Denz
01-28-2014, 08:36 AM
Obi-wan ANH is easily my favorite SW movie saber design and just like every true saber fan I had to build one!
For this build I decided to go with MHS parts, but to avoid yet another MHS Obi I felt I needed to push the limits of what I had personally done in my previous builds.
One thing that always bothered my about the MHS Obis was the clamp section. The other is the "fat" neck, but I'll save that for later :)
I started with the "Graflexification" of the TCSS activation box. This was a bit of a challenge for me as I did not have a Graflex clamp to transfer measurements from. So it took a fair amount of careful planning and painstaking study of reference pictures to get a "sense" of the proportions and relative dimensions of the slots and grooves.
Below are the results of my crude attempts after drilling and HOURS of filing.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/01-Graflexification_zps5be0dcf8.jpg
I think I might drill holes behind the square windows and add an accent LED give it some "life", but don?t want to commit to that just yet.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/02-Graflexification_zps18bd5eca.jpg
Drilled the hole for the recharge port that will serve as one of the transistor caps. The other transistor cap location is marked for the auxiliary button. The grooves where done by chucking the piece in my lathe and using the threading tool to score the lines by rotating the chuck by hand. Not entirely perfect but I think I can hide some of the mess up with weathering.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/03-clamp-rechargeport_zpse825df3f.jpg
(Oh BTW: I had a TCSS 2" double female extension under the activation box "clamp" for all drilling and filing operations to ensure everything aligned as if it was a single piece.)
Now that I have a general plan for the electronics I turned my attention to the crystal chamber. I started with the crystal mount by taking some measurements and making a sketch or two. Then I took the general idea to the lathe and here is what I ended up with.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/04-CrystalMount_zpsf7efa409.jpg
I determined where the support rod placement should be and drilled the holes to accommodate 4-40 threaded rods. After drilling I parted the piece to create a forward and rear section for the chamber assembly.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/06-CrystalMount-parted_zpsba09bfcb.jpg
The key to ensuring a good precision alignment was drilling the holes for the forward and rear section as one piece.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/08-CrystalMount-Back_zps598ce519.jpg
Using a technique borrowed from Slothfurnace I used the forward mounting piece as a template to mount and turn the brass sheets to size on the lathe. Note how the support rod holes also serve to hold the brass sheets securely in place.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/09-RadiatorFins_zps5d555c2e.jpg
Testing assembly alignment and overall fit. I was impressed with the level of precision I was able to achieve. This thing is solid and feels like it was carved from one piece.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/10-ChamberTest-Blue_zpsb569538b.jpg
Although I am using a blue crystal I thought I'd see how it would look with a green LED.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/11-ChamberTest-green_zps2b3311f0.jpg
For this build I decided to go with MHS parts, but to avoid yet another MHS Obi I felt I needed to push the limits of what I had personally done in my previous builds.
One thing that always bothered my about the MHS Obis was the clamp section. The other is the "fat" neck, but I'll save that for later :)
I started with the "Graflexification" of the TCSS activation box. This was a bit of a challenge for me as I did not have a Graflex clamp to transfer measurements from. So it took a fair amount of careful planning and painstaking study of reference pictures to get a "sense" of the proportions and relative dimensions of the slots and grooves.
Below are the results of my crude attempts after drilling and HOURS of filing.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/01-Graflexification_zps5be0dcf8.jpg
I think I might drill holes behind the square windows and add an accent LED give it some "life", but don?t want to commit to that just yet.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/02-Graflexification_zps18bd5eca.jpg
Drilled the hole for the recharge port that will serve as one of the transistor caps. The other transistor cap location is marked for the auxiliary button. The grooves where done by chucking the piece in my lathe and using the threading tool to score the lines by rotating the chuck by hand. Not entirely perfect but I think I can hide some of the mess up with weathering.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/03-clamp-rechargeport_zpse825df3f.jpg
(Oh BTW: I had a TCSS 2" double female extension under the activation box "clamp" for all drilling and filing operations to ensure everything aligned as if it was a single piece.)
Now that I have a general plan for the electronics I turned my attention to the crystal chamber. I started with the crystal mount by taking some measurements and making a sketch or two. Then I took the general idea to the lathe and here is what I ended up with.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/04-CrystalMount_zpsf7efa409.jpg
I determined where the support rod placement should be and drilled the holes to accommodate 4-40 threaded rods. After drilling I parted the piece to create a forward and rear section for the chamber assembly.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/06-CrystalMount-parted_zpsba09bfcb.jpg
The key to ensuring a good precision alignment was drilling the holes for the forward and rear section as one piece.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/08-CrystalMount-Back_zps598ce519.jpg
Using a technique borrowed from Slothfurnace I used the forward mounting piece as a template to mount and turn the brass sheets to size on the lathe. Note how the support rod holes also serve to hold the brass sheets securely in place.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/09-RadiatorFins_zps5d555c2e.jpg
Testing assembly alignment and overall fit. I was impressed with the level of precision I was able to achieve. This thing is solid and feels like it was carved from one piece.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/10-ChamberTest-Blue_zpsb569538b.jpg
Although I am using a blue crystal I thought I'd see how it would look with a green LED.
http://i1279.photobucket.com/albums/y522/MasterGreeble/Obi%20ROTS%20MHS/11-ChamberTest-green_zps2b3311f0.jpg