New to the hobby but have some awesome plans!

[SpartanVillage]

Hey guys, new to the forum and new to building sabers but like most of you I've been a Star Wars fan for decades. Finally decided to build a saber and have a general idea of what I want to do with it. I usually take the "do it right the first time" attitude towards projects so I'm not going for the most basic setup. Building this saber to be a display piece/photo prop/costume prop. Here's what I have on the list so far:

- Blue/Blue/White Cree XP-E2 CopperNova
- 18deg Tri-Rebel/Cree Star Lens
- Star thermal tape pad
- Cree/Rebel Lens Holder
- MHS Heat Sink V3
- 4AAA battery holder with mount
- 1000mA Wired BuckPuck
- LED "Corbin style" Show blade 1" OD (36 inches)
- Ribbed grooved / Choke Combo
- MHSV1 Blade Holder Style 16
- 3" Double female threaded connector
- Bezel for illuminated switches
- 16mm Anti Vandal Latching Blue Ring Switch
- Catalyst Pommel (Ultrasabers)

Feel free to let me know if you have any suggestions to improve the build or if you see something that I'm missing. Thanks in advance!

Rendering of my build plans (sorry it's small)
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[Jay-gon Jinn]

You won't need the lens holder with a triple led, the lens fits right on top of it and is secured by tightening the heatsink. Where are you planning to put your switch? You may need to swap that 3" extension out for a 4" to give you enough clearance for the AAA battery holder, or put the switch in the ribbed section. Oh, and just an FYI, TCSS does not guarantee proper fitment of other manufacturer's parts with the MHS system.

[Starwinder]

Any reason why you'd want a Catalyst pommel when you could just use MPS Pommel style 8?

[SpartanVillage]

Any reason why you'd want a Catalyst pommel when you could just use MPS Pommel style 8?

I actually wanted to use MPS Pommel Style 8 but it's out of stock.


You won't need the lens holder with a triple led, the lens fits right on top of it and is secured by tightening the heatsink. Where are you planning to put your switch? You may need to swap that 3" extension out for a 4" to give you enough clearance for the AAA battery holder, or put the switch in the ribbed section. Oh, and just an FYI, TCSS does not guarantee proper fitment of other manufacturer's parts with the MHS system.

Thanks for the tips. I was planning on putting the switch in the center of the 3" section but if you think I need more room then I'll go for a 4". However how would the switch hole be machines in the ripped section? I figured since it didn't have a flat surface, the switch wouldn't sit flush/properly in it.

I figured the fitment of the Catalyst would be a coin toss but Ultrasabers lists it as being a MHS compatible part so I thought it was worth a try. If it doesn't work, I'll send it back and keep waiting till Pommel Style 8 is back in stock.

[Generic Jedi]

I'm waiting on pommel style 8 too...

[Starwinder]

I'd definitely recommend waiting for Pommel 8 over another product that 'might' be MHS compatible. Plus with Pommel 8 you'd be able to pick a pommel insert that would fit your needs better.

It will come back in stock, you just might have to wait a little. Patience is a big part of this hobby, trust me ;)

[SpartanVillage]

I'd definitely recommend waiting for Pommel 8 over another product that 'might' be MHS compatible. Plus with Pommel 8 you'd be able to pick a pommel insert that would fit your needs better.

It will come back in stock, you just might have to wait a little. Patience is a big part of this hobby, trust me ;)

Yeah true...however TCSS is about to put out a new pommel (name escapes me at the moment) that might look awesome on my build!

[Jay-gon Jinn]

I actually wanted to use MPS Pommel Style 8 but it's out of stock.



Thanks for the tips. I was planning on putting the switch in the center of the 3" section but if you think I need more room then I'll go for a 4". However how would the switch hole be machines in the ripped section? I figured since it didn't have a flat surface, the switch wouldn't sit flush/properly in it. Yes, machining the switch holes in the ribbed extension will allow part of the switch to be seen in the grooves, but it will sit flush because Tim recesses the hole for the switch when you have him drill it.

