You were the chosen one... (ANH/ROTS replica graflex)

[Vereous]

Hey builders!! I'm so excited, my May the 4th orders all arrived! Now I get to build a saber that I've wanted for fourteen years.

Let's get over the first hurdle: the prequels hold a special place in my heart. I was nine when phantom menace hit theaters. I was in high school for revenge of the sith. Ill gladly admit they have many problems as films, but they gave me something I desperately wanted: the origin of the greatest villain in cinema.

So when this may fourth sale came around, something just clicked. It was time to make my first graflex.

My build so far:
The Graflex Shop flash handle replica
Tcss replica blade adapter and chassis disks
Anakin clamp card from Slothfurnace
Gold button replica from Shameem (sorry dude, i forgot your forum name)
Anakin rots pins from tcss
Textured lure tape i picked up a while ago for this build and labeled "someday" (not pictured)

anhrots graflex.jpg

The Graflex Shop flash handle itself was discounted due to a blemish (and the only reason i could afford it), an inch long scratch just below the beer tab. Im hoping i can buff this out on the road to a near-chrome shine. Even my crummy cell phone camera can see the scratch, so i have a feeling it'll take a bit of work.
blemish.jpg

On the subject of a near-chrome shine, my lower grip is much shinier than my upper grip. I hope that's visible with my phone camera.
shiny lowgrip.jpg

I have not yet decided on electronics. Id love to have a crazy reveal with a metal 3d printed chassis, maybe neopixel, but im not made of money, so we'll see. This is already going to be a shelf queen, and may end up being a long term build.

Things to do:
Im planning on using the seven grips from ANH, and im keeping the beer tab because... i like it.
I dont know if im going to color the red button or just keep it red. Probably just going to keep it red.
Gold leaf or paint the clamp lever.
As much as id like to put my switches in the clamp, i dont want to alter/ruin Sloths beautiful card.
Find a solution to get a momentary switch in place of the slide switch if i need a two button build.
Gotta try buff out the blemish. If its too stubborn i might weather the hilt like its post Mustafar.
Eventually decide on a chassis, get something printed or try my hand at something crazy.
I need to trim a few screws for a better fit and finish, like shave down the screw for the beer tab.
Find the courage to drill and tap into the lower grip, either for a d ring or the convertech. Haven't decided which.

I hope to have more to show you guys soon. Till next time!!

[Seth Skywalker]

Cool! You have been waiting for fourteen years to build this, I can't say I've been waiting that long to build any saber. This'll be fun watching as I also really like the graflex. Good luck!

[Vereous]

Cool! You have been waiting for fourteen years to build this, I can't say I've been waiting that long to build any saber. This'll be fun watching as I also really like the graflex. Good luck!

It seems in my excitement, I rounded up my months and flubbed my mental math lol, its only been thirteen years. Thank you for the luck! im gonna need it.

[Skywalker]

I am also building a ROTS Anakin saber currently so will be watching your build with interest!

[RavenXp]

The only sabers I've built are my own design. Maybe next saber I'll do a graphlex.

[Vereous]

UPDATE!! So I haven't been working on this saber that much because I needed to finish my contest saber, but I've had an interesting development:

About a week before the contest ended, a guy on a Facebook group sold a 2005 master replicas ROTS Anakin saber for super cheap because "it doesn't light up anymore".

Not a problem. I bought it.

I didn't have the heart to tell the guy I was just going to gut it, but now I can build a Rots and Anh as separate sabers. I ordered a tcss conversion kit and I'm looking into chassis options for a gutted master replica.

So with this in mind, I'm thinking I'll grab the parts I need for an ANH graflex for my replica flash, and finish it with one of those hardcore goth3d printed chassis.

For the ROTS saber, I gotta use a prizm since the built in switch is latching. Unless my ruler is off, it looks like I could just barely cram a 12 mm switch into the fake red button as an auxiliary switch, and cut a channel to run the wires.

Also for the ROTS saber, I'm considering sanding down the molded t-grips to be a lower profile, and more closely resemble the stunt model that Hayden fought with.
Screenshot_20180728-111434.jpg

The MR hilt is noticeably longer than a graflex replica, almost exactly a half inch longer. I had to measure to be sure, but the MR is just barely thicker than the graflex replica as well. In hand, however, i think they feel about the same. ANH on top, ROTS on bottom.
IMG_20180728_132113.jpg