Curved bladed lightsabers?

[For Tyeth]

Hi SirLiftaLot

Thank you very much. I know of the product you are referring to and I know someone who purchased it and your fears are well founded. The fibre optic used is just too brittle and the junction where the cable threads into the blade plug adaptor is just too weak. Also the other vendor states that the whip can't be used with hilts featuring slanted emitter openings or claws which kinda hints at how delicate they are.

[DarthProdigal]

Pretty cool (as always) Tyeth. I agree it must be difficult coming up with a practical working model. And this probably further limits attempts made from a supply & demand standpoint. Being a very exotic, and potentially dangerous variant conceivably can limit initial interest/customer base, making investing in fabricating the best prototype not viewed as a cost effective endeavor. In that demonstration video it looks like the last foot or more of the whip isn't illuminated. This could be design related, or as I suspect likely the result of "impacts" stopping the LED's from functioning properly. Especially since the insulating effect of a "standard" blade tube isn't present due to shape & flexibility of a/this whip. I'm not anywhere near technical knowledge required to overcome that issue either. But yes, I agree LiftaLot, it'd be wicked to see a character wielding something like this in movies/shows if enough interest is generated. Also I gotta say I highly doubt Disney or even before that GL would do/have done such a thing. It's just my opinion, but this'd be a brutal weapon. It's a slice & dice your enemies kind of thing, or conduct several strokes around yourself at multiple enemies in rapid succession and when you stop the "cool effect" of them sliding into pieces happens. Probably wind up a little R-rated for excessive violence if choreographed into a large scale fight scene. Not very Disney or cartoon like in this regard. Ending up being more so classified as a Sith weapon since it's hard to not be destructive with it, unless fighting droids.

[SirLiftaLot]

Pretty cool (as always) Tyeth. I agree it must be difficult coming up with a practical working model. And this probably further limits attempts made from a supply & demand standpoint. Being a very exotic, and potentially dangerous variant conceivably can limit initial interest/customer base, making investing in fabricating the best prototype not viewed as a cost effective endeavor. In that demonstration video it looks like the last foot or more of the whip isn't illuminated. This could be design related, or as I suspect likely the result of "impacts" stopping the LED's from functioning properly. Especially since the insulating effect of a "standard" blade tube isn't present due to shape & flexibility of a/this whip. I'm not anywhere near technical knowledge required to overcome that issue either. But yes, I agree LiftaLot, it'd be wicked to see a character wielding something like this in movies/shows if enough interest is generated. Also I gotta say I highly doubt Disney or even before that GL would do/have done such a thing. It's just my opinion, but this'd be a brutal weapon. It's a slice & dice your enemies kind of thing, or conduct several strokes around yourself at multiple enemies in rapid succession and when you stop the "cool effect" of them sliding into pieces happens. Probably wind up a little R-rated for excessive violence if choreographed into a large scale fight scene. Not very Disney or cartoon like in this regard. Ending up being more so classified as a Sith weapon since it's hard to not be destructive with it, unless fighting droids.

You bring up some very good points. A lightsaber, at least the ones we have access to (I'm looking at you Hacksmith Industries) pose minimal danger to the user; not really much more than a hard pole or stick would. Even an "exotic" saber like a staff is just a bigger hard stick. I have no experience with whips, but I know that, for example, the barrier to entry for light-chucks is a good bit higher than that of a lightsaber, as it's a lot easier to bang yourself up pretty good with a shaft of metal that's spinning freely in a way that an inexperienced user may not be able to predict or anticipate. I can only imagine that a whip would pose a fair bit of risk as well, especially if it's actually a strong/durable material, both to the user and especially to anyone who tries to spar with or against it.

Now that you mention it, a lightwhip could look incredible on-screen in a less child-friendly film/show. I'm thinking something similar to when Trunks sliced up Frieza's soldiers and then they fell down when he sheathed his sword, and the last one's armor falls to pieces. You know what, even if we don't get an R-rated live-action movie/series, I would still greatly enjoy a more R-rated animated series with anime-style epic fights.

