Saber Forum

 I just got this hilt in the mail the other day, Thanks Deep! It got here in a record 4 days!
My wife has been gaining an interest in my crafts over the last few months and finally mentioned that she would like a small saber of her own to learn to dual with and play in the back-yard on summer nights. I needed a good excuse to purchase another Prophecy ( I really like that hilt and my other one got a cord added to it and morphed into the Proto-saber. I missed that saber with a simple MR Anakin board and green P4 that it came with. So I just happened to have a PC1.6 laying around without a home, a set of 14500, 1400ma GTL's a Cyan, Blue, Amber Tr-Rebel Endor from Luxeon, a lighted anti vandal, chopper momentary switch, recharge port, R.I.C.E port and a 2 watt heavy base speaker. She fell in love with a font called Dagobah that has crickets, frogs , and swampy sounds with a few different Yoda boots to pick from
 The V3 is a huge improvement over the V2 it has an extra 1/2" of length, and a true 1.25+ for interior diameter (any MHS rail system should fit slightly loose) With this much space I could almost cram a kitchen sink in it  ;D Overall the exterior diameters match my V2 and I was fully expecting to run my 1-1/8" drill bit into the hilt to get the space needed.
I designed a control box from 1/4 billet, milled a flat where the original switch opening was, tapped a few openings and we are almost done with machining. (It took me about 3 hrs in the shop today to do this project, tomorrow, I'll do some sanding and a fine polish on everything and send it out for powdercoating) Enjoy
(http://i1189.photobucket.com/albums/z433/DarthAlice88/DsProph1_zps3a2c7eb3.jpg)
(http://i1189.photobucket.com/albums/z433/DarthAlice88/DsProph3_zpse74e3f5c.jpg)
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All I have to say is WOW. I cant believe the things that can be done with a prophecy and by you! You are a true inspiration. Thank you!

 Thanks! I didnt realize that it looks alot like the Anakin AOTC and I almost put a taller control box on it, I chose to keep it low profile, and hard to shut off during dueling, I for got to mention that this also has a power extender that will drive the amber die for flash on clash, with the blue and cyan led's wired in series.

Not only do I love your saber work, but each photograph is also like a work of art. 

I. Must. Get. A. Milling. Machine.

Dying. Of. Tool. Envy. Over. Here..........

I need the machines too! And I also need your and DC's electronics knowledge! Oh and I need more money!

Yeah - think it would save time to just have my pay checks sent directly to Ultras Sabers  :P

Naawww it's not a real mill, it's called Gorilla machining, I'm just using a drill press I picked up at lowes(5/8" chuck free-standing)
I scored an X-Y axis vise off of ebay for like 90 bucks, a couple small end mills from the local pawn/tool shop. It gives 5" of travel back and forth, left and right (yes I would like a real mill too, but they are $$$$$) Also notice the battery pack, there was a thread awhile back with someone asking if a AA battery holder can be modded for in hilt recharging. This one got the top section cut off, the 2 contacts on the bottom piece removed, and a small hole burned threw the webs with my soldering iron, so the wire can pass, and connect the 2 batteries, from there a couple of pieces of heat shrink (and a dab of JB-weld to attach it to the speaker mount) so yes, a AA battery holder can be used for inhilt recharging with a little cutting. Thanks guys

Yeah I was going to ask about the drill press method. My good friend has that same Lowes drill press. I would need to find an x y vise and machining bits. Do you have a metal lathe? I would love to turn my own mhs parts! Do you mind if I PM you with electronics questions?

Cool man!

Did you Starkiller the emitter or is that just a blade plug, Cooper? You never cease to amaze me! That's looking PUR-TEE!

That is a blade plug, I did very little to the hilt machine wise, it just ended up at the powder coater ...should look pretty cool when done, he said by friday. And the only thing left to fabricate is the led holder/heatsink, Yes, I like answering questions you can PM me.
I have a metal lathe as well. one trick for finding stuff locally is to go on ebay look up end mills(or whatever commonly used tool your looking for), then do a nearest distance search , contact the seller, if they have a phone number even better(I have like 3 suppliers that sell me bits for 3 bucks each, they also have alot of other neat stuff) I picked my lathe up from a guy on craigs list , he lives 1/2 mile down the street and happens to share a beer on occasion with a friend of mine who lives next door. I went over there and looked this over, it was old primitive, rusty (mostly all there though) after some haggling, I got it for a 100bucks (yes it's the cheap way of getting one) knowing nothing about this lathe (I dont suggest doing that the backwards way) I took it home and researched across the net...found out I had an early 70's Craftsman 109 lathe which was made from 45' until 76' mmm interesting, found the missing stuff on ebay including a tail-stock. I use this tool almost daily, the latest up-grades to it will be adding brass gibbs to the table rails to replace the old steel ones (makes for tighter smoother accuracy) and I just got a quick change tool post that I have to fabricate the correct t-nut to fit, it has the knurling tool, 2 boring bar holders, and a 1/2" lathe bit holder. As I get better at this and more work fills the pipeline, I'll upgrade to a larger more modern lathe
(http://i1189.photobucket.com/albums/z433/DarthAlice88/shop1.jpg)(http://i1189.photobucket.com/albums/z433/DarthAlice88/Lightfoil1_zps2bbf2fa8.jpg)
A concept that I started work on, just sizing for the emmiter connection(the lathe bit is 1/4" to give some idea of scale)

My, that looks interesting!

Brother you are a saber making genius! I can't wait to see what you come up with next!

