How to construct an LED Blade (or, at least, how I do it)

[Jay-gon Jinn]

I needed to make a blade for a saber, so I thought this time, why not snap a few pictures while I was doing for a simple tutorial! This should give custom saber buyers an idea of what goes into making up a blade, and for those that would like to try it themselves, as well!

So, here we go:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/a88496f6.jpg
The first thing you'll need is a polycarbonate tube. In this case, we have a 36" long, 1" o.d. (outside diameter) thin-walled piece. (It has an inside diameter of 7/8"). We also have a 9 foot long, 30" wide roll of polypropylene (cellophane gift wrap). I use my kitchen counter, as it's about the easiest to clean surface in my house. You want to do this in as clean of a room as possible, and with out any air movement. (Try not to do it near a heat duct when your A/C or furnace is running, or you'll get a lot of dust and hair contamination in the blade.) Since the polyp film is full of static, any particle of dust or pet hair will stick to it, so clean the work surface prior to starting.

Make sure your blade tube is clean as well, especially if you had to cut it to length. I use a 3/8 dowel rod and a small piece of tack cloth to clean the interior of the tube. The tack cloth will pick up the dust particles that might be inside. Stuff the cloth into one end of the tube, and then push it through to the other end using the dowel rod. Repeat as necessary!

Because this roll of film is only 30" wide, we'll have to cut our film along the length of the film, rather than across the width:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/7f721eab.jpg

Lay the blade across the film and give yourself enough film to trim some off later if you must. I usually cut it to about the same length of the blade just for that reason. You'll see why in a few moments. Cut the film:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/c8ec2382.jpg
I have to use a pair of fabric shears, as they are the sharpest pair we have. If you do it right, you can cut the film just like you would regular paper gift wrap....just hold down the film and shear as straight of a line through the film as possible.

When you have it cut, get a 3/4" dowel rod. Make sure you have a straight one! Lay the dowel rod across the film like so:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/d3307394.jpg

Roll the film up on the dowel rod:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/bdb3e0e0.jpg
Make sure the film is fairly tight, but not so tight that it doesn't move on the dowel. It also helps to roll it as straight across the dowel as possible, to keep the ends of the film in line. You really only need to make sure that one end is straight. That end will go into the tube first, to butt up against the blade tip. When it's rolled up, it will look like this:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/83d5ed05.jpg
It'll look a little bit like a chrome rod!

Slide it into the blade tube:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/19c0ecf9.jpg
Repeat this step as necessary, to add more film. I used another roll, cut the exact same way, but rolled up on a slightly smaller dowel rod...I used a 5/8" for this second roll, and installed that roll inside the first one.

With the film inside the blade, I added the blade tip to check the film:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/c5fcefea.jpg
Your blade film on the tip end needs to be straight to properly sit against the bottom of the blade tip. If it's not, slide the film out of the blade about 3 inches, and trim the edge with the scissors. This is why you want a little bit extra length on your film roll!

The other end of the film should be about 1/4" - 1/8"short of the end of the polyc tube. You may have to trim this as well.
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/35e1a8ae.jpg

Now's a good time to test it:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/bbeca388.jpg
If your blade isn't evenly lit enough for you, add another roll of film. Or, if you have a wider film roll, use a longer roll. When I have a roll wide enough to roll the film across the width, I'll roll up about 6 feet of polyp film for a 32"-36" long blade.

With the film to your liking, you can now glue the blade tip to the polyc tube:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/108e6101.jpg
I use Weld-On #16, as it's an acrylic welder, not really a glue. It chemically bonds the two pieces of polyc to each other for a tight fit. This is probably the best thing for the do-it-yourselfer to use. Get it at TAP Plastics. (http://www.tapplastics.com/shop/product.php?pid=132&) Another option is Weld-On #3, but that is a liquid, and can make a mess if you aren't careful. Weld-On #16 is a gel, and is easier to apply.

