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Phaeron
04-27-2007, 10:54 PM
Hi all. I'm new around here and am preparing to build my first saber. I've been reading the tutorials and deciding on the different components I want to use. I haven't really seen this explicitly addressed anywhere so I was wondering... how are the battery pack and driver/sound board (if I choose to use one) secured inside the hilt?

If I am swinging my saber around I don't want the batteries sliding up and down damaging things.

Thanks in advance for the help and I'm sure this is just the first of many noob questions to come :)

987654321a
04-27-2007, 11:33 PM
the batteries are going to be secured in a battery holder, and dont worry there would be so much wiring in it so that the batteries wouldnt damage the saber itself.

Ryma Mara
04-27-2007, 11:55 PM
I would suggest some tape to keep the batteries in and to keep the pack from braking. then wrap it with something to keep ti from flopping around inside.

I cracked my battery holder when I dropted it last. Iam to the point to where Iam saying to hell with it, I drop it I drop it.

987654321a
04-28-2007, 11:05 AM
for the 4AA or 4AAA for mhs you dont need tape it fits snugly in the hilt. but for the 9 volts you need something for it.

Madcow
04-28-2007, 11:13 AM
Good question Phaeron,
Depending on your sabers design there are many things you can do. I like to make foam or rubber spacers between components, they keep everything tight and in place. They can also help keep things like sound boards from making accidental contact with the metal inside of a hilt - to avoid shorts.

MC

Novastar
04-28-2007, 08:25 PM
I agree with Madcow, and it's sure he's been making sabers A LOT longer than me... :)

The recommendations I can give are as follows:

* If possible, avoid cheapo battery "spring" packs--ESPECIALLY when using "momentary" button setups. If the springs briefly lose contact with the batteries during sabre "action" (or saber gesture detection as Erv says, hehhe)... the driver board will shut off and won't come back on until you press the button again.

This is hardly surprising, considering the "clash" sensor on an MR board... is a spring. :)

This is also why I prefer rechargeable batteries and adding a recharge port. Batteries that are soldered in place... can't run into the above momentary vs. latching issue. Less fiddling around with batts / de-construction too.

* Isolate EVERY wire/solder joint/copper area that you can. This means by tape, by padding, by whatever. By doing this, you rule out short-circuits or grounding issues coming from all over the place. If you have a problem AFTER you do this--you can bet that it's a broken connection... and not just a tough-to-find short/ground.

* TEST your leads/solders! Since your solders are having to stand up against dueling (ok, we'll call it 'spirited dueling' like Hyperdyne does)... if you can break you solder joint by pulling on it a little... it sucked road nachos to begin with. :) Punish a solder joint a bit first... BEFORE wiring up! If it shows no signs of fear... you're cool and the gang.

There's more but that's good for now...

Phaeron
05-01-2007, 07:14 PM
Thanks for the replies, I appreciate the feedback. I like the idea for foam padding. The thing is, I plan on using a sink tube as I really want to "make" my own saber, not just snap one together like from the MHS.

Is there going to be enough room in a standard sink tube hilt for the battery pack, driver and sound boards, speaker, etc? Will everything fit?


Oh and I have been reading some basic tutorials on soldering and the like but I was wondering if there are any good, cheap projects I could get some practice on before trying my saber? I don't want to fry anything due to lack of experience.

P.S.
Oh and btw I am not in any way suggesting or implying that using the MHS is somehow worse or an easy-mode way to get a saber or anything... I just feel that the experience I am looking for will best be met by designing and cutting up my own tube. However, I will definitely be utilizing things like the MHS to sink tube adapter, as well as all the electronics here in the shop.

Lord Maul
05-01-2007, 07:28 PM
when i first soldered, i just did it on spare wires. i did 2, 3, 4, and 5 wire joints, and haven't fried anything yet :D

Jay-gon Jinn
05-01-2007, 09:37 PM
You should also have plenty of room inside your sink tube for all the electronics. I built one using a combination of MHS parts and a sink tube, and have a ton of room inside for the electronics. It was also suggested to me to wrap the battery pack in bubble wrap to keep it from moving around inside the hilt. It works pretty good, and you'll get some from Tim in the box your stuff comes in, too! If you do this, I'd als o suggest using a rubber band or a hair/pony tail cord wrapped around the battery pack to keep them from falling out, if you use the 4 AAA pack in the hilt electronics kit.