[SpartanVillage]

Tim and I spoke about it and we actually did a little change up. He's going to recess the switch hole for me and instead of using a latching switch, I'm going to use a short momentary switch with the conversion board. That way everything is nice and clean. I found this photo and sent it to him for reference so this is what it should come out looking like:
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[Yorginsnarff]

how the heck did you render that shroud?! (nice shroud, btw)

[SpartanVillage]

Thanks! When I built the saber in the builder program, I just added a plain extension piece off to the side, saved it as a jpeg, then photoshopped it. Here's what the straight on view should look like with the switch in the ribbed section:

11667

Another change-up to the build is the LED. Unfortunately TCSS was sold out of the Tri-Cree B/B/W LEDs (was going to run both blues together in series) so I found another LED at LEDSupply.com listed as the Cree XLamp XP-E2 Color High Power LED Star where all three diodes are already wired in series and light up together. Definitely looking forward to how it'll look.

[Yorginsnarff]

man that's a DAMN FINE saber! Hope it turns out really really good ;)

*Showers you in luck and good tidings

[SpartanVillage]

Thanks! I have some machining experience and time using mills so I'm hoping I can make the shroud look better than the photos. Guess we'll see...

[Yorginsnarff]

ahh I have experience on a lathe and mill also, but I don't have the tools ;-;

[SpartanVillage]

I'm in the same boat however I have a drill press, band saw, and bench mounted belt sander. Thinking about picking up a milling vise for my drill press to convert it into a vertical mill.

[SpartanVillage]

Okay so I've been doing a lot of reading on LED wiring and whatnot. Needless to say, I want this thing to be crazy bright...just like everyone else. As I stated before, the LED I'm running is a B/B/B Tri Cree and comes setup to be run in series. However from my understanding, parallel is what you want to get the most power to each die. I'm thinking about removing the contact bridges and running it in parallel. What do you guys think? LED is pictured below (not the same color but same kind of LED):
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[Ty_Bomber]

Hate to break it to you, but if that led is wired in series, your AAA pack won't be able to power it. The leds will have to be run in series. Those leds in series will require 11 volts to fire and your power supply only puts out 4.8 volts.

You can remove the jumpers, but not easily. As Jay Gon mentioned in another thread (on another forum) you can use a lighter to heat the bottom of the Star and pull them off, but be prepared to be frustrated.

Also, with any high powered led, you want a high powered battery pack. Li-ions are so prevalent because of their higher discharge rate and longer capacity.

At the very minimum, you have to remove the series jumpers and wire your leds in parallel. If you want decent run time (even on a stunt) I recommend a single 18650 li-ion battery.

[SpartanVillage]

Yeah I've been doing some more research and discovered that I'm definitely going to need a Li-ion battery to get this thing bright enough. I picked up some solder wick to soak up as much of the solder on the jumpers to remove them. Shouldn't be too bad since it doesn't look like there's a ton of solder holding them on.

Do you have a suggested parts list for what I'll need to run a 18650 li-ion? I'm really new to all this so any help is appreciated.

[Ty_Bomber]

Well, that depends. If you want removable cells-for swapping batteries on the fly- I would get the following:

http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/TrustFire-TR-001-All-in-One-Charger-P346.aspx

http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/TrustFire-Protected-37V-2400mAh-18650-Lithium-Battery-2-pack-P517.aspx

http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/18650-Single-Cell-Holder-P886.aspx

This setup may be more your speed. I like removable cells because plugging your saber into an outlet for 6+ hours sucks all the joy out of life. If you want in hilt recharge, however, get the following:

http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/Switchcraft-21mm-Power-Jack-P822.aspx

http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/Kill-plug-style-5-P808.aspx

http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/Panasonic-Li-Ion-18650-37V-3400mAh-PCB-Protected-Rechargeable-Battery-P853.aspx

http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/37V-Li-ion-smart-charger-with-21mm-plug-P890.aspx

If cost is a factor, the first setup is preferable, obviously. I like the first option for numerous reasons, even with a sound setup, but for a stunt, its ideal (IMO).

