&t=1&usg=__qROUTEq8Zqd0LcL0Dl34JCebFaw=

Or an easier approach if you don't need them to move, would be to black out some polyC tube, using a cracked paint technique, and lighting it with an led.
http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT2evT7jSK_vVZSWic_BFvX3bq8aOFQV jh3LXDh63aryNhTuQM&t=1&usg=__Gd8deNburUVt1qLtCQlrfnc-f3w=

[equinox13]

that crackle tube would make an excellent stun baton prop ^_^

[KuroChou]

I have yet to see anyone selling them pre-made in lengths less than 48", but most of the sellers I've seen have them available as small as 1" OD, and in custom lengths. They'd be difficult, but still plausible, because the drivers for them run on 12V DC.

[cannibal869]

From what I recall, crackle tubes were raised in the past and felt to be difficult to incorporate into a saber - not impossible, but expensive, and fragile.

perhaps all you need is just the illusion of lightning?
i.e. a la a some iridescent film or illusion lenticular film rolled up inside a thick walled polycarb. tube? and maybe one or two EL wires inside that are allowed to "flop" around?? I'm thinking that the film will make it look like the wires are moving around kinda like lightning, depending on the angle that you're looking at it.

I'm gonna try and pick up some sample lenticular sheets and do some testing. I have absolutely no idea if this will work or just be a waste of time... but I'm willing to give it a go.


some info and pics...of what I'm talking about:

http://www.eplastics.com/Plastic/Rowlux_Illusion_Film
this one in particular looks kinda cool:http://www.eplastics.com/core/media/media.nl?id=13085&c=621686&h=ec466eb9f3524d689a20


and

http://cgi.ebay.com/D00404-Magical-Film-10-X-20-Violet-Illusions-OOAK-/190385181266?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2c53d75252
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a0dc06b3127ccef92329bebdef00000030O00AasWzdk4cOG QPbz4Q/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Strangely, I kinda wonder if the lenticular film idea can be applied to all that "black blade" saber brouhaha
-C

[ARKM]

They make neon lightning tubes for use inside the "cabin" of a car. They come as short as 15" long and plug into your cigarette lighter.

I've tried the standard neon tube versions of those but never the lightning ones so I don't know how much of a lightning effect they produce.

[hrdwarhax]

street glow neon lightning accent tubes. thhoes are what drake was talking about. they have been discontinued but thier outer tube im pretty sure, is lexan so stronger than the crackletubes. i looked at thoes last night, seem a little too dangerous. like thoes novelty plasma balls, although the crackletubes are the effect im looking for. plus they seem so fragile and a battery solution would be crazy. also makes it undualable.

o and kuro, that one of my ideas, was to take a polycarbonate rod, black it out, then scratch out lightining in it then light it with led's on some kind of battery powered candle board (with flicker). just wasnt sure how well it would light

[KuroChou]

I was thinking if anyone was serious about using a crackle tube, you would reinforce it with tube of a stronger material, or even talk to one of the makers about using a more durable material. Powering it would only take 4 trustfires.....

[Skottsaber]

I'd say the easiest way would be to get some flickering red and blue LEDs for that purple effect, or maybe some 1w blue LEDs and basically have a blade in the middle, and have some kind of flicker.

[RevengeoftheSeth]

I would hope that these would just be for show, anyway. As others have said, it would be too fragile to duel with. But you might be able to find one that is thin enough to fit inside a thin walled 1" OD Polycarbonate tube, maybe? Or you could custom machine a blade holder to 1.5" or bigger to accomodate the blade.

As far as powering it via 12V DC, didn't Sunrider's SSR90 require about the same? Not sure what current it requires, but it can't be much worse, and in a staff you would have plenty of room.

[hrdwarhax]

so im talking to a guy who makes crackletubes and other kinds of cool electric lamps. ive learned that the lamps MUST be made of glass. i can reinforce with polycarbon, but obviously sill fragile. so now ive decided to do make both a display and a dualable middle parts. yea middle tube will be interchangeable with another one. im going to need to re work the design a little to make more room for batteries, because origional design was 8 inches at either end, but only like 4 inches were open space for batteries.

[KuroChou]

Glad you're doing the real thing for the display piece. It'll be epic.
With a good camera, you'll produce saber pr0n to nearly rival slothfurnace.

