Lightsabers lit by inert gas

[JoongYin]

Would it be possible to have a lightsaber that is lit by an inert gas (such as neon, radon, helium)? I think that is what they use for neon signs. They fill the tubes with the gas and let an electric charge flow through it. I don't know. If I put this in the wrong thread, please message me. Thank you.

[Forgetful Jedi Knight]

Is it "possible"? Maybe. Though, it isn't practical, because the electricity needed would be considerable, you would need some type of transformer (for neon) plus you couldn't have any contact with "the blade" due to breakage. And those are just the drawbacks that I can think of off the top of my head.

Out of curiosity, what made you think of this?

[Weaver]

I was told that such things were always made of glass, because glass is the least permeable substance we have available to us. Even if it were a low-pressure environment, like a light bulb, making the blade out of any durable material would open the door for leakage. Think of it the way a balloon loses helium over time; basically the same thing.

There were sabers made with neon (or equivalent) blades. Nobody dueled with them because they were too fragile. Those who did duel lost their sabers to breakage, as ForgetfulJediKnight mentioned.

I would encourage you to take a second look at the high-powered LED stars TCSS sells. They're not bad lights, and the price is right. If even lighting and brightness are areas you absolutely cannot compromise on, maybe take a look at string blades. Makoto sure does right by them.

[Forgetful Jedi Knight]

I was told that such things were always made of glass, because glass is the least permeable substance we have available to us.

A "neon" blade would have to be made of glass, hence why it would be so easily breakable, not to mention the power needs I mentioned earlier.

[FenderBender]

This was done in the 'old days', or the 'before time' and were known as "Plasma Sabers". Today's common LEDs FAR surpass even the best plasma blades in brightness. What they did have however was a really cool ignition/retraction effect.....but that was about it.

[Xene]

just a quick point, I don't think helieum is an inert gas correct me if im wrong though ^^;

[Silver Serpent]

Helium is one of the noble (inert) gases. It's directly above Neon on the periodic table, and functions similarly when electrically excited in a glass tube (though it's a different color than Helium).

[JoongYin]

It just came to me. I just found this site out and the idea just came to my mind so I quickly made an account to post this.

[JoongYin]

I haven't made a lightsaber yet but I was thinking of trying to make one of the pvc ones that Jay-Gon Jinn made.

[vadeblade]

I made one! double-sided red lightsaber. each blade was 24 inches long. Hilt was 24 inches long. It was very fragile but I was able to go out with it a few times that I dared. The blades where 24 inch cold cathodes in red and the CC tubes where inside polyc blades.. When the battery got weak the tips stopped lighting up. When the battery was fully charged, it was awesome, but lasted 5 minutes before the blades started shrinking. This was a long time ago (to give you an idea, the hilt was made by ralsasaber). I was not smart enough to take pictures. sold it on ebay. Now they dont even sell cold cathode tubes that length anymore