Apply a small bead* to the edge of the blade tip:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/1d563cea.jpg
*I actually put on a little too much here! :-[

When you install the tip into the blade, give it a slight twist, to even the coverage of the cement. You might get some squeeze-out if you apply too much like I did:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/dec483c5.jpg
Just clean it off with your thumb nail. You can also sand some off with some 400 or better grit sand paper.

http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/177547df.jpg
All cleaned! Be sure to allow 24 hours for the Weld-On to fully cure.

The next thing to do is to glue in the blade film. This is why you want to have the film be a bit shorter than the tube. We're going to use some hot-glue to keep the film from falling out when you remove your blade:
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/26b5acdb.jpg
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/9ad638e5.jpg
Apply a bead large enough to cover the edge of the film rolls, and also the polyc tube.

The final step? Install the blade in your saber, and have fun!
http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Jay-gon_Jinn/LED%20Blade%20Tutorial%20Pics/a3d7a16a.jpg

[swear000]

great tutorial as always.

[JedimasterJSA]

So, I know this has been talked about before, but I'd like your opinion Jinn. I noticed that you did not use the polyethylene diffuser from the store at all. What do you think of using the polyethylene and the cellophane together? Is it better to have the cellophane between the polycarbonate blade and the polyethylene diffuser? Or have the polyethylene between the blade and the cellophane? Or do you think it's better to use one or the other and not both? From what I've read, I'm leaning towards either putting the cellophane between the blade and the polyethylene, or only using the cellophane. But before I commit to either one, I'd like the opinion of someone else. Great tutorial BTW. I've been debating on whether or not I want to try this. But I was kind of nervous about trying to figure out how. This tutorial puts that worry at ease, though. Thank you! :-D

[Jedi-Loreen]

The poly"e" diffuser is actually for EL blades, not LED. It doesn't say in the Store what the thinner walled diffuser tube for the LED blades is made from.

You don't want to use polyethylene tubing for LED blades, it's a small ID and would block much of the light transmission up the blade.

If you mean the diffuser meant for the LED blade, I have heard of people using the cellophane wrap inside the diffuser tube to even out the light, but you can't put it between the diffuser tube and the blade. It's impossible in the thick walled polycarb tubes and would be extremely difficult to insert the same diffuser tube into the thin walled blade with cellophane inside it first.


And by the way, we call him Jay-gon here, not Jinn. ;)

[Jay-gon Jinn]

The other option you have is to do an "Erv-style" blade that combines the Corbin film and polyp films. You would follow the same basic procedure shown above, but you would start with the Corbin film and then add the polyp to the inside of that after you install it.

[DragonStar]

Great tutorial! Thanks for taking time to post the pics and explain. I'm curious why the tip is darker hued than the blade?

[xwingband]

The last batch of tips Tim got were darker.

[wadeh13]

Great tutorial. I have one question. Where did you get the gift wrap and what is the part number of it? I can't find wrap around here that looks like it would work.

[Jedi-Loreen]

Most craft stores should have it.

I got mine at Michael's.

Anywhere that has lots of gift wrap should also have it.

[wadeh13]

Is it clear cellophane wrap, semi-clear or what exactly is it called? Thanks for your help.

[Jay-gon Jinn]

The stuff in the pictures I got from my local dollar store....it's simply called "transparent gift wrap." you can also get it at Wal-Mart....it's found in the cards/gift wrap section. It will look like a chrome tube.

[JedimasterJSA]

If you mean the diffuser meant for the LED blade, I have heard of people using the cellophane wrap inside the diffuser tube to even out the light, but you can't put it between the diffuser tube and the blade. It's impossible in the thick walled polycarb tubes and would be extremely difficult to insert the same diffuser tube into the thin walled blade with cellophane inside it first.

Thank you Jedi-Lo, I did mean the diffuser with the LED blades. I honestly thought they were they same thing, just different sizes. I was kind of wondering how one was supposed to fit the film between the diffuser and the blade. ;) Thank you for answering my question. :D

[Novastar]

Great tutorial Jay-Gonn!!!!!!!!... I could not have said it better!

The only two things I could add would be:

* If you want SOME light to seep through into the tip... either make your mirror smaller (so that it does not cover the entirety of the tip's bottom... or use semi-reflective material for your mirror. I prefer the former, not the latter.