LAN-ED-TUL
05-03-2007, 05:41 AM
to support all of my hasbro boards i used in my built sabers, i used a trophy collomn i got for free from a trophy makin place.

the ones i got, were al;il bigger than the hilts, so a lil sanding down the outsides to fit perfectly inside the hilt, and the centers are drilled out for the bolts they run thru them to make the trophys, so a lil dremeling the inside out a bit more, and then make a cross cut with a hacksaw blade down the inside on opposite sides so the hasbro board slides right in like on rails. with just enough snug to keep it in place. run the led wires out one end, and the speaker wires and speaker out the other.

on the led end, i take the mothion and impact sensors and use a small wood screw to mount them right to the rim of the colomn. i have done 3 sabers like that, and all work perfectly.

of course i make a wood or pvc pip ring spacer for the speaker front , and another for the back side to keep anything from smackin it, and it movin around. these are loose enough they will slide out to be able to get the batt pack out.

i use a thin foam sheet wrapped around batt pack holder just to help from arcing out on hilt JUST in case.

Barmic Rin
05-03-2007, 06:01 AM
Sink tubes i've used tend to have more space than MHS, but like Countdown said, there's loads of wiring (I add a couple of inches to play with later if I upgrade at all) to stop it sloshing around.
I'm currently using bubble wrap to secure my Buttered toast in place until I can get a sleeving that allows a bit breathing space around it.
I've heard some one used speaker foam in one of theirs. Not sure who it was though, or how successful.

SaberSentinel
05-03-2007, 09:55 AM
I think this is close enough to on topic. I am thinking of doing a rechargeable setup. The description of the 7.2 volt battery pack says it won't fit in the 1.25 sink tube. However three AA bateries will, so I was wondering if you sanded the 7.2 volt battery pack down a little, could you get it to fit in a 1.25 sink tube? or am i just begging to get battery acid all over myself?

xwingband
05-03-2007, 10:43 AM
The issue is the coating. Tim plasti-dips the packs to hold them together. I GUESS you could probably trim it but then why not get a 6AA triangle holder?

Novastar
05-03-2007, 12:21 PM
As a note of caution, my guess would be that sanding batteries = bad. :shock:

Why not sand the inside of the TUBE if they just barely do not fit?

Or, simply couple a bigger section of sink tube (1.5") to a smaller one. Fit the batteries in the big tube, the rest in the smaller.

That is what I had to do to create my new saber--1.25" TCSS black anod holder + 1.25" sink tube + MHS to sink coupler + 1.5" tube. Bingo! :)

My 18650 7.2 Li-Ion 2400's go in the 1.5" portion nicely. Barely... but nicely.

Lord Maul
05-03-2007, 02:30 PM
The issue is the coating. Tim plasti-dips the packs to hold them together. I GUESS you could probably trim it but then why not get a 6AA triangle holder?

really Xwing :?:
on my battery pack, the plasti dip coating is only like 1/2 a mm thick if that. i can't imagine that not letting it in... :shock:

Novastar
05-03-2007, 02:47 PM
My 7.2 Li-Ion pack BARELY fits into the 1.5" sink tube I'm using...

It fits fine on its own, but when I use electrical tape around it to secure wires down as extra give... keep the PCB isolated, protect the batteries... it ALMOST prevents it from working in there.

How much space could one wrap of electrical tape add??! Not much. But... enough.

So it all depends on how much room is "enough".

xwingband
05-03-2007, 03:34 PM
The issue is the coating. Tim plasti-dips the packs to hold them together. I GUESS you could probably trim it but then why not get a 6AA triangle holder?

really Xwing :?:
on my battery pack, the plasti dip coating is only like 1/2 a mm thick if that. i can't imagine that not letting it in... :shock:

Obviously when three AA's normally fit and in the rechargeable pack it doesn't... it's the coating!

