MHS Sleeve Vs Sink tube.

[Elodin]

I've been thinking about the chrome sink tube for a shroud on my saber design for a while - I think the shinny-ness :) will work well in contrast with a black powder coat. BUT would I be better off using MHS Sleeve material? It looks to have a tighter fit, but the extra thickness might be a bit much, as I'm planning cut-away sections over a ribbed extension. Im worried it would feel overly chunky in the hand. It also seems to be less shiny than some of the other parts, (though that could just be the picture).

I'd love to here thoughts on which is better/most sutable for the job.

Elodin

[Silver Serpent]

Both sinktube and sleeve material will fit perfectly well over MHS parts. I have heard that the newer sleeve material is far more polished than the pictures show, but it's not terribly difficult to polish it up at any rate. (Just time consuming)

Two things to keep in mind about sinktube:
1. If you have an open style shroud that doesn't completely wrap around the hilt, it tends to expand a bit and not fit as snugly. This can be good or bad, depending on paint/powdercoating underneath.
2. Sinktube is brass. You will end up with brass showing on the cut edges of the sinktube shroud. This may or may not be a bad thing, depending on your design.

If you want to have MHS sleeve material over a powdercoated MHS piece, you will want to let Tim know beforehand so he can turn the diameter down a bit first to allow the sleeve to fit. Powdercoating adds a small but noticeable increase to the diameter of your parts.

[Natesroom]

where is the sleeve material in the store? I've looked through the MHS area is that what its called?

Never mind found it in misc area... whats the difference between MHS sleeve and MHS Sleeve Material



Also what is a tonfa? - Never mind googled it!

[Silver Serpent]

MHS Sleeve 1 has grooves machined in it like the Mara Jade style grip. It slips over existing MHS pieces rather than screw into them. The MHS Sleeve Material is plain and it's up to you to add awesome to it.

[cardcollector]

Here are my experiences with the two...

MHS Sleeve material;
- gives a solid overlay feel, the ridge is much more pronounced than a sinktube shroud
- Is eaiser to paint
- Is more forgiving
- Is tougher to work with (walls are thicker)
- is tappable

Sinktube shroud
- comes already with a polished chrome look
- is quite thin
- Is easy to work with, but easier to mess up
- Has a "spring" effect where if you cut the tube in half it will pop apart...
- is extremely hard to glue things to...
- can barely tap the tube

[TimeRender]

Personally I think the sleeve material is a much better choice. The only reason I ever use the sinktube is when I want to sand the chrome off and use a brass tube. The sleeve material is really easy to polish if you use Master Jedye's sanding technique. I've gotten a nearly mirror shine on aluminum that way.

[Natesroom]

Is that the technique of sticking a plug on the end of a drill and then sticking the sleeve over that and wrapping sandpaper around it the turning it on?

I didn't see that post in my perusal of the boards. I think i saw that on FX

[TimeRender]

Yes, that's the technique. It was originally posted over on FX and then LM asked Jedye to bring it over here. Jedye doesn't have many posts, so if you can't find it by searching just check his user profile and look at the threads he has started. It's a tutorial for dremelling sinktubes.

By the way, I've never been able to find the plugs he used. I ended up using large rubber sanding drums instead.

[Crystal Chambers]

One thing I like about the two is the difference in wall thickness can help to provide more variation in your hilt's OD. Personally I prefer the sleeve material since it stands out more due to it's thick wall. Oh and the fact it's aluminum like MHS works well too.

[brett]

Also, I found getting a real shine on the MHS parts (and sleeve material) were very time consuming,(no news there) used 1300 wet and dry paper then a cloth with Silvo (silver polish, or whatever brand you prefer). It took literally hours. Finally ordered some 2500 wet and dry, then only needed to polish with Silvo for around 10 minutes. Almost a mirror. Another case of the right tools (is wet and dry a tool?) making the job SO much easier. Keep those blades sharp!

[Jedi_Knight_Zekk]

I've never used either one, but I recomend the MHS Sleeve Material

[face palm]

Yeah I've found that using sleeve material delivers an awesome result. It's easy to cut with a rotary tool (make sure you have plenty of cutting blades) and however much you use for one build, the leftovers can be used to make another. The sleeve is easy to apply paint to and polishes easily (car polish is very effective for this). Another upside is that it can be threaded easily for screws.
Having said that, I have yet to try out the sinktube for its brass finish. After all, there's no substitute for real brass :cool:

[captain_mills]

I can't vouch for other's experiences, but when I used sink tube for my first shroud, I noticed it didn't quite fit snugly. When I put a blade holder screw in on one end and it was pinched between the screw and the blade holder, I could slip a bit of paper between the sink tube and the blade holder on the opposite side from the retention screw.

