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View Full Version : May I present Aurum Dox. The TCSS contest saber.


cardcollector
05-29-2011, 08:54 PM
Greetings Saberland.:cool:

I would like to present in a little more depth the saber i submitted into the 2011 TCSS saber building contest. It was a great honor to compete with you all. Yeah, I know I got last place, but this saber was one of the best I have ever done IMO. The Brass Chassis and painting was a challenge to me.

So, I was commissioned to make this saber for a man Named Bill Jack. He is a leader in a organization called "Worldview Academy". IT will get TONS of publicity as his job is to give talks around the country for his career.

When given the funds to make this saber, I has no prerequisites as far as design went. I simply was not allowed to exceed the funds alloted to the project. I don't know if you have ever designed a saber with a person in mind, but it is the easiest way to design a saber IMO. This saber captures everything about Bill Jack. Solid, Sleek, Tough, simplistic, reliable, yet having just a little bit of flair and a golden countenance. Everyone has a little dark side to them though, hence the red blade. He loved the saber when it was presented to him, and his words were quote "It is perfect." that alone was enough for me to know I did what was required of me as the saberbuilder.

this saber has a couple of features i had never previously done before, it includes the flush recharge port, making an all brass chassis, and using a 4-pin quick connector for the switch an LED to hook up to the brass chassis. It literally took me 20 minutes to install the electronics because of the way Pre-wired everything beforehand. You'll also notice the barely flush micro switch in the center of the activation plate, it is set a just the right depth so it is easy to turn on, but not awkwardly high so it gets turned off while in use. That was tough to get it just right, but the result is pretty nice.

So, onto the specs and pics. (which all of you have seen...)
2010 Hasbro economy board
LEDengine 5W Deep red ( running @ 1100ma)
3.6v Li-ion Flush Recharge system
Mini speaker w/ Reverse sound
Micro switch in activation plate
Baked Gold and Black Enamel w/ Clear Lacquer
All Brass chassis

Video!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCMQ-l1mmzE

and... Pics.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-xY1lYM7Zjfg/TboSllQTSmI/AAAAAAAAACk/3tsCsoIblU0/DSCN1511.png

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-8i6cUDaKGaY/TboQO4jkRHI/AAAAAAAAAB8/z_kUASQwgJE/EDit%252520%2525233.jpg

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-WofD2oOzOiQ/TboQOyyOV9I/AAAAAAAAACA/CvWzq_BB_y0/DSCN1515.JPG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-I3KwJDY0V-E/TboQQ36MMtI/AAAAAAAAACQ/ljDj000a9g0/edit5.jpg

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-k1g7ZXpqM1w/TboQPowwXxI/AAAAAAAAACE/NuK0XX8Ldn4/EDIt%2525204.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pgXlFDAeaTw/TboQQpj6FBI/AAAAAAAAACY/GfQ9Ic0766c/Edit%252520Elec%2525202.jpg

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-MTnm0H3frps/TboQQIEO0MI/AAAAAAAAACg/TZKNnx82xIc/Edit%252520Elec%2525201.jpg

Vid will be up soon...
Knighthammer
05-29-2011, 09:15 PM
The chassis is very nice, simplistic yet very well done.
Picky
05-30-2011, 01:10 AM
This is an elegant saber! I don't understand a thing: the chassis is attached to the pommel, right? But the pommel has to be screwed, so how the wires are connected between the elements of the chassis and the static ones of the upper part of the hilt?
bk_renesis
05-30-2011, 02:10 AM
Great effort Cardcollector and you didn't get last place... "WE" got equal last place together, so I feel your pain mate!!! LOL. I like the gold and black with the red blade sort of like a saber belonging to sith royalty. Well done atleast we can say our sabers truly represent the "pure mhs" category... Well it might soften the pain if we keep telling ourselves that! hahaha!