Obviously you never tried pushing the square peg in the round hole. :wink: or ever seen how little it takes to make putting in a PolyC blade in the holder a pain.

neophyl
05-03-2007, 04:02 PM
Now Im not sugesting you try this and if you do its entirely your own stupid fault BUT.....

it has been known to slightly squeeze a nicd or nimh battery pack in a vise to very slightly narrow the pack. It makes a slight difference which could be all thats needed. Not that Ive evaar done anything that stupid mind ;)

I certainly would attampt that with lithiums.

Novastar
05-03-2007, 08:02 PM
Cool, if I squeeze my Li-Ion cells, will I get more energy density outta them?

Just kidding.

Ravage179
05-03-2007, 08:37 PM
that kinda scares me when I was a kid I put a roll of paper caps into a vise (for some stupid reason i cant remember) and blew the jaws off, I have had hearing problems ever since, I'm not saying that batteries are that explosive but I just wouldn't take that chance.

Jedi-Loreen
05-04-2007, 12:17 AM
Man, that must have been some roll of caps!! :shock:

I blew up a whole roll of caps when I was a kid, using a 5 lb steel mallet, putting the roll of caps on the sidewalk. My ears were ringing for the next hour or so, and some dirt from the sidewalk stung my knees when it blasted out from under the caps, but that's all that happened to me.

SaberSentinel
05-04-2007, 10:29 AM
The issue is the coating. Tim plasti-dips the packs to hold them together. I GUESS you could probably trim it but then why not get a 6AA triangle holder?

Because I think the plastic they use to divide the batteries would make it too thick/wide for a 1.25 sink tube. I was thinking that Tim used heat-shrink tubing or something like that to hold them together (that might not be a bad Idea...) And just for the record I was never going to sand the actual batteries, I'm not that stupid. I just thought that with a little help the 7.2 volt pack could be "persuaded" to go in. Maybe the BFH-9000 would help lol.

Novastar
05-04-2007, 11:48 AM
Like I said, sand the PIPE, not the batteries.

Worked for me when I needed just a *SLLLLIGHT* (and I mean slight) bit of room inside a 1.5" tube to fit 7.4Li-Ion 18650 (2 cells side by side)

Lord Maul
05-04-2007, 02:44 PM
Maybe the BFH-9000 would help lol.

you ask...

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n187/aluke_2006/BFH9000.jpg

i deliver

Novastar
05-05-2007, 01:38 AM
I never used that on a saber, BUT there WAS one saber from BOP I that

LITERALLY

needed to be "peeled apart" like a freakin' banana or sardine can. A tube was jammed into place SO well, no amount of twisting, pulling, or even MACHINES pulling at both parts would separate the two.

So, I cut into the tube, and sort of spiraled my way up until I could free the entire thing and replace it.

This was WAY before I knew:

* how to solder
* build a single saber
* wire up anything
* a single thing about current/voltage, etc.

It was frustrating, but a great learning experience.

NEVER... NEVER NEVER NEVER

EVER

"force" anything into place. You may never be able to take it apart for repair. That would be a bad move given the nature of LED sabers... :)

Firebird21
05-05-2007, 06:19 AM
I have to kill the battery in my Luke before I can assemble it because it's the only way I can fit it into the Ribbed section of the hilt.

When it's dead it shrinks just enough that it slides right in. When it's charged it expands slightly and locks itself into place. If I dissasemble it charged it chews the crap out of the shrink wrap, dead it falls out.

But this may not help anyone because I'm using Tims old yellow pack that he doesn't sell anymore. But good information to know I guess.

Lord Maul
05-05-2007, 10:29 AM
FB, that's really weird. i wonder if that'll be what happens with my batt pack :?:

Ryma Mara
05-05-2007, 10:33 AM
ah exlposions and loss of hearing. reminds me of that stupid lawnmower insident.

pockets
05-05-2007, 10:39 AM
one time we were camping and i dropped my knife on the road before we were heading in, and we had some road flares lit to make us visible and hellp us see, and i picked one up to help me find my knife, of course i'm waving this flaming flare over the ground, it sets off a firecracker that was laying there, and i couldnt hear for 2 hours out of my left ear. not fun.

jedi tom
05-05-2007, 02:16 PM
ryma i hate to ask but what lawnmoar accident

Novastar
05-06-2007, 02:25 AM
I have to kill the battery in my Luke before I can assemble it because it's the only way I can fit it into the Ribbed section of the hilt.

