I've read about crystal chambers quite a bit here on this forum and I really liked the idea. Up till now I thought there would be no way for me to incorporate the chamber into my saber, but I finally did figure out how to do it today. It all started a couple days ago when I received my Ultrasaber order in the mail. I opened the package and took my new sabers out. Attached to the saber packaging was a Pointed Blade Tip that I had ordered. I held on to this tip for a day, trying to think what I would do with it. What I finally came up with, was to use the tip on a small section of blade to form a blade plug for the "Pommel" of my Apparition saber(
http://www.saberforum.com/index.php?topic=2487.0). After showing the Pointed Blade Plug to a few people, I had a brainstorm. I ran to my room to see if I still had my quartz crystal necklace, and I did. I took the necklace from the hook on my wall and brought it back to my desk to see how it fit in the blade plug. Needless to say, a quartz crystal that you can wear on your neck is fairly small. This is the point where I said to myself, "I have to find a crystal that fits more snugly inside, but where can I get one?" It quickly dawned on me that I should check to see if "Gary's Gem Garden" was still in business. Luckily, they have a very informative website at
www.garysgemgarden.com/. I checked the hours of operation and made my plan to visit the store early this morning.
Taking my lightsaber in hand, I headed out to Gary's Gem Garden on Marlton Pike. Having shopped at Gary's in the past, I knew that I should be able to find something at least close to what I wanted. I was greeted with a friendly smile as I entered the store, and was asked if there was anything I needed help finding. I told the woman behind the counter that I was in search of some type of stone to put inside my lightsaber, which I quickly raised and ignited both the blade and the blade plug for her to see. Her only response was "Ooooh, that is so cool." As I removed the blade plug, she again responded with "Oooooh." I then explained what a crystal chamber was and told her that I was looking for a clear stone that would let the LED shine through when it was inserted into the chamber. The women kindly showed me the display case where the quartz crystals were kept, and we tried several different sizes and types until we found something sort of close to what I was looking for. The stones were the right length, but not very wide around. I knew these would rattle around inside the chamber so we set out again looking for something with a little more girth. We moved on to some drawers that were filled with quartz crystals of varying sizes and lengths. I looked through the collection and found a couple of nice crystals which I brought to the counter and set down for later purchase. I told the women that I would like to buy these crystals, but I still wanted to browse the shop in case something jumped out at me. I meandered around the store looking at everything, and tried to match my blade plug against many different types of stones, fossils, and even Indian Arrow Heads.
Suddenly my eyes fixed on a very nice piece of Rose Quartz that was perfectly cut, with a point on one end and cut flat on the other end. The fact that this piece of quartz was shaped exactly the same as my blade plug made me think that this just had to be what I was looking for. I asked the nice woman if she could open the case and she was more than happy to help me out. When I picked up the quartz it was perfectly smooth and felt very cool to the touch. I let the Rose Quartz roll in my palm for a second and I just knew that this was IT. I had found what I was looking for. I took the blade plug from the end of my saber and held it in my palm next to the Rose Quartz. It was the exact length I wanted, but would it fit the diameter? YES! I slid the quartz partially into the blade, so it wouldn't get stuck inside the blade just yet, then I placed it part way inside the emitter of my saber and switched on the LED. OMG was it BEAUTIFUL!! The milky pink stone took on the Bright Blue Glow of the LED and seemed to absorb the light before radiating the light back out even brighter than what the blade film normally would do. I had found my Excalibur, only in reverse. This was the stone in the sword, so to speak. I looked up at the woman's face and she was quite mesmerized by Pink Stone that was now glowing Blue. We both smiled and I quickly said, "I'll Take This One". Her smile widened and we chatted for a minute before heading to the register.
So that is the story of how I came up with the plan that lead to the incredible result that I will now share with you in pictures and video below.
Blade Plug with Pointed Tip and Blade Film inside
Pointed Blade Plug and Rose Quartz side by side
Blade Plug and Crystal illuminated by Guardian Blue LED externally
Rose Quartz inserted into Blade Plug/Crystal Chamber without Blade Film
Crystal Chamber inserted into "Pommel" end of my Apparition saber
Crystal and Chamber lit up before full insertion
Close up look at Crystal Chamber
Crystal Chamber fully inserted and lit up
Full view of my Apparition Ignited at both ends
Closer look at hilt lit on both ends
Video of the crystal Chamber being ignited and removed to show (some) detail
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