First Saber Build: New EPOCH

[Ty_Bomber]

So after much lurking, reading, studying, posting, and commenting, I am finally putting together my first build. This is a saberforge Epoch that a friend of mine bought after I opened him up to the wonderful world of custom lightsabers. He spent 360 USD on this thing, and it was a big boo-boo. The moment he took it out of the box, the "ultra-bright led" barely lit up the thick-walled white ploycarb blade, and the sound he spent an extra $60 on was completely drowned out over the MR Luke ANH my wife got me. Needless to say, it was very disappointing. Now I've done my reading, and practiced soldering once or twice with my father in law, but I'm still really green in the electronics department. That being said, my friend let me gut his saber and take a look at what was inside. I've been given free reign to experiment with any electronics I put in this. It's all coming out of my pocket, but I figure it will make a nice x-mas or birthday present in the near future. In the meantime, I'll give you a tour of it's anatomy and talk about what's going to be done.

5981
It has a windowed hilt. Not my thing but not my saber. I noticed that there's lots of sharp little corners to cut your hands on when you're dueling. I'm gonna take the dremel to those to make it a little bit more comfortable to hold.

5982
Here's the Led. It was an Amber, but I couldn't identify the manufacturer. I am replacing this with a Fire Orange LED Module from Ultrasabers. I heard that that color was notoriously dim, and I know that they use reflectors and not lenses, etc. BUT, in my defense, the module was the only thing I could find with a heat sink that would fit the ID of the neck without some kind of modification. Unfortunately, I don't know what the forward voltage of the "Fire Orange" Led is, so I can't really calculate the kind of resistor I need to use. I suspect its one of these (http://www.newark.com/seoul-semiconductor/a42182rxyz/led-amber-p4-star-pcb-bin-free/dp/85R5250), but I can't be entirely sure. I'm gonna assume it is for now and if not, well, I'll just buy a luxeon amber from Tim and fit it to the LED module.

5984
Here's the speaker. You could power this thing on in a library without so much as a shush from the faculty. I bought a TCSS premium as a replacement.

5985
This is the original switch. Took quite a licking getting it out of the hilt. I'm gonna have to bore out the switch hole to fit the DPDT orange dot momentary switch, and eventually add a secondary hole for an aux switch once I get ahold of a PC-U.

5986
Here's all the original parts laid out together. The Battery pack is 4 NimH AAA's running 4.8V with a recharge port. I'm gonna follow the sage advice here and keep it simple stunt for now. I'll replace the recharge port and upgrade her to a PC-U and LI-Ions once I feel comfortable and/or have my brother in law (an electrician's apprentice) to babysit me during the process. If anyone has any constructive criticism, feel free to shout out along the way. I'm just happy for the experience. Updates to to follow. Cheers.

[Ronan]

He spent over $300, got a P.O.S out of the box... and didn't return it or open a Paypal claim?

And now you have carte blanche on tinkering with it... wow :???:

:D Have fun :p

[Ty_Bomber]

He spent over $300, got a P.O.S out of the box... and didn't return it or open a Paypal claim?

And now you have carte blanche on tinkering with it... wow :???:

:D Have fun :p

Unfortunately, he paid with a credit card, and the website stated when he purchased it that they do not accept returns. I am happy I get to experiment on it though. Just gonna start with the basics and work my way up from there. Baby steps, you know? Thanks for the words of encouragement, Ronan!

[Zzan]

5982
Here's the Led. It was an Amber, but I couldn't identify the manufacturer. I am replacing this with a Fire Orange LED Module from Ultrasabers. I heard that that color was notoriously dim, and I know that they use reflectors and not lenses, etc. BUT, in my defense, the module was the only thing I could find with a heat sink that would fit the ID of the neck without some kind of modification. Unfortunately, I don't know what the forward voltage of the "Fire Orange" Led is, so I can't really calculate the kind of resistor I need to use. I suspect its one of these (http://www.newark.com/seoul-semiconductor/a42182rxyz/led-amber-p4-star-pcb-bin-free/dp/85R5250), but I can't be entirely sure. I'm gonna assume it is for now and if not, well, I'll just buy a luxeon amber from Tim and fit it to the LED module.


So isn't that piece of metal that the current LED is attached to a heatsink? Why not just re-use that and the lens and just get an LED, thermal tape and lens holder from the store here instead.