* You may want to glue in BOTH sides of the diffusion film for this reason and this reason only: if your tip DOES fly off someday (for me, they always do)... your diffusion film will be at least a little less likely to come flying out like a paper mache' flag of doom, ruining your hard work at cutting, wrapping, rolling, aligning, etc.

Diffusion film has flown out of about 2 or 3 of my blades, and I always hate that since... I really LOATHE making diffusion film rolls for blades--it's tedious and I guess I can get impatient, hahahah. :D

[FenderBender]

Great tutorial Jay! I also suggest anyone reading this to try the various "Craft" stores for the 40" roll, as its easier to get the 4-6ft that you want in the blade. Also having two people rolling the film is easier and faster. We roll it directly to the dowel in the air so as not to get any contaminates from a surface.

[Eco]

I actually just used this method using 7ft of Blue poly, 7ft of clear poly, and a double Corbin wrap to turn a white P4 AMAZINGLY Blue.
The Corbin wrap's design isn't really too visible, as the poly is enough to cover it.
Why use the Corbin wrap at all?
It covers up dust very well and also helps to keep the blade opaque.
Plus, the blade was PERFECTLY lit. The difference between the base and the tip of the blade was impossible to see with the naked eye.
I'd bet money that it's a difference of less than five lumens!

[Eandori]

Great work Jay :)

Have you ever noticed the clear gift wrap getting torqued out of shape, getting crinkles in it and never looking right again? Every time I have ever experimented with glue on the gift wrap inside the blade... it always seems to lead to crinkles inside later after hard dueling.

I never glue my gift wrap now. I just go ahead and let it have a small amount of play in the blade. Seems to work out better for me like that.

[Jedi-Loreen]

I've never put glue on mine, either.

[Obi-Dar Ke-Gnomie]

I actually just used this method using 7ft of Blue poly, 7ft of clear poly, and a double Corbin wrap to turn a white P4 AMAZINGLY Blue.
The Corbin wrap's design isn't really too visible, as the poly is enough to cover it.
Why use the Corbin wrap at all?
It covers up dust very well and also helps to keep the blade opaque.
Plus, the blade was PERFECTLY lit. The difference between the base and the tip of the blade was impossible to see with the naked eye.
I'd bet money that it's a difference of less than five lumens!

http://judgesabersmith.com/Smileys/default/icon_needpics.gif (http://javascript%3Cb%3E%3C/b%3E:void%280%29;)

[Jay-gon Jinn]

Great work Jay :)

Have you ever noticed the clear gift wrap getting torqued out of shape, getting crinkles in it and never looking right again? Every time I have ever experimented with glue on the gift wrap inside the blade... it always seems to lead to crinkles inside later after hard dueling.

I never glue my gift wrap now. I just go ahead and let it have a small amount of play in the blade. Seems to work out better for me like that.

I've never had an issue with that, but I can see how that would happen. I usually don't duel with my sabers, but I have had the film slide out before when a tip came off, and when my son had his blade removed and was whipping it around like a sword itself. Both times the blade film got dirty and had to be replaced.

[Novastar]

...I have had the film slide out before when a tip came off, and when my son had his blade removed and was whipping it around like a sword itself. Both times the blade film got dirty and had to be replaced.Right... this is the reason why slightly gluing the film in at BOTH ends can be a good idea.

I haven't gotten creases in the film from dueling either, although anytime the film has shifted (or flown out!!!), it has messed up the way the film behaves--usually in a negative way. Those are from blades that were never glued down though. :)

[vaderman1701]

I have got the right length cellophane wrap, but I am not sure how wide a piece do I need to cut to wrap around the dowel. Any help please?

Scott

[Jedi-Loreen]

I think most people use around 4 ft. You can always add more later.

You could experiment. Try 2 feet, if it's not even enough, add a couple more feet.

[Jay-gon Jinn]

If you're just going to use the cellophane in the blade by itself, I'd use about 6 feet of it.

[Obi-Dar Ke-Gnomie]

I usually use about 5 or 6 feet of polypropylene inside a double wrap of Corbin film, and that makes a very even, nice looking blade. Any more than that is redundant in my opinion.