When it's dead it shrinks just enough that it slides right in. When it's charged it expands slightly and locks itself into place. If I dissasemble it charged it chews the crap out of the shrink wrap, dead it falls out.

But this may not help anyone because I'm using Tims old yellow pack that he doesn't sell anymore. But good information to know I guess.That is USUALLY a sign of battery leakage, but hey, if I'm wrong, and it's nothing big...

if need be... grind the inside of the tube down a bit.

Man, is there an ECHO in here??? :P

Barmic Rin
05-06-2007, 04:18 AM
Wow J-lo, I found someone as dumb as me!!!!! :P

£3.50 worth of caps (a helluva lot in my day!) wrapped around a two pence piece, one layer of cellotape to keep it in place, then threw it.

The 1/4in deep crater we made in my aunts driveway is still there to this very day. Thankfully my hearing returned sometime after lunch, and my aunts cat returned the following day. I guess we should have checked to see whether she was sleeping under the car or not BEFORE throwing our cap bomb..... :shock:

Firebird21
05-06-2007, 07:54 AM
That is USUALLY a sign of battery leakage, but hey, if I'm wrong, and it's nothing big...

if need be... grind the inside of the tube down a bit.

Man, is there an ECHO in here??? :P


No sign of leakage yet... I'm only talking a mm or two. Just enough to make a difference.

Even depleted, I can’t put so much as one layer of electrical tape on the pack without making it too fat to go into the ribbed section.

Jedi-Loreen
05-06-2007, 09:41 AM
What happened to the coin, Barmic? Did you find it? :P

Novastar
05-06-2007, 12:06 PM
No sign of leakage yet... I'm only talking a mm or two. Just enough to make a difference.

Even depleted, I can’t put so much as one layer of electrical tape on the pack without making it too fat to go into the ribbed section.AGAIN, can you just sand a little of the inside of the RIBBED tube?

I know this is possible. I've done something like this before with an MHS part.

Firebird21
05-06-2007, 05:14 PM
AGAIN, can you just sand a little of the inside of the RIBBED tube?

I know this is possible. I've done something like this before with an MHS part.


Why fix it if it ain't broke?

Barmic Rin
05-07-2007, 01:19 AM
Quite strangely, it was clean once i'd got all the used caps off!! One edge was chipped slightly, but on the whole it looked new!!! :shock:

Anyone have trouble with the battery compartment on their '05 MR Vader?
Some days it's so stiff to try & remove, it sounds just like the sorta problem you guys have with the ribbed section, though I haven't modded a thing on it.

erv
05-21-2007, 01:20 PM
I though I should share my battery installation technique in this topic.
Instead of a bad copy/paste I suggest you directly go to the tutorial !
How to install and secure a batt pack and electronics inside a hilt (http://www.plecterlabs.com/catalog/article_info.php?articles_id=19&language=en)

Erv'

Novastar
05-21-2007, 03:18 PM
AGAIN, can you just sand a little of the inside of the RIBBED tube?
I know this is possible. I've done something like this before with an MHS part.
Why fix it if it ain't broke?God you're confusing. You said you had to "kill" your batteries on your Luke saber before they would come out. To me, that is broke. But, whatever. Do what you want. I'm tired of repeating myself anyhow.

Lord Maul
05-21-2007, 05:02 PM
he means get all of the power out of them novastar :wink:
that is really weird though FB how it expands

Novastar
05-21-2007, 06:54 PM
I know what he meant, Maul.

For the bloody last time, JUST SAND THE INSIDE OF THE TUBE if you need extra space people.

It's not that big of a deal. Even on a sink tube pipe. It's a lot safer and far easier to sand the hilt than to try messing with the battery pack anyhow.

It's just common sense. Dang. People on here can be extremely obtuse. lol :)