Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!!

Sym-Cha · 11-07-2009, 03:15 PM

Hello there,

A couple of weeks ago I received my first Exactra 20. Still needing another one for my lightsaber projects I scored my second Exactra 20* and received it yesterday. When I opened it to check the 7 bubbles lens I was totally flabbergasted. I announced my first discovery about the flattened sides in this thread here :

http://www.therpf.com/f9/lightsaber-calc-bubbles-62238/index2.html

And the replica bubblesstrip that was created by James Kenobi and Rebelscum also had the flattened sides.

http://www.therpf.com/showthread.php...ulator+bubbles

http://www.therpf.com/showthread.php...ulator+bubbles

NOW I HAVE TO ANNOUNCE THAT I'M NO LONGER CERTAIN THAT THE ORIGINAL PROPMAKERS DID ALSO USE BUBBLE LENSES WHICH WERE NOT COMPLETELY ROUND AND EVEN THOUGH ALL OF US THAT HAVE AUTHENTIC VINTAGE EXACTRA CALCULATORS CONFIRMED THE FLATTENDED SIDES
HERE ARE PICTURES OF MY LATEST EXACTRA 20* and MY OTHER EXACTRA 20 FOR COMPARISON :

NOTICE ALSO THE ICING ON THE SURFACE OF THE EXACTRA 20*

AND THEN THERE'S ANOTHER BIG DIFFERENCE WHEN YOU WANT TO PUT THIS BETWEEN THE GRAFLEX CLAMP AS SHOWN IN THE ABOVE THREAD BY CLUTCH ALL THE OTHER FLATTENED BUBBLE LENSES HAVE EDGES WHICH RUN LENGHTWISE UNDERNEATH AND HAVE TO BE SANDED DOWN. THIS EXACTRA 20* HAS EDGES THAT RUN SIDEWISE SO YOU ONLY NEED TO CUT IT DOWN TO THE RIGHT SIZE TO FIT IN THE CLAMP AND JUST SAND DOWN A VERY SMALL EDGE WHICH IS LEFT!!! SEE THIS PICTURE BETWEEN THE RED LINES.

MY LAST PICTURE IS OF THE SET AT FOTOSTUDIO AT THE FOTOACADEMIE

SO I'M PROUD TO PRESENT THIS NEW DISCOVERY TO ALL WHO ARE INTERESTED IN AUTHENTIC LIGHTSABER PROP PARTS AND IT SEEMS THE BLAST-TECH REPLICA BUBBLES CAN STILL BE USED BY THOSE WHO DON'T CARE ABOUT ACCURACY

-Chaim

Jedifyfe · 11-07-2009, 03:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sym-Cha

AND IT SEEMS THE BLAST-TECH REPLICA BUBBLES CAN STILL BE USED BY THOSE WHO DON'T CARE ABOUT ACCURACY

-Chaim

That would be me, though I can appreciate your obsession!

Brad

MooCriket · 11-07-2009, 03:21 PM

Dai Bendu · 11-07-2009, 03:37 PM

Very interesting. Great discovery!!

GINO · 11-07-2009, 03:41 PM

Nice work.

.

Sym-Cha · 11-07-2009, 04:30 PM

Thanks everyone,

Now the real challenge begins ... to find out which ANH lightsaber Obi-Wan, Luke or Vader has the "ROUND" BUBBLES and which has the "FLATTENED" SIDES ... so I can put this Exactra 20* in the correct lightsaber

To Be Continued ...

-Chaim

Rebelscum · 11-07-2009, 05:18 PM

I'm just marveling at the quality of the photography.

Very nice work. There's no wondering what it looks like in detail with the photos.

cayman shen · 11-07-2009, 05:23 PM

Can somebody summarize the difference between the two (one of which may not have been used)? I guess I don't have a sharp enough eye...

Sym-Cha · 11-07-2009, 05:43 PM

Thanks for your kind words Rebelscum,

These photographs were shot with a Cambo TC modified for a LEAF DIGITAL DATA BACK. You can see the camera to the left of the laptop.

To caymen shen : Probably both Exactra 20 bubbles were used by the propmakers. I'm just trying to figure out which one went into whose lightsaber. We know that the Vader ROTJ MPP lightsaber had the flattened sides :

http://www.therpf.com/showthread.php...er+ROTJ&page=6

The two Exactra 19 and two TI 2000 that I have all have flattened edges on the bubbles ...