I'll take a picture of my thinwall "show blade" later and post it for you. On the camera it might look brighter at the base, but to the naked eye, it looks very evenly lit.

[vaderman1701]

What if it is a 3/4" blade and I am using it with TCSS film?

Scott

[Jay-gon Jinn]

With a combination like that, I've used about 4 feet of the polyp in two of my own 3/4" blades, and it worked just fine.

[Obi-Dar Ke-Gnomie]

I agree with Jay-gon. In a 3/4" blade, 4 feet should be lots.

Here's the picture I promised.

Lux III Cyan running at 1A. 1" thin wall blade with a double wrap of Corbin film and about 6' of polypropylene gift wrap. The top picture is in a lighted room at normal exposure, and the bottom picture is underexposed by one stop. Like I said, this is a very evenly lit blade.

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/ff102/dar4jc/blade_pics01.png

[Jedi-Loreen]

That does look very evenly lit, Obi-dar. :)

[Lord Dottore Matto]

With a combination like that, I've used about 4 feet of the polyp in two of my own 3/4" blades, and it worked just fine.

Ditto, it looks great with 3-4' ploy-P. ;)


That does look very evenly lit, Obi-dar. :)

What she said!:mrgreen:

[DACOTA]

if your tip DOES fly off someday (for me, they always do)... your diffusion film will be at least a little less likely to come flying out like a paper mache' flag of doom,


Rotflol Hahah. I've had that happen and its hilarious at first to see film fly out of your blade and practically attack your opponent and then its hell afterwards.

Nice tutorial too btw Jay-Gon

[vaderman1701]

Thanks everyone. I will be working on this this weekend. I am converting a EL ROTJ Vader into a Seoul P4 Red with 3/4" blade. I just need to reassemble the parts and do the blade itself.

Scott

[vaderman1701]

Success! Thanks for the advise guys. As soon as I complete the hilt, I will post pictures of the entire saber lit up.

Scott

[DJMoonbass]

wow nice tutorial jay gon. in my ultrasaber blades, i keep having problems with the film twisting inside. is there a way i can prevent this while using your method? like maybe hot glueing the top of the wrap near the tip as well? and also will it work good with tims TCSS battle blade diffuser or will it dim the light?

[Novastar]

DJ... if you read through this thread--yes, the one you're POSTING in--you'll find that I mention gluing the film in, and so does Jay-Gon (or someone else):

http://forums.thecustomsabershop.com/showpost.php?p=122008&postcount=20

So... ok, DJ. Honestly. THAT'S ENOUGH OF THAT GEAR-BLEACH. Start reading first. Like seriously. No more asking questions that are answered in the very thread to which you're posting... I'm serious. And hey... when in doubt... GIVE SOMETHING A SHOT ON YOUR OWN. Try something interesting or new and post the results if need be.

Now: None of us mind questions. New folks often accost TCSS forum posters of being "unfriendly", but... we just do not like it when people won't go through FIVE BLOODY MINUTES of effort to: do a search... do some reading... do some experimentation... or just use plain common sense.

Finally... a LOT of sabersmithing is a case-by-case thing. There IS no "right or wrong" method for many things regarding sabers. We give back by making attempts at things, and when successful... sharing or verifying results.

[Luke-SkyMarcher]

What if it is a 3/4" blade and I am using it with TCSS film?

Scott

I've actually made 3/4" thickwall blades using a variation on the erv method. I sandblasted the inside of the polycarbonate, sanded the outside, and used a combination of corbin's film and gift wrap. I actually found out that beyond a certain point, more film makes the blade dimmer. In a 3/4" thickwall blade, that's after about 7".

-Luke

[Jedi-Loreen]

http://judgesabersmith.com/Smileys/default/3.gif Novastar

[Gin Malinko]

Fatality!! lol

[Donnovan Sunrider]

Excellent tutorial Jay. This is about how I pictured the process from all the text descriptions I've read, but a photo tutorial helps to make sure the process is completely clear before trying it.

And once again Nova demonstrates his Master-Fu.

