Question regarding recharge ports...

[CGompertz09]

For those who have done a fair amount of recharge port set ups, does anyone know if the recharge port will go through both a V-grooved rib section AND a shroud made of the sleeve material? Hard to describe without pictures or a rendering. Basically I want the port to go from the inside, and be held in place by the nut from the outside, with the tip of the port and the nut being flush with the shroud. Looking for some input because I would like to be 100% sure before I go drilling a hole, I'd like to not have to make a new shroud if it doesn't work.

[IndustrialAction]

You'd be better off drilling and tapping a hole in the rib section and then making a hole in the shroud. No need to use the nut, just screw the port in to the threaded hole in the rib section.

[amwolf]

Or use Jay-Gon's pvc c-clip trick as screwing the port in might be an issue depending on how close to an end it was.

[CGompertz09]

It's going to be right in the middle of the ribbed section, so screwing it into a hole would be very tricky. PVC clip trick might work, but would it be flush after going through PVC, the ribbed section AND the shroud?

[amwolf]

I think it'd be close to the outer face of the ribbed section but probably recessed a bit from that - the sink drain extension I used the last time I made one of these was on the fat side of 1/32" thick, and you've got the internal radius that comes into play. I've got a ribbed grooved extension over at the shop I could do a mock up on but I won't be able to get over there until saturday. We upgraded our AutoCad software here at the office to the non-3d version or I'd do a quick mock up that way (sorry).

[Jay-gon Jinn]

I have used the c-clip method for mounting a recharge port in a ribbed extension once, on my CS-X saber. The port will be flush only with the outside diameter of the robbed extension, not the sleeve material. You'll just need to drill a large enough hole in the sleeve to allow the charge jack to seat properly into the charge port.

[CGompertz09]

I have used the c-clip method for mounting a recharge port in a ribbed extension once, on my CS-X saber. The port will be flush only with the outside diameter of the robbed extension, not the sleeve material. You'll just need to drill a large enough hole in the sleeve to allow the charge jack to seat properly into the charge port.

So would that mean that if I mounted it NOT using the pvc, that it should go all the way through to the shroud?

[amwolf]

Had the older software loaded at home so I modeled this scenario.If you went the threaded hole route, the port would extend about half way through the shroud material at the center line of the port, a smidge more at the outer edge. Remember though, you'd have to free spin the port into place, which would be tough with the wires already attached so you'd probably have to do that AFTER the port was installed. My solder skills are not that high, let alone the heat shrink. Were you planning on using the port threads to hold the shroud in place?

[CGompertz09]

Had the older software loaded at home so I modeled this scenario.If you went the threaded hole route, the port would extend about half way through the shroud material at the center line of the port, a smidge more at the outer edge. Remember though, you'd have to free spin the port into place, which would be tough with the wires already attached so you'd probably have to do that AFTER the port was installed. My solder skills are not that high, let alone the heat shrink. Were you planning on using the port threads to hold the shroud in place?

No, the shroud is already held in place by 4 button head screws. My idea would be to have the port held in place by the nut on the outside, flush with the shroud.

[amwolf]

Back to my computer model (remembered to save it this time), and if my models are correct the issue I keep bumping into is that the length of the threaded area on the ports is almost the same as the thickness of the ribbed extension once competing radii are factored in, so to have the port threads proud of the extension you've either got to flatten an area on the exterior of the extension OR bore out an area on the interior of the extension to allow the port to project. The nut is about the same thickness as the MHS shroud material so you could achieve a flush-ish look, but you'd need a hole in the shroud larger than the dimension across the widest point of the nut either way. Hmmm. Sends me running back to the c-clip idea for its cleaner look and smaller holes. Or drill a hole through the extension big enough so that the port passes through it and would actually mount to the shroud with the nut. Not flush though...

[CGompertz09]

Hmm, guess I might try Jay-Gon's PVC clip trick. If not, I may just do what I did with the Aux switch; drill the hole just big enough for a snug slip-in fit and then hot glue it in place. Creates a good hold and doesn't let it go anywhere, yet can still be removed in the future if need be. Thanks for the help guys!

[Jay-gon Jinn]

Here's a couple of pics of the recharge port on my CS-X saber:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/Chrome%20Saber%20X/100_8899.jpg
Test fitting the recharge port...this particular saber also has a mini momentary switch mounted in the same clip as the recharge port.

The port from outside:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/Chrome%20Saber%20X/100_8898.jpg
I soldered the wires to the port after installing it in the c-clip, making sure the wires were long enough to allow the clip to fit in the female threads on the ribbed extension so it could be screwed into the bottom of the hilt without twisting the wires. At the time I did this though, i had used mini battery connectors on the recharge port to allow it to be unplugged, but have since removed them due to the amount of space they took up in the hilt.
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/Chrome%20Saber%20X/100_8903.jpg
This particular saber is in pieces on my bench at the moment, getting an upgrade to a PC 2.0 and a tri-rebel set up. I can take more pictures of the set up if you need them.

I have also used this method of mounting a recharge port on several other sabers, and the most recent one also had a R.I.C.E. port mounted in the same clip:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/Chrome%20Saber%2039/100_2105.jpg

[Darth Ryo]

This is very helpful Jay-gon, exactly what I've been looking for... I'll look further into this c-clip method :D