-Chaim

p0sitr0nic · 11-07-2009, 06:26 PM

A different years model on the bubbles perhaps? The frosted version might be newer, as the frosting would help cut down on cross bubble light bleed from the number LEDs.

lonepigeon · 11-07-2009, 06:41 PM

I'm not sure what you're trying to point out either.
What do you mean by "flattened sides"?
Are you talking about the bubble shapes? or the sides of the rectangular strip?

The "Exactra 20*" looks like the frosted variation which is generally believed to not be correct.

Sym-Cha · 11-07-2009, 06:58 PM

Hi Chris,

Indeed I'm talking about the shape of the bubbles! Most Exactra's have flattened sides as in the 4th picture seen above and here below.
I wanted to show us all that there also exists an authentic Exactra 20 which is round in shape as far as the bubbles go.

The bubbles in the ROTJ Vader MPP looks a lot like my TI 2000 which is slightly frosted as well as you can see here:

-Chaim

lonepigeon · 11-07-2009, 07:14 PM

Ah, now I see what you mean. The flat edges at the top and bottom of the bubbles (top and bottom while in calculator, 'sides' in a lightsaber).

Sym-Cha · 11-07-2009, 07:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lonepigeon

The "Exactra 20*" looks like the frosted variation which is generally believed to not be correct.

Chris, why is the frosted variation to believed not correct?

-Chaim

lonepigeon · 11-07-2009, 07:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sym-Cha

Chris, why is the frosted variation to believed not correct?

-Chaim

Because in photos of the original sabers the strip looks very clear.
In the famous "toe" pic of Luke's saber you can see the Graflex sidebars through the calc strip.

Sym-Cha · 11-08-2009, 11:46 AM

And is there anyone with a clear picture of the bubbles in Obi-Wan's ANH lightsaber?

Besides the one in 'Mechanismo' by Harry Harrison seen here in a close-up of the lightsaber parts by James Kenobi :

BTW That's exactly the same Exactra 20 as my Exactra 20* seen in the pictures above ...

-Chaim

franz bolo · 11-08-2009, 12:45 PM

Nice to know. With the current reference photos we have, there is no way to tell which one was used.

Kind of like the Hot or Cold cap on the Sink Knob.

FB

Tan Djarka · 11-08-2009, 01:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by franz bolo

Nice to know. With the current reference photos we have, there is no way to tell which one was used.

Kind of like the Hot or Cold cap on the Sink Knob.

FB

Since the only photo I know of that could actually confirm the cap (the "obituary" photo) has no cap at all, the answer must be... Neither?

Sym-Cha · 11-09-2009, 08:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tan Djarka

Since the only photo I know of that could actually confirm the cap (the "obituary" photo) has no cap at all, the answer must be... Neither?

Hi Tan Djarka,

Do you have a picture of the "obituary" photo? And can you see the bubbles in the Graflex clamp clearly too?

-Chaim

Sym-Cha · 11-10-2009, 05:15 PM

Does anyone else know what picture Tan Djarka is talking about?

If so please post that picture here if you can, okay.

Thanks,

-Chaim

scarf man · 11-10-2009, 07:57 PM

The pic in question is more commonly refered to as the Tunisa pic.
It's the one that shows washers on both transistors, no cap on the handwheel, no wires or screws in the clamp, and a very dark colored grenade and emitter.

Edit: here ya go

Sym-Cha · 11-11-2009, 06:57 PM

Thanks scarf man,

too bad the picture is not sharp enough to determine whether the bubbles are round or flattened

Are those grooves in the grenade body longer then in the grenade in my pictures?

-Chaim

scarf man · 11-11-2009, 07:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sym-Cha

Are those grooves in the grenade body longer then in the grenade in my pictures?

IMO no, it's an optical ilusion or photographic artifact.

James Kenobi 1138 · 11-11-2009, 07:25 PM

I believe on the Obi Saber the bubbles were clear with the flat edges.

In the pic posted above, the photograph was not of the saber itself, but a cropped section of Obi-Wan.

The image is grainy and hard to see detail because the camera was so far away from the Saber. But there was a lot of sunlight and the Saber is nice and bright.

I believe if you look at the area I circled, you will see the inside of the clamp showing through the clear plastic bubble strip.

I know the frosted one is translucent, not opaque, but I don't think it a photograph like this you would see the inside of the clamp at all. From as far away as the photographer was, all you would see is white-looking plastic.