[killphil]

wow nice tutorial jay gon. in my ultrasaber blades, i keep having problems with the film twisting inside. is there a way i can prevent this while using your method? like maybe hot glueing the top of the wrap near the tip as well? and also will it work good with tims TCSS battle blade diffuser or will it dim the light?

I simply never glue the film down. I cut the film to the exact length of the blade, so it sits on the bottom of the blade holder just like the blade does. The film won't move around, and you never have to worry about perma-crinkling again.

When using a thick walled blade, it's been my experience that the film will slide down into the uptic leaving a small unexposed gad towards the tip. I simply cut the film a slight bit longer than the blade in this case.

[DJMoonbass]

DJ... if you read through this thread--yes, the one you're POSTING in--you'll find that I mention gluing the film in, and so does Jay-Gon (or someone else):

http://forums.thecustomsabershop.com/showpost.php?p=122008&postcount=20

So... ok, DJ. Honestly. THAT'S ENOUGH OF THAT GEAR-BLEACH. Start reading first. Like seriously. No more asking questions that are answered in the very thread to which you're posting... I'm serious. And hey... when in doubt... GIVE SOMETHING A SHOT ON YOUR OWN. Try something interesting or new and post the results if need be.

Now: None of us mind questions. New folks often accost TCSS forum posters of being "unfriendly", but... we just do not like it when people won't go through FIVE BLOODY MINUTES of effort to: do a search... do some reading... do some experimentation... or just use plain common sense.

Finally... a LOT of sabersmithing is a case-by-case thing. There IS no "right or wrong" method for many things regarding sabers. We give back by making attempts at things, and when successful... sharing or verifying results.



DUDE YES I KNOW YOU MENTIONED both sides of the blade. I READ THE WHOLE FRICKING POST!!! :mad: and you critize me about not reading and then you dont get why im asking the question!. i read the whole post and ask a legit question that relates to a similar topic but with a different reason OMG :rolleyes: i am fully aware they glued the bottom and sometimes top as you suggested!!! i am addressing a problem as the film tends to twist inside the blade. and requesting an opinion on if that would work or not. im sorry if i upset all of you. i am just trying to have fun and converse with fellow starwars fanatics but it seems i have been making quite a few enemies. with fault of my own. so the goofyness ends here and i wont be getting on as often now. :x:x:x

[Jase Kala Maris]

***Pulls Jedi Hood alittle lower over his head***

I council patience and calm...

...anger leads to the dark side Master Novastar:cool:

[Jedi-Loreen]

"clam"? lol :p

[Jase Kala Maris]

doh! that might help also but I will edit! alittle clam never hurt...

How come I never EVER get away with a little typo eh?

[Jedi-Loreen]

Sometimes people do.

But not if I think it's funny! :p

[Jammy]

I've got an Amber LUX III LED that I'm going to convert, will this method be able to distribute the light evenly over the blade?

[Sairon]

I've got an Amber LUX III LED that I'm going to convert, will this method be able to distribute the light evenly over the blade?


Yes, though might I suggest you a get a white P4 from the store (when they are in stock) and some lee filters. The P4 has a ton more lumens and with the filters you can get a much brighter yellow and the blade will look more even and bright.

[Jammy]

Ohh too late now, hehe!
Maybe next time I'll do a white P4, that or a green LUX III.

Thanks for the help!

[Jay-gon Jinn]

The Amber led will light the blade just fine, as long as it it getting the proper current. For a filtered led, these blades really aren't that great....as the light travels to the end of the blade, the color will begin to was ouit, leaving you with a two-tone blade. I have found that for filtered led's to maintain a constant color throughout the blade that the white polycarbonate or nylon blades are best.

[bullvinne]

The Amber led will light the blade just fine, as long as it it getting the proper current. For a filtered led, these blades really aren't that great....as the light travels to the end of the blade, the color will begin to was ouit, leaving you with a two-tone blade. I have found that for filtered led's to maintain a constant color throughout the blade that the white polycarbonate or nylon blades are best.