Jedi tend to want to have defensive options to protect others, and the lightwhip seems to be purely an offensive weapon, with incredible range and the ability to destroy multiple targets in said area. Most assuredly a weapon better suited for a Sith I'd agree. And for it to fully live up to its potential on-screen, I agree it would have to be reflected as such, a purely offensive weapon of destruction.

It almost seems like a sort of Catch-22 here, if I'm using the term correctly. I don't think we're likely to see vendors sell lightwhips unless they get more popular and more attention. But I don't see that happening unless they end up on a show. But I don't see them actually being featured on a show unless they get more interest, which I don't see as being particularly likely to happen. I suppose someone making a quality one and going viral with it would be one of the only ways for it to gain traction, unless I guess a show-runner/producer/etc. just happens to be a fan of the more obscure, exotic weapon.

[DarthProdigal]

Points for the Trunks VS Mecha-Frieza reference. Yes, that's what I was envisioning (also shown in many action movies, beyond count) like the anime/video game/movie concept. Lightning fast cuts, and in those cases as they sheathe the blade physics seems to catch up and gravity plays it's part. I also agree that this almost highly visceral combat has it's appeal in society but it's certainly not PG-13 or below visually (in my estimation). Making it likely to be relegated to fan fiction productions or something more HBO oriented. Basically SW content geared toward adult fans more exclusively, not cartoon clone wars in the slightest. Although I say the last part ignorant of the actual content of that series since I didn't watch it at the time for my own reasons. That said, the light whip would probably be way more Tarantino than current SW universe might find acceptable in it's more likely applications. But playing devil's advocate, the degree of control required could still lead it to being used/taught by Jedi just limited/restricted like Vaapad. Almost a "do no harm, unless absolutely unavoidable" like Jedi mindset often dictates. Targeting another saber wielder's hilt, blasters, or coiling it around and severing an AT-ST leg. Giving it range advantage over traditional sabers like a lightsaber throw but having the added benefit of keeping the weapon in physical contact with the user. So it wont get knocked off some cliff or down a maintenance shaft in the process.

[KaiserSosay]

Sorry, I had to add that light whips are lots of fun.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKbc7ObVxU4&amp;list=PLBwv0fRLv6sjMR7qaRp8RrGnm8lpJKkIR&amp;index=10" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKbc7ObVxU4&amp;list=PLBwv0fRLv6sjMR7qaRp8RrGnm8lpJKkIR&amp;index=10</a>

[DarthProdigal]

Sorry, I had to add that light whips are lots of fun.

No need to be sorry in the slightest. Glad to have your input, since this is the kind of thing I am interested in; it's what we were discussing. If you built/modified it yourself or with a friend that's exceptionally cool. If not, and it falls into the category of some production from "the other guys" then I believe we'd have to halt speaking of specifics there... Lest we violate the rules. I'm not an expert in that realm, and I wouldn't advocate anything like that or advertising (since it seems like that's not the case). So, I'll just have to wait for a bit more info from you Kaiser. Until that point I will just say you obviously get where I was coming from since that certainly looks like a Sith light whip.

If it's yours I wonder what kind of things you can pull off with it?
How long did it take to get comfortable with?
Did you train with a target or is it mostly for demos/entertaining people?

Those kind of questions come to mind.
Anyway definitely deserve -1 point reward for a clear Dark Side example of what I/we were busy discussing.

[KaiserSosay]

So the short answer is I made the whip myself. I made it after buying one from the other guys. Theirs was not very bright and broke all the time.

Here is a link to a whip building thread. Sorry I deleted the pictures but the info on how and what I did is here...
http://www.saberforum.com/index.php?topic=40709.30

The ones I've made have not broken and are about a year old.

The only experience I have with a whip is playing with my six year old son. So none! It is still really fun.