As I've never used the sleeve material yet, I know not how snug it fits...

[(null).exe]

Sleeve material is VERY snug. I slipped it on over a V-grooved Ribbed extension, and a style 13 blade holder and there was an almost suctiony feeling of the light friction between the sleeve and the pieces.

[Elodin]

It sounds to me like it's going to be the MHS sleeve then. :cool: I've also just seen another design which uses it in a sort of similar way and it looked great. Hope it won't be too bad to polish as i'll have to do that by hand.

[cannibal869]

Agreed with the comments above - One thing I will add though is that personally, in my builds, I choose the material based more upon the thickness that the saber needs and the aesthetics afterwards (i.e. I make the choice on this question: does the saber look better with a thin shroud or a thick one?). To me, both fit relatively snugly. Both can be dremeled, although the sleeve obviously takes a tad longer cause the material is thicker. Both also need to usually be screwed down into the main hilt somehow as well. Both take to powdercoat fairly well.

-C

[Crystal Chambers]

Excellent point Cannibal...Prime example right here. Chrome, brass and sleeve all on one saber. http://forums.thecustomsabershop.com/showthread.php?12971-Liberty-by-Crystal-Chambers

[Darth Mortis]

Another question for this sleeve vs sink tube...can you use the 1.5 sink tube to mhs adapter on the mhs sleeve material as well?

[Jay-gon Jinn]

Another question for this sleeve vs sink tube...can you use the 1.5 sink tube to mhs adapter on the mhs sleeve material as well?Yes. The 1 1/2" sinktube adapter has the same outside diameter as the regular MHS parts.

[Noyl Wendor]

Another question for this sleeve vs sink tube...can you use the 1.5 sink tube to mhs adapter on the mhs sleeve material as well?
Jay-gon is correct, in fact I have a pic to that point,
http://i1032.photobucket.com/albums/a408/noylwendor/P1000315.jpg
You can see where the pommel on my hilt is, the big ring of metal is MHS sleeve material. I had some trouble with MHS threads and ended up having to rebuild. In doing so I used MHS to sink tube adapter. It fit quite well :).
Obviously my vote is MHS sleeve for my two credits worth, I will say that paint, and powder coating make the sleeve real tight. But using the sleeve is sooo worth it. Good to tap, easy to cut, and if you drop your hilt on a hard surface the MHS sleeve will hold up better then the brass.
Hoped this helped.

[monsterenergymixxd8]

you could always polish the mhs sleeve yourself get some 1500 to 2000 grit sand paper and i got this at a kenworth dealer (truck stuff) and do what the label says after you've sanded it. it should come out a little more shiny than the sink tube ;) 5649

[Darth Mortis]

Awesome, thanks, this will make my designs even better looking (and a wee bit more affordable) :)

[Onli-Won Kanomi]

The biggest issue with sink tube overlays is that the sink tubes were made for, well, sinks. The manufacturers have plumbing use foremost [or only] in mind so they make sure the Outside Diameter is correct for fitting sink tubes to sinks, pipes etc. Sometimes in manufacturing the tube wall thickness can vary a slight amount which affects the Inside Diameter but they aren't so concerned about that since a sink tube will only be carrying water eh not fitting over precisely CNC machined tubes with exacting tolerances...oh wait it will for us, we HOPE...

I've found the TCSS sink tube to fit well - Strydur knows what we need eh, and the Canadian Tire tube found up here fits well too, but others...not so much... YMMV of course and you could always take calipers to the hardware store and measure the inside diameter I suppose.

The TCSS sleeve material should be more consistent dimensionally and therefore a better choice for you to use for MHS overlays eh? The longer length can do a couple of shrouds improving cost effectiveness. And it will polish [try Mothers mag polish] without brass edges as others have said. *in Grail Knight voice* You have chosen wisely.

[Darth Mortis]

And how much harder is the sleeve material to cut? Ive done some practice at home with a dremmel on brass sink tube, but can a dremmel stil cut the sleeve material? I know it wont be as easy, but is it still pretty managable? and what dremmel bit would be the best to use?