Where would one get a white PolyC blade easily? I plan on running a P4 with lee filters myself and I am glad I found out about the blade before purchasing it:!:

[mihunai]

Here's a question, has anyone tried to put the Corbin film in vertically instead of horizontally? If im not mistaken, it should spread the light into a really wide core... i think..

mTm

[Jedi-Loreen]

Uh, how are you going to do that? Have you looked in the Store to see how it comes? It's only a few inches wide:

http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/Assets/ProductImages/878.jpg

You'd have to cut it up in pieces and it would look like crap.

The film doesn't work that way, anyway, if you put it "horizontally", the "scratches" that give the effect just line up vertically and it does nothing. I just tried rolling up the end of a piece of film I have and sticking it on the end of a lit saber.

Sorry, but not the brightest idea I've heard regarding blade making. :rolleyes:

[Eco]

Sorry, but not the brightest idea I've heard regarding blade making.

Pun intended? XD

[jedimastergarcia87]

so, should i still get the film from here still? i'm getting gift wrap next week when the blades comes in.

[Jay-gon Jinn]

so, should i still get the film from here still? i'm getting gift wrap next week when the blades comes in.

That's entirely up to you...it's your blade, put what you want in it.

[darth blaze]

where can i find a polycarbonate tube like the one in your tutorial? And does tcss blade tips fit the tube? any info would be cool thanks :)

[vargose]

you can find the tube here at tcss. And yes the blade tips fit. Thats what they are made for

[Jedi-Loreen]

darth blaze, you do realize that these forums are attached to a Store, right?

Did you look in there before asking that question? Would it not be logical that the Store has what people need to build lightsabers and blades?

If you'd done more reading here, you'd also realize that.

[vargose]

darth blaze, you do realize that these forums are attached to a Store, right?

Judging by his post count, he may not know. Lets go easy on him and point him in the right direction.

Blaze, check out the "Blade Supplies" section under "LED Specific" in the store.
http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/Blade-Supplies-C14.aspx

But definitely start by reading. There are some great tutorials out there. Try these
http://forums.thecustomsabershop.com/showthread.php?t=6430
http://forums.thecustomsabershop.com/showthread.php?t=553

[cardcollector]

AND the links in LDM's Sig!!!!

[Jay-gon Jinn]

where can i find a polycarbonate tube like the one in your tutorial? And does tcss blade tips fit the tube? any info would be cool thanks :)

Yeah, the TCSS tips fit the TCSS polycarbonate tubes just fine! :)

[darth blaze]

sorry bout the odd question im new to the forum and im building my first saber and i wanna make sure i get it right so thanks for the info Vargose this really helps :)

[Lord Maul]

Locking at Jay Gon's request. Every possible question is covered in here, if you have any additional ones, please PM me.

[Sidd]

I have been searching the forums and I have seen many different threads that talked about blade building but I thought it would be a good idea to have one thread that is a collection and discussion of blade building techniques.

Hopefully this thread will get stickied for easy access.

MODs if I am out of line feel free to delete.


I suppose I should start with my building techniques.

You will need some simple supplies:
-Blade tube
-Blade tip
-cellophane gift wrap about 6 feet long by 40 inches wide
-Hot glue gun
-saw or tubing cutter
-scissors
- 1/4 inch by 4 foot dowel rod

I always build my own blades, I don't mind it and some times its even kind of fun. I also cut them to a length that best suits my height and techniques. Usually I will cut them with my electric cut off saw since its quick and always makes a straight cut. The down side is that it puts sawdust into the blade. the easiest way I have found to clean the inside of the blade tubs is just take a wad of paper towel and force it through(I have a piece of steel conduit I use).

Then after the Tube is cut I will clean off the end with either a file or sand paper.

Now its time for the tip. Personally I like the bullet tips as it has more of a sword like shape to it. In order to get the tip to light up I drill a hole in the center of the mirror to let the light pass through it and illuminate the tip. This doesn't illuminate the tip as well as I would like, but it still looks pretty good in the dark.

Then of course you will need to glue the tip on to the blade tube. Lately I have been using super glue, but I would not recommend this. There are several good clear epoxies available(I just didn't have any:p) they should be able to stand up to heavy dueling.

