Question on build a ESB lightsaber

Sundowner

Sundowner

Master Member
RPF PREMIUM MEMBER
I'm interested in building a ESB Luke saber and I've been combing through the numerous threads on the forum involving them. I have learned a great deal about the details of the saber and where to find parts. But I cannot seem to nail down a place to get a graflex replica or flashgun. I have found sites like wannawanga where I plan on getting parts to add on to the tube but I can't find a place that sells just the graflex or flashgun tube or shaft or whatever. I'm not interested in an original just something to get me started. I want to start a new project and all of these builds look like a lot of fun.

Thank in advance.
 
Hi, not sure of your budget, but Roman has a sale thread in the junkyard for a replica Graflex run. His stuff is top quality and would be a great non Vintage piece for your project.
There are guys here who've done sink tube versions, perhaps they'll chime in with their advice.
Best of luck on your project!
 
Thanks for the info! I must have missed that thread, I'll go back and check it out. I have about a $200 budget which I know I will sacrifice accuracy but that's perfectly fine with me.
 
I may be leaning towards TFA style of lightsaber. I believe it's fairly close to the ESB version
 
have u seen the tutorial on www.wannawanga.com ?

Roy has a excellent write up on how to build a ESB saber. he also supplies the finest parts, he has a very inexpensive ESB kit. you should check it out, u won't be disappointed.

I wanted another graflex so I can order another kit and do it all over again! lol


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halliwax said:
have u seen the tutorial on www.wannawanga.com ?

Roy has a excellent write up on how to build a ESB saber. he also supplies the finest parts, he has a very inexpensive ESB kit. you should check it out, u won't be disappointed.

I wanted another graflex so I can order another kit and do it all over again! lol


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Click to expand...

thats exactly what I plan on using. The tutorial is great, I just need to get my claws on a graflex replica! Thanks for the link
 
I would just hold out for Roman's if I were you. Knowing the quality of his Obi kit it will definitely worth every penny. Parks is switching over to his Graflex 2.0 which is geared towards adding electronics at great expense to accuracy.
 
LTsmash1200 said:
I would just hold out for Roman's if I were you. Knowing the quality of his Obi kit it will definitely worth every penny. Parks is switching over to his Graflex 2.0 which is geared towards adding electronics at great expense to accuracy.
Click to expand...

Well it looks like a massive list for Romans but I guess that speaks for his work
 
Has anyone had luck with making their own flashgun. It looks pretty simple but I don't think I would be able make some of those cuts or at least make them clean
 
You can make a reasonable facsimile of a Graflex for dirt cheap. There are templates available online. It won't look anything close to perfect, but hanging on your belt for a costume, it'll look pretty solid from ten feet away. 1.5 OD x .049 walled tube is your starting place. A Dremel and needle/hobby files should be all the tools you need.
 
I'd like to start building as accurate as I can within my budget. After the build I'm going to play with custom sabers. There are so many non canon saber hilts that our members have made. Truly inspiring to say the least. I can see this leading down an expensive future hahaha
 
The problem with sink tubes is that when you cut them then you expose the brass that they are made from. You could maybe cover that with paint or solder.

An alternative type of tube would be a chromed steel tube from a vacuum cleaner - but those are made to mount into one-another, so they are wider in one end than the other. May be too thin-walled for a Graflex. Better for Vader sabers.

One difficult detail is that there are supposed to be bumps under the button and the "glass eye" respectively, so that those parts would mount to round holes in flat surfaces. You would need a special tool for making those - I think it was called a "shoulder puller". You would drill a hole which you mount the tool in, and the tool would then pull the "shoulder" out.
If you used aluminium then you could made those shoulders out of a larger-diameter piece of tubing.

As to real parts: The tube is made of two parts. There are variations of the flash gun that were made with different number of batteries and it is practically (or really?) only the length of the bottom that differs between them.
If you get a genuine Graflex flash with a longer bottom then you could cut it shorter, but if you get a Graflex 2-cell which has a shorter bottom then you would need a new bottom.
Some ten years ago or so, Bed Bath and Beyond made a Salt and Pepper shaker set which was almost the right size and finish for the bottom - if you are lucky then you could find it on eBay or a flea market.
 
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Maybe I should just get on Romans list in the mean time. Has anyone ordered from Parks and received their order in a reasonable time? I appreciate the feedback
 
One alternative for a sink tube is a "shower grab bar". They have a brushed nickle surface, very similar to a graflex body, but a slightly warmer color (You'll still have same issue with the shoulders that darth lars mentioned). I found them at the local home depot, but lowes has them too. I think im going to base my rotj vader hilt on one of them. Ill post a photo this evening after i do a rough cut with the dremmel (its my first saber build).

http://www.homedepot.com/p/N-A-18-i...Brushed-StaInless-Steel-GB-30018-21/203440434

the link goes to a 1.25 diameter tube, but they also come in 1.5 inch diemeter.

I put my name on Roman's list too...
 
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It may be easy to cut the tube using a template and make the emitter and separate sections..but getting the convex bump around the lens socket and button socket is very difficult. You also will have to make the tabs for the bunny ears with small tools and bend those out without breaking them, and I have no idea how to make the curled bottom rim or how or thread the socket holes. I wanted to do this and then realized that you need a lot of tools to make this happen. It's totally possible, with a large workshop.
 
I got on the list in JY but mean while I think I'm going to create a 15' Luke ESB saber. Like from 15' away it looks accurate lol
 
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