[Silver Serpent]

Dremel cuts sleeve material just fine. It takes a little longer since the sleeve material is thicker, but it's still quite manageable. I recommend using the reinforced cutting wheels.

[Darth Mortis]

Thank you, much appreciated :)

[Jay-gon Jinn]

Sinktube sleeve:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/Chrome%20Saber%208/000_1384.jpg

MHS sleeve:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/Chrome%20Saber%2035/100_9772.jpg
The difference it can make in the layered look of a saber is huge. Sure, the MHS sleeve is a bit harder to work, but I think the results speak for themselves. Of course, there are instances when the chrome sinktube actually works better with a saber design:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/Chrome%20Saber%2020/101_5375.jpg

So, I guess my point is, pick which one will work with your design the best, and go with it. ;)

[Darth Mortis]

Wow, very nice...thank you for the picture comparison :)

[Darth_Plexus]

I have a question about the specific type of sleeve or sink tube I should use.
For this picture below, I want to find the right material to fit over my mhs parts.

6262

One represents the saber with the sleeve, the other without.
Im using:

MPS Pommel Style 4
MHS Ribbed Extension w/ Wet Black P
4 Inch double Female Threaded Connector w/ Wet Black PC
Screw on LED Blade Holder Style 19 w/ Wet Black PC
Double Ended Male Threaded Connector Style 1 w/ Wet Black PC
1.2" Double Female

What kind of tube or sleeve would best fit this build?

[Sunrider]

Define "better or best". Be more specific.

[xl97]

the choice is up to you.. its a personal preference really.


the sinktube is thinner..

the sleeve material is thicker.. what would look better on your build?

over-all "I" prefer the sleeve material.. its more forgiving, can be buffed/polished & machined.

(sinktube also has brass edges on cuts underneath)

but if you need a 'thinner' material to complete the 'look' you are going for.. sinktube has the advantage there. (its also cheaper in chrome plated style)

[Darth_Plexus]

I know that sinktube tends to expand, so Im looking for a "better" way of fitting it around my build. As in what ID should I look for? This is just in case I can't get the MHS Sleeve. I really want the MHS Sleeve, which in that case, I can just talk to Tim about it.

[xl97]

regular MHS parts have an OD of 1.45 or so..

sooooo...... anything you use will need to have an ID of 1.45+ to fit over it..

[Darth_Plexus]

Okay thanks a bunch. I've decided to go with the mhs sleeve. That could've made or broke the way my saber build would go.

[Warhorse82]

Greetings everyone! I know this thread has been untouched for a while but I figured I'd post a question here since. I'm getting ready to start making my first saber hilt and plan to use the sleeve from TCSS. Just wondering what the best way is to attach it to the hilt so that it doesn't just come sliding off every time I use it. I've looked at some photos of other sabers that look like they riveted the sleeve in place but that seems unlikely as I doubt rivets would penetrate machined aluminum, though I could be mistaken. Thanks for the info!

[madmaxx]

just drill and tap some screw holes to attach the sleeve to the hilt proper.The extra thickness isn't that noticable and as for the shine, well make friends with several grades of sand paper and start sanding

[Warhorse82]

I had a feeling drilling and tapping would be involved on that. Sounds like a plan to me. And yeah any finishing issues can be resolved with sandpaper! :)

[Silver Serpent]

It's also possible to use hidden set screws to hold the shroud in place. You drill and tap a hole in the MHS piece, slide the shroud over it, and then use a set screw from the inside to secure the shroud.

You'll have it held in place invisibly, and it works quite well. It's just trickier to do if you have fat fingers. :)

[Darth Ryo]

It's also possible to use hidden set screws to hold the shroud in place. You drill and tap a hole in the MHS piece, slide the shroud over it, and then use a set screw from the inside to secure the shroud.

You'll have it held in place invisibly, and it works quite well. It's just trickier to do if you have fat fingers. :)

Why I haven't think about that? nice tip there SS, thanks!

[Warhorse82]

Wow. That is an interesting idea on using screws inside. Something I have thought of is using epoxy like JB Weld to secure it in place. Though I will have to make sure I only attach in to one piece of he saber so it can rotate when I unscrew it. As JB Weld is pretty solid I'm not sure if it's the best to use as far as epoxy goes. There may be something less prone to cracking with impact that I could use.

[Seancrowne]

This was a great tip really helped me a lot