Cheers,

Baz.
Yoshi-Taka
05-30-2011, 07:08 AM
The vents in the choke and the activation box really caught my attention. It's nice to see someone use just a flat color for an insert rather than a normal "sci-fi"-y card, know what I mean? Very sleek overall, too, which is great.
Borax
05-30-2011, 07:43 AM
Great job CC. i also did like the simble black box on this. Nice clean build.
Boj-Vaati Mau
05-30-2011, 11:27 AM
I really like the near-hidden activation switch, the sound venting, and the floating pommel/cap.
cardcollector
05-30-2011, 11:57 AM
This is an elegant saber! I don't understand a thing: the chassis is attached to the pommel, right? But the pommel has to be screwed, so how the wires are connected between the elements of the chassis and the static ones of the upper part of the hilt?

Thanks man, The way the chassis was installed is I screwed the assembly into the hilt via pommel, then wired the switch and main LED to a 4-pin male connector. Then it was just a simple thing to plug tthe connectors together (the female is mounted onthe other side of the speaker) and screwing the choke in, the then bladeholder. no wires are twisted together...


Great effort Cardcollector and you didn't get last place... "WE" got equal last place together, so I feel your pain mate!!! LOL. I like the gold and black with the red blade sort of like a saber belonging to sith royalty. Well done atleast we can say our sabers truly represent the "pure mhs" category... Well it might soften the pain if we keep telling ourselves that! hahaha!


Pain? I have no pain in this loss, I did the best I could. I succeeded in my goal, which was to enter the best saber I could. I have no regrets. :) I do liike the idea bout the pure MHS though, it is near impossible to compete against those custom sabers.


The vents in the choke and the activation box really caught my attention. It's nice to see someone use just a flat color for an insert rather than a normal "sci-fi"-y card, know what I mean? Very sleek overall, too, which is great.

I normally run from the activation box, but it seemed so appropiate for this build. I still hate using them though... Thanks, I was oroginally going to just leave the card as you get it from TCSS, but decided black looked better. I am glad to see someone else liked the look. :cool:

I appreciate the comments guys! I should get the video up this evening... depends on how my PC cooperates.
bk_renesis
05-30-2011, 06:04 PM
Thanks man, The way the chassis was installed is I screwed the assembly into the hilt via pommel, then wired the switch and main LED to a 4-pin male connector. Then it was just a simple thing to plug tthe connectors together (the female is mounted onthe other side of the speaker) and screwing the choke in, the then bladeholder. no wires are twisted together...



Pain? I have no pain in this loss, I did the best I could. I succeeded in my goal, which was to enter the best saber I could. I have no regrets. :) I do liike the idea bout the pure MHS though, it is near impossible to compete against those custom sabers.



I normally run from the activation box, but it seemed so appropiate for this build. I still hate using them though... Thanks, I was oroginally going to just leave the card as you get it from TCSS, but decided black looked better. I am glad to see someone else liked the look. :cool:

I appreciate the comments guys! I should get the video up this evening... depends on how my PC cooperates.

Yeah it was a joke mate, you know followed by "LOL"...
Loachri MacTalabh
05-30-2011, 07:29 PM
Out of the MHS entries, Aurum Dox is one of my two favorites. It's a shame there was only a few custom entries. Good Job Buddy!
Yoshi-Taka
05-30-2011, 07:57 PM
I normally run from the activation box, but it seemed so appropiate for this build. I still hate using them though... Thanks, I was oroginally going to just leave the card as you get it from TCSS, but decided black looked better. I am glad to see someone else liked the look. :cool:

I appreciate the comments guys! I should get the video up this evening... depends on how my PC cooperates.

Yeah, the solid black card looks so good for this saber. I'm definitely looking forward to the video.
cardcollector
05-30-2011, 08:01 PM
Video Added!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCMQ-l1mmzE
Darth Midian
05-31-2011, 11:15 AM
CC, that is a cool saber, nice sleek design. It's a great feeling when your client loves the saber you built for them. Good job.
Crystal Chambers
06-03-2011, 07:08 AM
Nice job and great video. Even if it's not a win against such advanced craftsmanship it's a solid build and I'm sure you have one happy customer.
jin starkiller
06-03-2011, 11:53 AM
really good build ....i concurr with cc on the craftsmanship of the saber