Blade Holder Construction

[aspirant]

Greetings all - I've been a lurker here for a bit and have found myself inspired to build a Luxeon III saber. Years ago I built one with a neon tube and the first Hasbro board - however, it was short-lived as the tube shattered when someone decided to play with it. Cost prohibited a replacement, and when Master Replicas were released I found a could buy a full saber for less than just the neon! EL came around and I wasn't really impressed, but Luxeons have changed my whole outlook. :) I've been very impressed with the work I've seen here, and I'm eager to begin building and hopefully contribute to the community.

Introduction aside, on to the point of this topic. My first Lux is going to be a Christmas present for a nephew who happens to be a fellow SW fanatic. The store has been out of stock of the 1.25 sink tube blade holder for some time now, so I'm considering building my own. Have any of you tackled this, and if so, can offer advice?

[Novastar]

I'm not 100% sure what the question is... but... I am getting that you're asking if any of us have built our own sabers before??? The answer... is... uh... yes? :)

In terms of advice for building:

* Read the "read this first" post
* Look for as many tutorials as you can on here
* Visit my Y-tube account, look at many of the videos to get some more information & basics: http://www.youtube.com/user/greytale (You'll have to poke around, it's not going to hold any hands)
* Determine what you'll be building and THEN ask some questions... how long the saber will be... if the hilt will be PVC or metal or whatever... what color LED... if you're trying for sound... what battery solutions you're considering (Alkaline, NiMh, Li-Ion and what voltages 3v?, 4v?, 5v?, 7.2v?)

Welcome, and good luck!

[Ideal]

no, i think he is trying to build the blade holder itself as he says the one he is looking for is out of stock

[aspirant]

I'm building a Lux III saber with a 1.25 sink tube base. I'm going to power the LED off of a Hasbro Vader board. I'm pretty much set on design and wiring. I just need to buy or fabricate a blade holder. I'm going with thick-walled 1" OD.

Sorry for the lack of clarity - I'm asking if anyone has experience building their own bladeholders, and what materials they used. Most seem to buy the kit, which is definitely my preference if more are restocked in time.

[Jay-gon Jinn]

Tim actually listed parts in his EL saber tutorial on where to get and how to make your own blade holder for an EL saber tha might be able to be converted to house an led. It can be found here:
http://forums.thecustomsabershop.com/showthread.php?t=13

[Novastar]

Oops, sorry about that... :)

Hmm, only things I'd suggest is getting one of the standard holders and using a coupler to choke it down to 1.25", but... I know what you mean, I LOVE the 1.25" ones. They're the bomb. They don't obviously have quite as much going on for the heatsink, but... still... great stuff.

[Obi-Dar Ke-Gnomie]

They don't obviously have quite as much going on for the heatsink, but... still... great stuff.

I have seen you say that a few times, and I have to say that I don't understand why you say it. Even though there is no air flow in a saber, there's still more surface area on the finned heatsink, compared to the MHS one, to radiate heat away from the LED.

Whatever. The 1.25" blade holder is still a very cool product, and I'll be ordering a couple myself when they come in stock.

Sorry Aspirant, all I can suggest is to troll the aisles at the hardware store, looking for stuff that will fit together to do what you want. You could maybe stack some different sized washers to simulate the finned heatsink. I think that anything made of aluminum or copper will work as a heat sink, as long as it is in contact with the outer wall of your hilt. It's all about drawing heat away from the LED, and letting it radiate away. If you feel the hilt getting warm, that's a good thing.

[Lord Dottore Matto]

Greetings all - I've been a lurker here for a bit and have found myself inspired to build a Luxeon III saber. Years ago I built one with a neon tube and the first Hasbro board - however, it was short-lived as the tube shattered when someone decided to play with it. Cost prohibited a replacement, and when Master Replicas were released I found a could buy a full saber for less than just the neon! EL came around and I wasn't really impressed, but Luxeons have changed my whole outlook. :) I've been very impressed with the work I've seen here, and I'm eager to begin building and hopefully contribute to the community.

Introduction aside, on to the point of this topic. My first Lux is going to be a Christmas present for a nephew who happens to be a fellow SW fanatic. The store has been out of stock of the 1.25 sink tube blade holder for some time now, so I'm considering building my own. Have any of you tackled this, and if so, can offer advice?


If you really want to build your own, PM me and I'll give you a few tips, but since this is a forum connected to the TCSS store, I don't think it would be cool to delve further in this thread!

[aspirant]

Thanks for the feedback everyone, I appreciate the help!