[SpartanVillage]

You are AWESOME, Ty_Bomber! Thank you for that. I'll probably just go with the shorter list above. Cost is a factor at this point but I also don't want to have the hilt plugged in for hours like you said?

Is there no need for a PCB? Or are those only necessary when you're building your own rechargeable cell?

[Ty_Bomber]

They're individually protected already. You're good.

[SpartanVillage]

Awesome! Everything is on order. Hoping my saber parts ship this week! Tim sent me a photo of the switch hole he machined into my extension and I'm getting really excited about it.

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[Miraluka]

That switch looks prettier than I would have thought, recessed into the v grooves like that. Very cool.

[SpartanVillage]

That switch looks prettier than I would have thought, recessed into the v grooves like that. Very cool.

Yeah it turned out great! It's going to look even better after the extension gets powder coated. The blue ring is really going to stand out against the black when it lights up.

[SpartanVillage]

My order from TCSS is showing up tomorrow and I couldn't be more excited! However while I've been waiting, I decided to design and make my own custom chassis parts. It's designed to hold the 18650 battery cell, Buckpuck, and the momentary switch converter board in the recess on the bottom. Overall length between the two discs is under 4" which should be perfect for the length of the main body on my hilt. Still going to add some brass tubing over the all thread along with some acorn nuts to finish off the ends. Let me know what you guys think!118101181111812

[Greenie]

Awesome! Everything is on order. Hoping my saber parts ship this week! Tim sent me a photo of the switch hole he machined into my extension and I'm getting really excited about it.

11747

That is delicious! :mrgreen:

[Miraluka]

My order from TCSS is showing up tomorrow and I couldn't be more excited! However while I've been waiting, I decided to design and make my own custom chassis parts. It's designed to hold the 18650 battery cell, Buckpuck, and the momentary switch converter board in the recess on the bottom. Overall length between the two discs is under 4" which should be perfect for the length of the main body on my hilt. Still going to add some brass tubing over the all thread along with some acorn nuts to finish off the ends. Let me know what you guys think!118101181111812

Looking pretty nice. Hope it works out when you get your parts in hand.

[SpartanVillage]

Thanks guys! So as it turns out, thanks to some bad advice, the 18650 is not going to provide enough power for the BuckPuck to function. I don't know how I overlooked that detail seeing how it's 3.7V and the minimum input voltage of the BuckPuck is 5V. HOWEVER, I did end up ordering a 4 AAA battery holder when I ordered my parts from TCSS which in fact puts out 6V! So I'm going to run that for the time being until I need to upgrade. Seeing how this is just a stunt saber/display piece/photo prop, I don't necessarily need it to have extended run time. But knowing me, I'll probably end up replacing the AAAs with a 7.4v Li-ion 1050mAh 14650 Battery Pack.

[Forgetful Jedi Knight]

IF you stuck with the 18650 battery pack, lost the buckpuck, and used the appropriate resistors (where needed) you would be fine. You'll also come to find that AAA's don't put out enough current to run a multi-die LED for more than a few minutes.

[SpartanVillage]

Yeah I'm just gonna use the AAAs as a temporary setup and order the 14650 pack. Reason why I stuck with the BuckPuck is because I can't return it and would rather not waste the money. I got the 18650s off Amazon so the return was easy.

[Miraluka]

No wasted parts, just parts for future builds ;)

[SpartanVillage]

Well I DO already happen to have plans for my Sith themed hilt ;)

[SpartanVillage]

All wired up! 11857

Doing some detail work on the hilt and designing a shroud. More pics to follow.

[darth_chasm]

Congrats!! Feels good doesn't it?

[SpartanVillage]

It does! Especially since all the soldering went well and my wiriing plan worked on the first to. But then again I don't have a sound board so the set-up is super simple.

[Miraluka]

That's actually a cool photo. haha

Congratulations.