Newbie first build planning

I've been planning on making a lightsaber for a while, but current events have made the project I want to finish before it a little bit more difficult. The weather where I live* basically is prohibiting me from painting my Mandalorian armor. Since I won't have it ready for a convention this January, I'm going to put that on hold until Spring. I figure I can put a Jedi Knight costume together in time with a minimal need of paint, but I wanted to get a little bit of help with planning the lightsaber from you guys.

I'm going off the basic LED lightsaber tutorial, but I'm staying away from most of the MHS parts because of the price and because I have a design in mind that will be a little tough to pull off since I don't know if I can find the right PVC pipe to fit outside.

I currently have a partially planned out hilt which I'm building out of a 1.5" OD 12" plumbing pipe, a 1-1/4"(?) PVC pipe will be over it with a design cut out to add a grip at the bottom, a Darth Vader style emitter cover and almost a ridge or spine between the two ends where the activation switch and screws will be and I'm going to fit a D-ring to the end just before the pommel if not on the pommel itself. I'm going to buy a single MHS 1.5" sink adapter for the blade holder as well. I'll post some pictures once I have a more finalized design. I didn't notice this until I had already removed half of the label for it (can't return it now), but my pipe is 17 gauge, will that create any difficulty with the MHS 1.5" sink adapter? Or would I be better off purchasing the right gauge pipe and finding some other purpose for the 17 gauge pipe?

One of the questions I wanted to ask was whether I should start with a Seoul P4 kit or a Rebel Star? I'm planning on going with a green blade using a green LED (as opposed to a white LED+ green filter) if that has any sway on which one might work better for me. My primary concern for the LED is that I want one that fades out the least towards the tip of the blade3.

I read that the 5 degree lens would be ideal for a 1" OD 36" blade, but the description on the store says it would need a little bit of modification to fit any TCSS LED modules. Are there any threads that show the steps needed to do this?

Since I plan to get a Petit Crouton for this, do I want to get a momentary or latching switch? Or is it a matter of preference with the Crouton? And does this have any effect on the batteries I would need?

This is what I have on the purchase list so far:
-TCSS 1" battle blade (bullet style tip)
-MHS 1.5" sink tube adapter
-1" hilt safety plug
-Screw-on LED blade holder (I'm split one two right now, design will probably change based on which one I grab)
-5 degree lens
-Petit Crouton

To be determined materials:
-Screws
-Battery pack, batteries and charging port (if I go the rechargeable route)
-Constant Current LED Driver (Do I need this when I have a Crouton?)
-Rebel Star or Seoul P4 LED & MHS Heatsink Module (green)

*It's either raining or so cold that the paint won't dry

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Aervain

I've been planning on making a lightsaber for a while, but current events have made the project I want to finish before it a little bit more difficult. The weather where I live* basically is prohibiting me from painting my Mandalorian armor. Since I won't have it ready for a convention this January, I'm going to put that on hold until Spring. I figure I can put a Jedi Knight costume together in time with a minimal need of paint, but I wanted to get a little bit of help with planning the lightsaber from you guys.

I'm going off the basic LED lightsaber tutorial, but I'm staying away from most of the MHS parts because of the price and because I have a design in mind that will be a little tough to pull off since I don't know if I can find the right PVC pipe to fit outside.

I currently have a partially planned out hilt which I'm building out of a 1.5" OD 12" plumbing pipe, a 1-1/4"(?) PVC pipe will be over it with a design cut out to add a grip at the bottom, a Darth Vader style emitter cover and almost a ridge or spine between the two ends where the activation switch and screws will be and I'm going to fit a D-ring to the end just before the pommel if not on the pommel itself. I'm going to buy a single MHS 1.5" sink adapter for the blade holder as well. I'll post some pictures once I have a more finalized design. I didn't notice this until I had already removed half of the label for it (can't return it now), but my pipe is 17 gauge, will that create any difficulty with the MHS 1.5" sink adapter? Or would I be better off purchasing the right gauge pipe and finding some other purpose for the 17 gauge pipe?

One of the questions I wanted to ask was whether I should start with a Seoul P4 kit or a Rebel Star? I'm planning on going with a green blade using a green LED (as opposed to a white LED+ green filter) if that has any sway on which one might work better for me. My primary concern for the LED is that I want one that fades out the least towards the tip of the blade3.

I read that the 5 degree lens would be ideal for a 1" OD 36" blade, but the description on the store says it would need a little bit of modification to fit any TCSS LED modules. Are there any threads that show the steps needed to do this?

Since I plan to get a Petit Crouton for this, do I want to get a momentary or latching switch? Or is it a matter of preference with the Crouton? And does this have any effect on the batteries I would need?

This is what I have on the purchase list so far:
-TCSS 1" battle blade (bullet style tip)
-MHS 1.5" sink tube adapter
-1" hilt safety plug
-Screw-on LED blade holder (I'm split one two right now, design will probably change based on which one I grab)
-5 degree lens
-Petit Crouton

To be determined materials:
-Screws
-Battery pack, batteries and charging port (if I go the rechargeable route)
-Constant Current LED Driver (Do I need this when I have a Crouton?)
-Rebel Star or Seoul P4 LED & MHS Heatsink Module (green)

*It's either raining or so cold that the paint won't dry

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OK. I'll handle the electronics side of this...

You DO NOT need the constant current driver, since you'll have a PC. Any of the 7.4 volt packs will work for you, the size depends on what you can fit in there. That's a Cram-Fu skill ;)

Regarding the switch question, you can use a momentary (2 if you want to take advantage of all the functions). You will just have to make sure you have the PC configured for it - see the PC manual.

Didn't think about two switches, will have to find a spot for it. My template was only made with one in mind but I haven't finished the outer covering yet, so I think I can still adjust it.

Shoot, I also didn't think about a charging port... Might have to redo my template (and cut a new section of PVC since I had already started cutting it)

You have to figure out what you want internally and then design the hilt to accommodate what you ideally want. Plan-Fu is a good skill to learn.

So it's a good thing that I haven't actually started cutting the metal hilt down to length yet. I'll wait until I have most of my parts before I actually start cutting anything else. From what it looks like, I should have room for all of the electronics, I will just need to modify the hilt template (where I drill) for a second button and charger port.

I'm going to have to use a resistor for now since the Croutons aren't in stock, unless they are in stock when I get around to ordering my parts.

Is there anywhere I can find out what the inside diameter of the MHS parts are? I want to know if I can use the MHS chassis parts in my saber or if I need to find some other way to lock down the parts inside.

If this is your first build, you might want to piece the electronics together first without the chassis to ensure everything works the way you want.

That makes sense, I was just trying to plan ahead (which I do a bit too often.)

I just had a bit of a realization. Since I'm not going to have a soundboard or LED driver in it right away, I'm going to need to get a latching switch. I'm also going to end up with a second button that does nothing for a little bit.

Also, changed my mind on one thing. Going with a buckpuck instead of a resistor.