Also that speaker looks the same as the premium speaker. My guess is the issue is the sound driver or resonance and not actually the speaker.

[KuroChou]

It would be a big mistake to assume by appearances that the speaker in the pic is the same quality as the premiums in the store.
You can't tell from that image what the voice coil looks like, what kind of magnet was used, what kind of impedance it has, or grade the diaphragm stiffness/movement. If he says it's a POS, it's probably a POS.
Most people around here prefer to replace stock speakers with Tim's premiums anyway. Just a quality control thing.

[Zzan]

Good point.

[Darth Odious]

Well... At least he actually got a product, many people have not.

Is that an econo vader board? I wish someone would poop in a box and send it to the return address after all these years.

[Ty_Bomber]

So isn't that piece of metal that the current LED is attached to a heatsink? Why not just re-use that and the lens and just get an LED, thermal tape and lens holder from the store here instead.

Also that speaker looks the same as the premium speaker. My guess is the issue is the sound driver or resonance and not actually the speaker.

The heatsink was superglued, then hot glued to the LED and lens holder. I couldn't get the wires from the stock LED, and the original heatsink rattled a lot inside the hilt as it is. I'm not crazy about using a reflector instead of a lens as it is, seeing how deep the blade sits in the neck, but it will regardless be better than what it came with.

As for the speaker, they weren't the same. It's not apparent in the photo, but in person the TCSS speaker is slightly slimmer. The sound came from a cheap econo board, so I figure that was a contributing factor, but like KuroChou said, it is a quality control issue. I know that Tim sells good stuff, so I'm not gonna gamble with whatever I have on hand just to save a couple bucks. It is my first foray into this territory, so I expect to pay a premium on the experience.

More to follow. Stay tuned.

[Ty_Bomber]

A couple updates:

Since the owner really didn't have the funds for a PC-U install, I started looking at MR boards as an option. Good sound at a great price. Right around that time LDM started experimenting with pre-wired light and sound modules made to help beginners (like myself) get into the hobby without feeling terrified. It turned out to be exactly what I needed. I contacted him and got it within a couple days, and he even made some leads for an illuminated AV switch I planned on installing. Here's a little peek:

http://i1182.photobucket.com/albums/x444/HeroofEverything/photo.jpg

And with a blade. A little underwhelming in person, but a far cry better than how it originally looked. The blade is an ultra edge (I bought before I realized it was no longer justifiable to do so) but I don't think it has a reflective tip. I will probably add some more gift wrap and get one of the reflective bullet tips from Tim, to help even out the blade. Might have to look into options besides the reflector/heatsink combo I originally got from Ultrasabers too.

http://i1182.photobucket.com/albums/x444/HeroofEverything/photo1.jpg

The LED is a nice Golden yellow, as requested (the original was very orange) and it's paired with a MR vader board for a nice sithy feel. I still need to install the new latching AV switch (made sure I had the diagram right, but I am unsure whether to wire the resistor along the positive or negative) and bore out the switch hole so it will fit. I would like to use a drill press, but since I don't have access to one in my small apartment, I may just mask the hilt with painters tape, stencil the size I need, and have at it with the dremel. After that it's installing a replacement recharge port, which will likely be the most challenging part of the build, since I have to thread it back into the pommel where it was before, or make a new hole near the switch. Neither option looks to be a lot of fun.

Anyway, hope you enjoy. Cheers.

[Noyl Wendor]

Nice work, its nice to see someone take a POS and improve upon it. I'm not big on windowed hilts either, for that matter THOSE windowed hilts LOL :)
I look forward to seeing how it looks after your improvements.

[Ty_Bomber]

Thanks. Credit goes to LDM. Almost all the wiring you see on the board was done by him. All I did was Desolder/resolder the main led after attaching the aluminum reflector/heatsink.

Successfully hooked up the switch.... Sort of. Kept reminding myself to remember the resistor (which goes onto the positive lead, I discovered) and the heatshrink (remember heatshrink!) that I forgot to remove the nut and bezel on the switch. Whoops. Chalk it up to experience, I guess. Also wired the switch to be normally closed (meaning the button is down when it's off) so I might fix that when I put everything into the hilt. At least it lights up, which is better than I thought I would get. I'm pretty satisfied so far for my first venture.

http://i1182.photobucket.com/albums/x444/HeroofEverything/photo2.jpg

Up next is sizing and expanding the hole for the switch and taking the old dremel too it, which can probably wait until tomorrow.