Sym-Cha · 11-11-2009, 07:36 PM

Hi James,

Thanks for joining in this thread. You could be correct however then your own composite is not accurate either since that's the same Exactra 20 as is mine ... with the round bubbles. Is it an Exactra 20 that you own or just a picture of one for comparison?

-Chaim

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11-07-2009, 03:15 PM	#1
Sym-Cha Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Groningen, Netherlands Posts: 666 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! Hello there, A couple of weeks ago I received my first Exactra 20. Still needing another one for my lightsaber projects I scored my second Exactra 20* and received it yesterday. When I opened it to check the 7 bubbles lens I was totally flabbergasted. I announced my first discovery about the flattened sides in this thread here : http://www.therpf.com/f9/lightsaber-calc-bubbles-62238/index2.html And the replica bubblesstrip that was created by James Kenobi and Rebelscum also had the flattened sides. http://www.therpf.com/showthread.php...ulator+bubbles http://www.therpf.com/showthread.php...ulator+bubbles NOW I HAVE TO ANNOUNCE THAT I'M NO LONGER CERTAIN THAT THE ORIGINAL PROPMAKERS DID ALSO USE BUBBLE LENSES WHICH WERE NOT COMPLETELY ROUND AND EVEN THOUGH ALL OF US THAT HAVE AUTHENTIC VINTAGE EXACTRA CALCULATORS CONFIRMED THE FLATTENDED SIDES HERE ARE PICTURES OF MY LATEST EXACTRA 20* and MY OTHER EXACTRA 20 FOR COMPARISON : NOTICE ALSO THE ICING ON THE SURFACE OF THE EXACTRA 20* AND THEN THERE'S ANOTHER BIG DIFFERENCE WHEN YOU WANT TO PUT THIS BETWEEN THE GRAFLEX CLAMP AS SHOWN IN THE ABOVE THREAD BY CLUTCH ALL THE OTHER FLATTENED BUBBLE LENSES HAVE EDGES WHICH RUN LENGHTWISE UNDERNEATH AND HAVE TO BE SANDED DOWN. THIS EXACTRA 20* HAS EDGES THAT RUN SIDEWISE SO YOU ONLY NEED TO CUT IT DOWN TO THE RIGHT SIZE TO FIT IN THE CLAMP AND JUST SAND DOWN A VERY SMALL EDGE WHICH IS LEFT!!! SEE THIS PICTURE BETWEEN THE RED LINES. MY LAST PICTURE IS OF THE SET AT FOTOSTUDIO AT THE FOTOACADEMIE SO I'M PROUD TO PRESENT THIS NEW DISCOVERY TO ALL WHO ARE INTERESTED IN AUTHENTIC LIGHTSABER PROP PARTS AND IT SEEMS THE BLAST-TECH REPLICA BUBBLES CAN STILL BE USED BY THOSE WHO DON'T CARE ABOUT ACCURACY -Chaim

11-07-2009, 03:21 PM	#3
MooCriket Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Baltimore MD Posts: 5,161 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!!

11-07-2009, 03:37 PM	#4
Dai Bendu Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 27 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! Very interesting. Great discovery!!

11-07-2009, 03:41 PM	#5
GINO Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: bright center of the universe Posts: 5,103 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! Nice work. .

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11-07-2009, 04:30 PM	#6
Sym-Cha Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Groningen, Netherlands Posts: 666 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! Thanks everyone, Now the real challenge begins ... to find out which ANH lightsaber Obi-Wan, Luke or Vader has the "ROUND" BUBBLES and which has the "FLATTENED" SIDES ... so I can put this Exactra 20* in the correct lightsaber To Be Continued ... -Chaim

11-07-2009, 05:18 PM	#7
Rebelscum Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Dallas / Fort Worth, Texas Posts: 681 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! I'm just marveling at the quality of the photography. Very nice work. There's no wondering what it looks like in detail with the photos.

11-07-2009, 05:23 PM	#8
cayman shen Join Date: May 2005 Location: New Hampshire, USA Posts: 3,569 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! Can somebody summarize the difference between the two (one of which may not have been used)? I guess I don't have a sharp enough eye...

11-07-2009, 05:43 PM	#9
Sym-Cha Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Groningen, Netherlands Posts: 666 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! Thanks for your kind words Rebelscum, These photographs were shot with a Cambo TC modified for a LEAF DIGITAL DATA BACK. You can see the camera to the left of the laptop. To caymen shen : Probably both Exactra 20 bubbles were used by the propmakers. I'm just trying to figure out which one went into whose lightsaber. We know that the Vader ROTJ MPP lightsaber had the flattened sides : http://www.therpf.com/showthread.php...er+ROTJ&page=6 The two Exactra 19 and two TI 2000 that I have all have flattened edges on the bubbles ... -Chaim Last edited by Sym-Cha; 11-07-2009 at 05:56 PM.