After the blade is assembled I will sand down the end that goes into the blade holder to the point that its has a nice snug fit. Also you might want to stuff a bit of paper towel or shop rag or something into the end to keep sawdust out of the blade. Just keep in mind what ever you stick in the end you will need to be able to fish out with some needle nose pliers so don't jam it in too far or use so much material you plug it too tightly that when you are pulling it out it tears. As far as honing the blade end down I will use a flap wheel on my Dremel and keep test fitting it till it fits in the blade holder snug enough that I am happy. Keep in mind go slowly you can always take material off but its impossible to put it back.

Then after the blade fits into the holder the way I like and the tip is secured in place I will take a piece of fine grit sand paper 300 or more and lightly sand the entire outside of the blade. I find lightly sanding the outside helps avoid the "light in a tube" look where you just see the defuser on the inside with a tube around it. I prefer my blades to look like a single piece.

Now its time to remove that dust plug we put in earlier and cut the film. Personally I just use some clear cellophane gift wrapping, its cheap and works well. Now the key is to find a clean spot in your house where you can lay out the roll to wind it up to be inserted into the blade. Dust on the film make the blade sparkle.

I roll out about 4-6 feet of the cellophane depending if its a thin or thick walled blade and the color of the saber. to my eye it looks like about 5 foot is the magic number but I know other people have differing opinions on this. After the film is rolled out and cut to length, i grab my trusty dowel rod. I think the one I have is 1/4 inch thick by like 4 feet long. I take the dowel and start rolling it up in the film till I have about 6 inches on, keep brushing it off with your hand to avoid dust and hairs from the carpet. Once I have that first 6 inches or so I will sit back to save my back and hold the dowel in the air horizontal with the ground and keep twisting it to roll of the rest, all the mean while brushing dust and hairs off the film.

Now that the film is all tightly wrapped around the dowel slide the dowel into the blade and twist it the other way to get the film off the dowel onto the walls of the blade. Pull the dowel out and then tape the tip of the blade against the ground the get it all seated properly. Unless you are using a 40 inch blade there should be some film sticking out the end. Now you will want to take note of where the end of the blade is on film and then slide it out about 1/2 an inch and cut. Now take a hot glue gun and put a small bit of glue around the edge of the film inside the blade. I find the best way to get it to adhere to the walls evenly is to roll the blade between my hands to force the glue against the walls with centripetal force until the glue is cooled.


Now you have a completed blade to terrorize your friends and family with, enjoy.

Her are some pictures of blades I have built.

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l134/snipersidd/Custom%20Sabers/th_DSC00760.jpg (http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l134/snipersidd/Custom%20Sabers/DSC00760.jpg) http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l134/snipersidd/Custom%20Sabers/th_DSC00762.jpg (http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l134/snipersidd/Custom%20Sabers/DSC00762.jpg) http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l134/snipersidd/Custom%20Sabers/th_DSC00747.jpg (http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l134/snipersidd/Custom%20Sabers/DSC00747.jpg) http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l134/snipersidd/Custom%20Sabers/th_DSC00730.jpg (http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l134/snipersidd/Custom%20Sabers/DSC00730.jpg) http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l134/snipersidd/Old%20Republic%20Jedi%20Costume/th_DSC00791.jpg (http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l134/snipersidd/Old%20Republic%20Jedi%20Costume/DSC00791.jpg)

[FenderBender]

I hope you clean your blade tubes before you glue the tips on. Having dust in the blade sucks. I also don't glue my film in. The reason why is when you fix the roll of film to the tube it doesn't allow for as much flex in the film when the tube bends resulting in the crinkling of the film. Over time this leads to permanant creases in the film resulting in you having to re-roll the blade more often. I know some people prefer to glue the film in to keep it from sliding out, but I've never really had that problem. I also never roll my film on a table or other surface. I hang the roll horizontally on a dowel suspended from pipe hangers and roll it in the air directly onto the dowel. No contamination possible this way.

[Lord Maul]

Merged two threads together at request of Sidd/JayGon. Cleaned out a few posts as well, so yours may be missing.