Woo Hoo.....gonna finally finish my Graflex

[Kamurah]

No real point to this post...just expressing my joy as a long-term project is coming to fruition.

Just ordered the last of the parts to finish out my vintage Graflex.....red button thumbscrew, grips, tape, and kobold D-ring.

Going to convert it to a Luke ESB running a K2 Blue on Buttered Toast 3.0.

Tonight I drilled the holes and did the cutwork to run the aux switch into the clamp section (is going to be a micro momentary that has just the button tip sticking out the side of the clamp...very slick). Original red button will activate saber.

Also just built the cradle and resonance chamber for the speaker / battery setup.

Everything fits nice and snug in the hilt (it's functional...but doesn't look as BLING as the ones Yoda does over at ultrasabers), and am just waiting (as many of us are) on Erv to start shipping the buttered goodness.

Let me tell you though....my heart was in my throat as I started drilling the holes and cutting on that Graflex....no return route/ replacement for that stuff ya know? :D And I already spent money to have the Graflex sandblasted and re-nickled (had a few rust spots on it). Looks like new now.

Anywho...I'll post pics once it's all together and humming nicely :)

Would love to hear any stories from other Graflex owners who went through this process.

Cheers

[pipster79]

i finished mine today :) so nice

[Kamurah]

Pics please :D Wanna see wanna see!

[pipster79]

try to post pics tomorrow, with cf v1.2, my board craddle, battery setup and resonance chamber

dont know if i will post pics of my haggard endcap lol, my peice of poo drill bit kept traveling...even after using a center punch and all. so now the end cap looks random (swiss cheese) lol.
still have to get a d-ring for it, should hopefully cover up some of that swiss cheese lol

[Kamurah]

Ok...so there are always lots of questions on this board about resonance chambers and electronics mounting....

Thought I would share the setup I am building for my Graflex. You could adapt something similar to a MHS hilt...but you would need to make sure the battery and speaker setups were small enough diameter to fit your hilt.

I built a resonance chamber using a method described by xwing...basically two sections of thick-walled pvc pipe cut then the edges Dremmel'd / beveled to fit the speaker in between.

Then you take shrinkwrap and connect the two.

Like this:

http://homepage.mac.com/richlisagreen/.Pictures/Cham1.jpg


http://homepage.mac.com/richlisagreen/.Pictures/Cham2.jpg


http://homepage.mac.com/richlisagreen/.Pictures/Cham3.jpg


Then, you can attach this chamber to your battery pack using sections of sink tube cut to hold everything in place (this is Erv's recommended method on his website):

http://homepage.mac.com/richlisagreen/.Pictures/Cham%204.jpg

http://homepage.mac.com/richlisagreen/.Pictures/Cham5.jpg


Using the parts of the sink tube that pass around the battery pack / resonance chamber, you can make sure everything is a nice snug fit. I will add an additional wrap of heatshrink to secure the card in the battery section once it arrives.

It's not as pretty as the custom jobs....but sometimes perfection is the enemy of 'good enough' :D

Cheers

[pipster79]

You could have used 1 inch pvc pipe coupler. Does the exact same thing, holds the speaker perfectly in place, and fits in the graflex beautifuly with just a little bit of play. Much easier then assembling 2 different peices together, you only need slide the speaker in till it hits the lip and a dab of glue and bang perfect resonance :)

[Kamurah]

NOW you tell me!

LOL Just kidding....I thought about doing that...and for me... my skills with a glue gun still have some room for improvement :D I tend to get more glue involved than I need....plus my OCD mind liked the idea of having the speaker secured from both sides...I don't know why.

Using a Dremmel and a cutting bit, ...this took all of about 10 minutes to accomplish.

At the end of the day though, it's just another way to skin a Bantha!

Cheers

[pipster79]

You dont even need to use hot glue, can put a couple dabs of super glue on the lip, slide the speakr in and that sucker aint goin anywhere lol

oh well at least you know for next time lol

[pipster79]

what blade holder and heat sink are you usnig? have you got the cf v3 in yet?

[Kamurah]

Am using the blade holder / led heatsink sold at the Graflex Shop. I looked at the one Tim sells but I wanted one that was anodized black.

Yes. CF 3.0 came in yesterday, but I haven't installed yet because I still need to drill speaker holes, and am waiting on my switches, grips, and D-ring to arrive.

[pipster79]

cool, did you use the new short socket they have or the long 4 inch one?

oh...be careful when you drill the holes lol. bottom of mine looks like crap because the darn drill kept traveling

[Kamurah]

I'm using the short one....which I guess is serendipitous because I plan on putting the recharge port in the upper half and one could run out of room pretty quick.

OK, I am now officially worried about drilling the bottom. :D

I have been doing all my drilling using a dremel with a drill press attachment...but I think for this I am going to borrow a friend's drill press (heavy duty type)...

BTW did you use a vise clamp to stabilize your pommel while drilling? I ask because it seems to keep everything in place fairly well, and if there was still a lot of travel even after using a vise and punches...then I am in serious trouble. :shock:

[pipster79]

I didnt have a vice on my drill press unfortunatly, but if i ever get another graflex ill be sure to get a vise for the drill press lol

where abouts are you planning on puting the recharge port on the upper part of the handle?

excitement to get the cf and in and working quickly got the best of me lol, or i would have waited and drilled somewhere i could have had proper holding of the handle while drilling

[Kamurah]

I certainly understand the excitement part!!! I am extremely anxious to get it finished.

Recharge port: Right now I am just planning on having it loose in the upper portion. I don't anticipate a problem with it being unsecured since all wires will be individually and collectively wrapped in heatshrink. If it does become a pain...I guess I could always glue it to the inside of the hilt, or somehow attach it to the battery cradle.

Will probably have to play it by ear until I get it all assembled to see exactly how much room I have and how it all fits together.

BTW what class of LED are you using in yours?

[Lord Maul]

For drilling, first use a punch to make a indentation, and then use the smallest drill bit you own to make a pilot hole (mine is like 1/64 inches). They go to the big bit, and it won't travel at all.

[pipster79]

I used a punch and a 1/8th drill bit, was the smallest i had.

Im using a luxeon III cyan. Not as bright as i would like though. Tried the gift wrap idea today with less then hopeful results....dang that stuff is hard to get started to wrap when your using a 3/4 inch blade lol

[Jay-gon Jinn]

Pip, roll it up on a 1/2 inch dowel rod, slide it off and then insert it into the blade. It makes it much easier to do.

[pipster79]

i dont have a dowel rod, could only find a curtain rod. and i could only find 30 inch tall wrap as well :(.

i got it rolled anyway, and tried it in te blade but it didnt seem quite as bright. i tried it by itself and it didnt look to bad, but not as good as the film.
gonna see if i can find some 40 inch somewhere and try that mayb

[Hasid Lafre]

No but the possibility of warping and braking a bit increase. gradually step up to the bit you need.

[Obi-Dar Ke-Gnomie]

Pipster, don't roll it the way it came off the roll. Unroll it off the roll to a length to match the length of the blade, and roll it sideways. It's a little harder to do, but that way you can make it as long as you want.

If you can manage it, after you get the first roll in, do it again and put the second roll inside the first one. Contrary to what you might think, the more wraps you put in, the better it makes the blade look.

[pipster79]

i was thinking about trying that, thanks