11-07-2009, 06:26 PM	#10
p0sitr0nic Join Date: May 2002 Location: Seattle Wa Posts: 1,460 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! A different years model on the bubbles perhaps? The frosted version might be newer, as the frosting would help cut down on cross bubble light bleed from the number LEDs.

11-07-2009, 06:41 PM	#11
lonepigeon Join Date: Aug 1999 Location: Michigan Posts: 6,027 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! I'm not sure what you're trying to point out either. What do you mean by "flattened sides"? Are you talking about the bubble shapes? or the sides of the rectangular strip? The "Exactra 20*" looks like the frosted variation which is generally believed to not be correct.

11-07-2009, 06:58 PM	#12
Sym-Cha Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Groningen, Netherlands Posts: 666 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! Hi Chris, Indeed I'm talking about the shape of the bubbles! Most Exactra's have flattened sides as in the 4th picture seen above and here below. I wanted to show us all that there also exists an authentic Exactra 20 which is round in shape as far as the bubbles go. The bubbles in the ROTJ Vader MPP looks a lot like my TI 2000 which is slightly frosted as well as you can see here: -Chaim Last edited by Sym-Cha; 11-08-2009 at 11:50 AM.

11-07-2009, 07:14 PM	#13
lonepigeon Join Date: Aug 1999 Location: Michigan Posts: 6,027 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! Ah, now I see what you mean. The flat edges at the top and bottom of the bubbles (top and bottom while in calculator, 'sides' in a lightsaber).

11-08-2009, 11:46 AM	#16
Sym-Cha Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Groningen, Netherlands Posts: 666 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! And is there anyone with a clear picture of the bubbles in Obi-Wan's ANH lightsaber? Besides the one in 'Mechanismo' by Harry Harrison seen here in a close-up of the lightsaber parts by James Kenobi : BTW That's exactly the same Exactra 20 as my Exactra 20* seen in the pictures above ... -Chaim Last edited by Sym-Cha; 11-08-2009 at 11:54 AM.

11-08-2009, 12:45 PM	#17
franz bolo Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 4,873 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! Nice to know. With the current reference photos we have, there is no way to tell which one was used. Kind of like the Hot or Cold cap on the Sink Knob. FB

11-10-2009, 05:15 PM	#20
Sym-Cha Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Groningen, Netherlands Posts: 666 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! Does anyone else know what picture Tan Djarka is talking about? If so please post that picture here if you can, okay. Thanks, -Chaim

11-10-2009, 07:57 PM	#21
scarf man Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Don't PM me! Posts: 1,181 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! The pic in question is more commonly refered to as the Tunisa pic. It's the one that shows washers on both transistors, no cap on the handwheel, no wires or screws in the clamp, and a very dark colored grenade and emitter. Edit: here ya go Last edited by scarf man; 11-10-2009 at 08:06 PM.

11-11-2009, 06:57 PM	#22
Sym-Cha Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Groningen, Netherlands Posts: 666 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! Thanks scarf man, too bad the picture is not sharp enough to determine whether the bubbles are round or flattened Are those grooves in the grenade body longer then in the grenade in my pictures? -Chaim

11-11-2009, 07:25 PM	#24
James Kenobi 1138 this space left blank Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Dallas Texas Posts: 5,312 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! I believe on the Obi Saber the bubbles were clear with the flat edges. In the pic posted above, the photograph was not of the saber itself, but a cropped section of Obi-Wan. The image is grainy and hard to see detail because the camera was so far away from the Saber. But there was a lot of sunlight and the Saber is nice and bright. I believe if you look at the area I circled, you will see the inside of the clamp showing through the clear plastic bubble strip. I know the frosted one is translucent, not opaque, but I don't think it a photograph like this you would see the inside of the clamp at all. From as far away as the photographer was, all you would see is white-looking plastic.

11-11-2009, 07:36 PM	#25
Sym-Cha Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Groningen, Netherlands Posts: 666 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Lightsaber Calculator Bubbles NEW DISCOVERY!!! Hi James, Thanks for joining in this thread. You could be correct however then your own composite is not accurate either since that's the same Exactra 20 as is mine ... with the round bubbles. Is it an Exactra 20 that you own or just a picture of one for comparison? -Chaim

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