To clarify, my son also has a couple of sabers! I'm not just whipping him! We are playing.
Also the acrylic rod I used has two real benefits.  It holds the cable tightly for the whole length of the plug. That makes it less likely to twist and break. It also keeps the fiber optic cable pointed directly at the light for max illumination.  I went with an 8mm cable. I often wonder if a 10mm cable would have been better. More cable means more weight and maybe more realistic.  The thicker diameter cable would also carry more light.

[DarthProdigal]

I applaud you for sharing this knowledge, it is truly appreciated. Not to mention I'm impressed by your work. It shows ingenuity and a stylish design. If I can find it within me to muster the effort I'd love to construct something like that. I've got enough experience with a 6-7 foot bull whip to want to try this out badly. Glad you made that several steps closer to a possibility. It's also great you were able to amuse your son with it, and that he has his own fun with his lightsaber. May the Force serve you well Kaiser.

[SirLiftaLot]

That is amazing. Thank you for sharing. Definitely do not apologize for that skill and creativity.

[Hulk10]

The homemade lightsaber whip was nice. But a curved bladed lightsaber sounds unnecessary. Why mess with what works perfectly well?

[DarthProdigal]

The homemade lightsaber whip was nice. But a curved bladed lightsaber sounds unnecessary. Why mess with what works perfectly well?

Just a mechanics thing, for/from katana enthusiasts. Blade dynamics. Or at least that was the main part of my rationale originally, the rest was the extra exotic weapons love/craving. I mean it'd allow for lightsaber scimitars and things like that too. Or hook blades even... fun possibilities.

[Hulk10]

Okay true. But what about more practical reasons? One needs those too.

[SirLiftaLot]

The homemade lightsaber whip was nice. But a curved bladed lightsaber sounds unnecessary. Why mess with what works perfectly well?

Tell that to the Darksaber. It changed up the typical blade design. Sure, it’s not necessary, but sometimes slight deviations, like the curved hilt, can throw off an opponent enough to give you an advantage. Plus it also has the added benefit of looking interesting, which can add to the intimidation factor, or just to stand out a bit. With a real sword, you have to worry with edge alignment, like with say, a katana, it only cuts in one direction, while some swords cut in two directions. A lightsaber has no cutting edge, so cuts in all directions on the “blade.” So if a curved bladed lightsaber retains Omni-directional cutting potential with the addition of curved blade, then it can lose no real potential and gain some different style to throw off unprepared opponents.

[DarthRondoudou]

Tell that to the Darksaber. It changed up the typical blade design. Sure, it’s not necessary, but sometimes slight deviations, like the curved hilt, can throw off an opponent enough to give you an advantage. Plus it also has the added benefit of looking interesting, which can add to the intimidation factor, or just to stand out a bit. With a real sword, you have to worry with edge alignment, like with say, a katana, it only cuts in one direction, while some swords cut in two directions. A lightsaber has no cutting edge, so cuts in all directions on the “blade.” So if a curved bladed lightsaber retains Omni-directional cutting potential with the addition of curved blade, then it can lose no real potential and gain some different style to throw off unprepared opponents.

The Darksaber (although I do like it) breaks my mind everytime I look at it. Does it retain the ability to cut in every directions though? How does the blade can even have this shape??

[Darth Tepes]

The Darksaber (although I do like it) breaks my mind everytime I look at it. Does it retain the ability to cut in every directions though? How does the blade can even have this shape??

The problem with the darksaber is it was never meant to be a lightsaber...it was supposed to be an ancient Vibro Blade.  But Lucas did not like the idea of something other than a lightsaber going against a lightsaber...even though EP III had the magma guards using electro staffs but whatever.  But most of the initial Animation had been done so they had to come up with the Darksaber to still use the animations.  Now they have had to retroactively figure out a history and function.  I do have a theory and this is coming from someone with no science or engineering background so it may just sound like bullcrap.  Sabers are plasma contained in an electromagnetic field which seems to take the shape of the emitter.  Round hilts with round holes produce rounded blades...so maybe the flatter angled emitter creates the flat angled blade.  But again, just a dumb dumbs theory.