 I wanted to mention in this thread why spray paint, model car paint, or about any other paint doesnt stick well to aluminum unless you tooth it very well (sanding/priming) sand blasting, or an acid bathe (see acid etch aging in this forum) the reason being is that aluminum oxidizes very quickly (ever notice that black stuff on your hands after playing with your saber?) Yes that is your hilt coming off in your hands one microscopic layer at a time! commercially for any exposed aluminum surface ( I spent years in the solarium/conservatory industry, and sold miles of anodized sunroom framework and of course miles of glass) hence the reason you rarely see exposed aluminum in any industry.Paint will work well if you only  play with your with saber gingerly, dont drop, or duel with it.
Powder coating is considered by many to be far superior to paint (including Concourse D'Elegance in the auto and motorcycle world) The reason PC is much more desirable is shear durability and consistency. PC is really ground up plastic "flour" with colorants added. to finish a part the powder coater heats his oven to 400 degrees F, puts the part in to cook off any contaminants and to open the pores of the metal, it cools a bit and then a fine layer of the plastic flour is sprayed over the part, from there it returns to the oven and literally melts over the piece. What you have now is a hard plastic coating that is extremely durable, very hard to chip and a penny rubbed across it wont scratch it off of aluminum like paint does (I've managed to scrape paint from aluminum with a fingernail)
(http://i1189.photobucket.com/albums/z433/DarthAlice88/Enfield.jpg)
This is a British bike I restored awhile back, I had the whole frame,sheetmetal and gas tank powdercoated for 150 bucks( the gloss black looked like wet paint when finished!
(http://i1189.photobucket.com/albums/z433/DarthAlice88/DsProph8.jpg)
Here is my Wifes hilt in Black Chrome, I polished the hilt to mirror with a grinder with a polishing wheel mounted and some red rouge.
My Wife has named it "Hematite" this just came back and set my wallet lighter by 20 bucks, looks alot like blued steel in person

oops dble post please delete

I MUST learn how you do this!!!

That's pretty awesome! Can't wait to see the finished product! What color do you expect to get from mixing cyan and blue LEDs? Sounds very interesting.

Thanks guys, Actually I have no idea no idea of what the color will look like ;D My Wife's description would be "Electric Blue", I'm getting jazzed to get that part done for testing (in that phase where one must meditate before soldering to keep from rushing it) waiting on parts sux :-[

What is a going rate to get a nickle plated prophecy transformed into a glossy black like that...?

Oh man, that would be really awesome if it came out that way! Hope the parts get there soon!

My powder coater only charges me 20 dollars for a whole hilt, if it were going over nickel I would imagine it would look even nicer
Check your local auto parts stores, and the yellow pages. There are alot of guys that do it out of there garage (like my guy) and PC is actually less work than paint (my parts store 1/2 mile down the road has an oven big enough for car frames and engines) I have been considering getting a toaster oven, and a craftsman home powder kit, the stuff to do it really isnt that expensive, if you have a spare large oven (i mean spare, I dont think you want to cook a turkey after cooking lightsaber parts in it) and black chrome is getting popular, Ive seen a few cars sporting it over chrome rims

 Testing of all components complete outside of the hilt , I wanted to get a pic of this LED wiring in that I really like how simple and quick it was
in the pic youll notice 6 wires (28ga.) soldered to each led contact, from there I ran them to a 4 junction deans micro plug with the2 +'s and 2-'s from my main blade led's (blue and cyan) to set them in parallel (yes it is very bright and the color looks like electric blue. I'll get some pics up once it's finished
(http://i1189.photobucket.com/albums/z433/DarthAlice88/DsProph15.jpg)(http://i1189.photobucket.com/albums/z433/DarthAlice88/DsProph16.jpg)
Some temporary green tape to keep things in place while wiring, you can pretty well see all of the components at the ready, the final install involves wiring up the switches and recharge port before installing the control box

Looks like another fine piece Darth! Always enjoy your build logs :D

 Thanks! Got my resistor and realized I have a blown power extnder, so had to find someone with a trade(found one,....waiting on the mail) other wise it's 98% done. While waiting, I have been working on something else totally different that you guys will be seeing soon ;)

And the anticipation grows .... :o

Cant wait to see it all!

Thought I would chime in to see if there was any new progress on this saber.......What can I say, I love what you have done to this saber so far!!

Cheers

It is a beautiful thing Cooper! Like Plagueis I can't wait to see the finish product!.

 It just so happens that I got a new PEX in the mail on trade today, spent some time after dinner soldering the final ciircuits, tested it and yay! it all works as it should!, I just got finished assembling the hilt and control box (again waiting for stuff sux)
(http://i1189.photobucket.com/albums/z433/DarthAlice88/DsProph17.jpg)
I'll get some finished pix up soon and a vid.
(http://i1189.photobucket.com/albums/z433/DarthAlice88/lightfoil3.jpg) 
in the meantime I have a super secret project that is about ready for powder-coat ;)

Ok here it is finished! Yes the color for the blade is Electric Blue ;D I'm still messing with the RICE set up for fine tuning, again this is a Royal Blue, Cyan and Amber Tri-Rebel with the Blue and Cyan ran in series with no resistor (yes, thats right no resistor!) with the math on FV I'm pushing only 750Ma per die, with 1000ma to the Amber for FOC.. Vid to follow soon...Enjoy :)
(http://i1189.photobucket.com/albums/z433/DarthAlice88/DsProph24.jpg)
(http://i1189.photobucket.com/albums/z433/DarthAlice88/DsProph21.jpg)
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Looks great!  I like the blade color and the razor blade/jet engine-looking blade plug.  Another great build!

Beautiful!

I bow down to your awesomeness!

Very nice build!

.....And yeah, I noticed the RICE port next to the recharge port.  RICE is amazing to work with.  I have that on a saber of mine.  BTW, is  there a PC or CF in the hilt?

Sweet build!

and here is the video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SW18cK01JiY#ws (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SW18cK01JiY#ws)

Love the blade color. =]

Very nice build finish there DC!