[hrdwarhax]

lol my intent wasnt to rival sloth, my intent was to make it look like i was another bright bulb. even tho im still new to the game, being my 3rd saber, i would like to think im no longer a n00b and im a contender now, now i can start posting build logs that people will read. now i can (possibly) start selling things. now i can make a name for myself :) ....... now i can find a blasted power supply that will fit :P.. its a hard road, but im glad i found something new to try. maby this is the new "gravy's lightwhip" or maby more along the lines of the next new "quartz crystal chamber"

lol maby. not tryin to get famous or a tip of a hat (though wouldnt mind ;) ) just trying to have something worth showing off that makes me a self practicing saber smith of a certain calibur

p.s. i did just order a streetglow lightning tube that iamdrake mentioned. so once i get it, ill post up a vid cause i cant find any . i getting fast and furious one. i think was white or blue lightning. if this works, ill use some blackout in the polycarbonate and shock mount the neon tube in there

update
i talked to a guy, found out i need 200 moneys for the crackle tube to make my full display version, ill hold off on that for now tho, dual versian here i come

update 2
i got one of thoes "fast and furious" neon lightining tubes made by streetglow. its interesting. its just a glass tube filled with broken glass and neon so the neon finds a path thru the glass. if the glass wasnt packed so tight, when i flick my wrist the lightining could change like real lightining. theres only about 8 inches of visable"lightining". electronics are about 3 inches long. i wonder if a biger tube would require more electronics space. if not, i might wanna look into a longer one. this one is 15" total inches next uip is about 20 inches, thats about as big as i want. the only thing is, this IS glass that is shock mounted in a plastic tube, ment for normal bumps in a car. not dualing. i can hit it against my hand and i hear the plastic hit the glass.

[hrdwarhax]

i cant remember if i can do this but bump for update

[Coryn Fett]

What you're looking for is a crackle tube....

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTYm__vOkZ_XGlYG1K4Tf8-vuDunHv70Hzo3Jex2gs3MIF1dMI&t=1&usg=__5NC1W_X3QvJ7saV1n5rSw6RLTSo=http://www.strattman.com/products/crackle/images/crackle-IMG_3515.gif
http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQwFs1nYXNQKHGbuyq2X1i428_Bvye5x pVmAPQZQRSd5-Ddd3o&t=1&usg=__qROUTEq8Zqd0LcL0Dl34JCebFaw=

Or an easier approach if you don't need them to move, would be to black out some polyC tube, using a cracked paint technique, and lighting it with an led.
http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT2evT7jSK_vVZSWic_BFvX3bq8aOFQV jh3LXDh63aryNhTuQM&t=1&usg=__Gd8deNburUVt1qLtCQlrfnc-f3w=

I think you're on to something here. Maybe he can find some thin crackle tube and slide it into a plexiglass tube, then build his saber handle around that.

[equinox13]

almost makes me want to build a small plexiglass plasma chamber...

2942

like this... (http://www.kleargear.com/enlarge.html?http://ep.yimg.com/ca/I/yhst-78359274419338_2124_86650006http://ep.yimg.com/ca/I/yhst-78359274419338_2124_86650006) i have to wonder why they discontinued it... perhaps the microwave issue... using it in the microwave looked really cool, but your drink stayed cold and the handle tended to get red hot...

[hrdwarhax]

ok well the neon lightning tube thing i got isnt as great as a crackle tube BUT, it will "dance" to bumps and music and stuff. so that means fash on clash, and if i have a sound board in there, the speaker will make it bounce to the rythm of the speaker. that and the fact that i THINK the plastic tube that the glass one is mounted in can fit inside a thin walled bladestock peice then that can fit into a 1/8" thick wall polycarbonate tube i have which wikll work for my plan. more updates when i can

[Oldbones]

I have been trying for two years now to put a crackle tube into a hilt. There are several problems that need to be over come: 1; the crackle tube is a plasma tube filed with phosphor glass bead coated glass (like a Florescent light, with out the Mg), it has to be glass as Ihave tried Polycar, acrylic, ect and they all are etched from the plasma. So I have been learning to blow thin glass and then over lay it with Polycar. to protect it.
The second problem is the glass tube is under low pressure about .3-.5 tor and if it is not secure and protected they pop and that suck to no end. My is filled with argon gas and that is the simplest to use under battery power.
The third problem is that because of the size and shape of the tube the plasma driver have to be configured to resonate with the gas chamber. The quickest way is to buy a plasma globe and get the driver then mod it to work. The key is the transformer has to reach and not pass the resonate freq of your chamber. So you need to **** around with it for a while.

I know it all sound a bit difficult but from the twenty or so prototypes I have made I can not be beat. I would sell my kids to get it.

Good luck and have fun after all a true jedi must labor on there own to construct the lightsaber and learn the value it is:D