Arkanjel's etched sleve build

**Arkanjel** · 01-29-2013, 10:14 AM

Originally Posted by Batosai

nice etching!
did you use saltwater etching or rootkiller?

Thank you. I used the Zep rootkill bath. And I used red Krylon spray enamel for the resist. I used q-tips and various diamater dowels to make the dots. Im getting pretty proficient in applying this pattern now. I did a couple of test pieces last week to get a feel for it.

The sleeve hasnt received any weathering yet. The etching process itself leaves a nice oxidized look to start with. Pretty sure Im going to media blast the whole thing and then polish all the high spots before I move on to weathering.

**Boj-Vaati Mau** · 01-29-2013, 07:20 PM

Cool, this saber is! I like the way the spots on the hilt tie in the holes in the emitter and pommel. Wonderful idea on taking down the point on the pommel if you're going to demo/duel with it. One of the GGK ladies dropped hers on her foot...haven't seen that pommel since.
Do you use anything else besides the root killer for the etchant?

**Arkanjel** · 01-29-2013, 07:52 PM

Originally Posted by Boj-Vaati Mau

Cool, this saber is! I like the way the spots on the hilt tie in the holes in the emitter and pommel. Wonderful idea on taking down the point on the pommel if you're going to demo/duel with it. One of the GGK ladies dropped hers on her foot...haven't seen that pommel since.
Do you use anything else besides the root killer for the etchant?

Thanks Boj. Ya it was just hot water and root killer. I put about a cup and a half of Zep in 8 cups of water. I took it out of the solution and ran it under cold water and lightly brushed the surface after about each minute of soaking to check the depth. Took about 4 minutes total. Ill have to mic the depth tomorrow.

The metal gets HOT! I have some heavy duty chemical handling gloves and I could really feel it coming through. Probably a couple hundred degrees. In the future I will probably use a weaker solution and soak for longer to have more safety/control.

**nartules** · 01-30-2013, 02:07 AM

I used to really dig the big av/lighted switches. As of late I'm favoring hidden/minamalist switch setups. I like people asking me how to turn it on, feels more like a real saber then.

Really looking forward to how well the switches are hidden in the pattern. I take it you are probably going to recess them to make it even harder to notice?

**Arkanjel** · 01-30-2013, 04:01 AM

Ill probably use a couple little guys switch22a.jpg. I used one on my yari. Its tiny and it gives a nice 'click' for feedback.

**Arkanjel** · 02-01-2013, 06:10 PM

More progress on the blade holder.

Before

After----->

Still just roughing out but definitely getting a feel for working files on the lathe.

**Ty_Bomber** · 02-01-2013, 07:04 PM

Lookin real smooth there, Jel.

**Arkanjel** · 02-02-2013, 04:27 PM

Thanks TB.

Ordered the electronics yesterday. Just going to put a NB in this one for now as its going to be a heavy dueler for a friend.

Also got the 10W RGBW all soldered up. My friend wants a bluish-purple blade so I put a adjustable pot in line with the red die so he can fine tune it to his liking.

Edit: the purp.

photo (1) by Simon Rivers Photography, on Flickr