[TuxedoCartman]

Man, getting to work on somebody else's saber with minimal experience? That's like learning how to cook without having to eat the results! Lucky!

[Ty_Bomber]

In my experience, there is no such thing as luck.

It is kind of bittersweet. I'm happy for the experience, but I'm still the one sinking money into it, and I won't be able to keep it on my shelf to show off my new-found skills to all my friends.


On the other hand... I won't have to cringe at the mistakes made the first time round either...

Regardless, I'll be sad to see her go. You never forget your first, you know...

[brett]

A great project to see! And what would you rather have, a saber some one else chose in the first place, or your enthusiasm to want to work on sabers and take on first time experiences! (a quality that may see you with a whole host of great, custom sabers of your own!)

[Ty_Bomber]

Today was an eventful day! Spent about 2 hours with my Dremel opening up the hole for the switch and got everything re-wired and fired up! The difficult part was getting it all to fit inside the hilt. I had to trim the wires to the speaker/batt pack and when I did, one of the leads (looks like to the speaker) came loose, so I soldered it back to the board and tried it again.

Looks to me like the lights on, but nobody's home. Either I wired the speaker lead back to the wrong terminal (not gonna lie, I guessed based on what I remembered and what looked like the most obvious connection) OR the speaker blew after snagging up my wire cutters off the table (I forgot those things have lil magnets in em!)

I desoldered everything on the board for now, and replaced some of the nice thick copper wore LDM used with some 26 I had on hand. The stuff he had was STURDY, but a bit difficult to work with when I was trying to cram-fu my first time around. I'll be goin over diagrams what not Friday. It's been quite an adventure so far. Until next time folks!

[Ty_Bomber]

And she's done. That board was a bit bigger than I thought, so it was a ight squeeze. Thanks to the wirin diagrams on these forums, I was able to get everything I needed working again. She purrs like a kitten now. I was really happy with the resonance in the hilt, and it is MUCH brighter and MUCH louder than before. I skipped the recharge port for now because well, with the long AV and the larger board, I can still fit the port in the pommel as before, but I'm afraid of pinching wires. So for now he will have to change the batteries. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. I think I clocked a total of 18 hours into this thing, but I learned a ton. I know it's nothing fancy, but I'm extremely happy it worked out. Special thanks to LDM for the kit (which I ended up ruining in the end, though it did serve as a nice tutorial for how to make my own) Tim as a matter of course, and anyone else who watched this or encouraged me along the way. Cheers.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrCzVIyLDWY&feature=youtube_gdata_player

[YoRn Mangers]

I likes.

[Ty_Bomber]

Thanks man. It was a lot of fun to make.

[DarthZairr]

Hey do you think you can do it to another saberforge fail?

[Ty_Bomber]

Probably not again, no. I am starting a new job soon and then I will stick to MHS builds for awhile. It wasn't as hard as I thought however. I think it would be more valuable to get the parts you need here and upgrade it in your off time. What saber do you have?

[DarthZairr]

it is a Gladius hilt, how did you remove the switch?

[Ty_Bomber]

Flat head screwdriver, pliers, and elbow grease. If its one of those plastic switches, It helps if you rotate it out as you pry it up. Then clip the wires and it will come right out. Then you can pull the rest of the electronics out through the pommel.

Keep in mind that if you use an illuminated AV switch you will have to make a larger hole for it. I did it the old fashioned way (a Dremel and a file). But I wouldn't suggest it. If you have access to one, use a drill press. A 5/8" should do the trick. Hope that helps.

[DarthZairr]

ok cool, i gotta figure out how to gut a fx saber for the soundcard next lol

[Ty_Bomber]

Or splurge on a PCv2? You get much better sound quality, your choice of sound fonts, user configurability through rice, and foc. All of my personal sabers will be PC from here out. I only used an MR Board for this because it was going back to the original owner. If it had been mine it would be PC all the way. And the Gladius is a nice hilt. Having a great soundboard would make a huge difference.

If you really want to cut your teeth on an MR board, visit the fx-sabers forums. They can point you in the right direction, and you won have to gut an existing hilt.