Jay-gon's PVC Hilts - Full tutorial on last page

[astromech_kuhns]

as you said you wouldnt mind someone diggin this up and askin quesions
so tomorow or well it depends on when you read this soi shall say this.......sunday im gonna make pvc hilts im going to home depote to get the stuff i need. there gonna be static sabers. im gonna make a bunch and well i have a couple questions.

same as before if you handle the sabers alot will the paint have a stickey feeling to it? ive painted some things before and it came out dried but with a sticky feeling to it.

also is a regular saw good to cut pvc?

could you realy sell these at a convention? i mean would you have to get permision first?

[Jay-gon Jinn]

painting them won't make them feel sticky, as long as you paint them in a dry environment, and allow plenty of drying time between coats of paint. These were built to be handled at costume events with my local Garrison of the 501st Legion in their charity photobooth, and no one had any complaints, and the paint still looks good, almost a year later.

I used a powered miter saw to cut mine, but you could use a simple back-saw and a miter box to do it, too. Or a hacksaw. Don't use something intended for wood, it'll tear through the pvc, use a saw for cutting metal.

And you can't get permission to sell these at conventions. you can't afford the licensing fees Lucasfilm charges any more than I can!

[astromech_kuhns]

oh ok someone said that you could sell them at dragon con and ive been told im a little antrepernuar

so whats the drying time you think?

[Jay-gon Jinn]

Drying time depends on how warm the paint area is, and how heavy the layers are. If you keep the coats thin, they will be dry enough to add another in about 15 minutes. After they are fully painted, and I'd say about 4 coats ought to do it, let them dry for a day before you really handle them.

You can try to sell some at D'Con, but I'd be careful....

[astromech_kuhns]

hahaha ok i was just kinda kidding but that would be cool. so will they dry faster if its warmer or colder?

[Jay-gon Jinn]

Warmer=dries faster.

[astromech_kuhns]

so what does colder equel??? just kidding so in materials for the hilts not realy the electronics how much do you think each hilt cost you to make?

[Jay-gon Jinn]

I'd say for just one hilt alone, without electronics, was about 12 dollars. Maybe less.

EDIT:

I just found my price sheet on those, and you won't believe how much the hilt alone was....

$0.69 1" pvc section 12" long
$1.47 1" pvc endcap
$0.99 1" pvc coupler
$0.19 8-32 hex drive wood insert (for the blade bolt)
$.039 8-32 socket head cap screw (blade bolt)
---------
$2.95 total

These prices were all from local hardware store, yours may vary. Add in whatever the paint cost you divided by the number of hilts painted for the whole total. to add a blade, and all of the electronics I used, you'd have about $38-$44 into a fully functional hilt, without sound.

[FenderBender]

For PVC its also best to get a plastic primer and spray that first. Flatter colors work/dry best, if you want them shiny add a gloss clear coat afterwards. DO NOT use those "brilliant metal" or chrome style paints. They dont seem to 'kick' well with the PVC and will never harden. I use Valspar for my flat blacks and primer/clear coats. Duplicolor Tru-Gold, and Rustoleum metallic silver. If you're going to do a lot of them buy the contractor packs of PVC fittings at your local big box hardware stores. Buy your PVC pipe in ten foot lengths ($2.50 here for ten ft.).

[Darth Mortis]

im having trouble keeping my hands steady while using my dremmel to cut grooves similar to what you did on your hilts. they are looking a bit sloppier than yours. what did you use for cutting the grooves into your hilts? from the pics they look great, evenly spaced and and perfectly circled (didnt know how else to describe it)