I think you’re right, I just copied it from Dave’s post without checking
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Limited Run DaveP's Obi Static Parts Run 2022/23 (Sign-Up Closed)
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I was also inclined towards "BU" since DaveP first wrote about it and posted that image a few weeks ago. But then I knew I needed further confirmation so I started tinkering with the picture and came up with this:
Now I see nothing else than a clear "PO" and possibly also a somewhat clear "D".
Maybe it's only an illusion that resulted from image manipulation, but I find it hard to believe that this is just a coincidence.
P.S.: please excuse my "photoshop" abilities
Now I see nothing else than a clear "PO" and possibly also a somewhat clear "D".
Maybe it's only an illusion that resulted from image manipulation, but I find it hard to believe that this is just a coincidence.
P.S.: please excuse my "photoshop" abilities
Man I can almost see an R above the ‘P’ you wrote.
Mr Mold Maker
Master Member
I have been going back and forth on this for a little while, but the thing that sticks out to me is I feel like I’m pretty distinctly seeing a split in the middle of the letter next to the O or U. A P only has a top loop, but a B or R would explain why I’m seeing both a curve up and a curve down.
So I personally believe we are looking at
*RO*BURITE or RO*BU*RITE.
So I personally believe we are looking at
*RO*BURITE or RO*BU*RITE.
Easy way to figure this out. It's a Star Wars prop so whichever windwane version is more rare and unobtainable.... it's that one.
Kinda my thoughts, I asked for both grenade rings hoping y’all would establish a definitive version, but that might not happen for months, years or decades.
That's what I saw first too. However, what makes me doubt it's "RO" is the shape of the "O" from ROBURITE. The O is a bit too rounded and the flatter U matches the picture better imo. That leaves us with BU vs PO, on which case I'd personally go for PO.
Now, speaking about shapes, there's a lot of variation out there. Specifically on the COTTON POWDER ones. And there are cases of different stamps/letter types where the "O" is as flat as a "U". For example this (borrowed from another thread):
And there's this other picture from DaveP where you see something that could possibly be "C°" from "POWDER Co." Maybe it's just me wanting to see something where there's actuality nothing?
GhostOfThrawn
Active Member
I can definitely see the BU
View attachment 1675994
Or the RO? I am confusedI don't think we can decide it.
View attachment 1675995
I gave this a shot with methods I use for a lot of astrophotography when I am trying to find some faint comets and asteroids from my pics.
Some of the letters are visible only partially so second row is my guess of the actual letter.
What do you guys think?
First I almost wrote that I cannot see anything but then it started to appear. Yes I can deffinitely see an R and the partial ( with the above mentioned P/B and U basically the whole upper row. And that very much makes me lean towards ROBURITE because what else?
Nice! What is the method? You made it invert and played with the attributes?
GhostOfThrawn
Active Member
Yep, first I inverted the image as the human eye is a lot better to detect contrast differences on a white surface. Then I desaturated the image and played around with the levels, curves and different tehcniques for sharpening. I am pretty confident that these are real information on the image rather than just noise.
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marker2037
Active Member
All I know is I want my stamp to be just as hard to read and make out as the original prop in these photos lol.
v312
Sr Member
I'm posting this here to hopefully help people who are now wondering what transistor markings to choose. My assumption is that if they were pulled from the calculator - most likely either both were on the same board , or from two separate boards that only have a single transistor on them.
Of course they might have pulled any random combination, but if you already have 3 or 6 transistors on the board - why take only one transistor from it and then the other from a separate board ... anyway, based on what I've seen these are the possible combinations out of the tree stamps that Dave offers:
The MA15 and MA09 are on a single board (3 pairs ) and it was the hardest one to take out. You basically first have to take out all the other boards and then do some more disassembling to get to this one.
There's also a single MA09 on a separate board.
Some models just have these 2 transistor boards and do not have the MA3x transistors at all.
On the models that have MA3x transistors there's only one board with a MA34 and there are no other transistors on it.
So my guess is either MA09 + MA15 (both from the same board present on all known models) or MA09 + MA34 (two boards with a single transistor - not all models have this combination, but if they do - these will come out first, before you can reach to the board with MA15)
Edit: 2xMA09 or 2xMA15 are of course also possible combinations to pull from the 6 transistor board, but somewhat less likely as they are grouped in 3 MA09+MA15 pairs (and the markings just don't look to me to be the same on the reference picture).
Of course they might have pulled any random combination, but if you already have 3 or 6 transistors on the board - why take only one transistor from it and then the other from a separate board ... anyway, based on what I've seen these are the possible combinations out of the tree stamps that Dave offers:
The MA15 and MA09 are on a single board (3 pairs ) and it was the hardest one to take out. You basically first have to take out all the other boards and then do some more disassembling to get to this one.
There's also a single MA09 on a separate board.
Some models just have these 2 transistor boards and do not have the MA3x transistors at all.
On the models that have MA3x transistors there's only one board with a MA34 and there are no other transistors on it.
So my guess is either MA09 + MA15 (both from the same board present on all known models) or MA09 + MA34 (two boards with a single transistor - not all models have this combination, but if they do - these will come out first, before you can reach to the board with MA15)
Edit: 2xMA09 or 2xMA15 are of course also possible combinations to pull from the 6 transistor board, but somewhat less likely as they are grouped in 3 MA09+MA15 pairs (and the markings just don't look to me to be the same on the reference picture).
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Very interesting, thank you! Definitely something to take into consideration. Though as mentioned before, it seems like the found parts in Star Wars props are usually the rarest variants.
14trharris
New Member
Is it too late to snag one of the open spots?**UPDATE**
Hello everyone. Hope you’re all well, and that 2023 has gotten off to a good start for you all.
I just wanted to check in and give you all a courtesy update to let you all know where things are up to with the run….
Apologies for the radio silence. This past couple of weeks have been incredibly full on! I’ve been working on this update, along with a few experiments, and have had a LOT to deal with over the past couple of weeks, as I’ll explain below.
ALL parts are now “IN PRODUCTION” as I’m sure you all would have expected by now. It was NOT as straight forward as you might think though.
Suffice to say, January has very nearly killed me!
Let me explain…
The pricing for the run was based on quotes I received towards the end of last year.
There was very little room for profit, on account of the parts being quite expensive to have made.
The quotes I received were workable though, and I managed to negotiate a price that was acceptable to most people on the interest list, without having to compromise on the accuracy of the materials.
when I came to request the quotes/invoices for the final numbers though, my chosen manufacturers tried to bump up the unit prices. For a brief moment, it was looking like the whole run would be done at a huge loss *.
This kicked off another round of negotiations, as well as seeking out alternative manufacturers (something that I thought was settled and wouldn't need to be done again!).
Long story short... I managed to get everything back within the original budget. But not without a few sleepless nights and a whole lot of stress!
It's obviously a huge relief to have everything ordered (without facing financial ruin and complete reputation destruction!). All of this additional wrangling did cause a slight delay to things getting off the ground though unfortunately. Everything is now "in production" though, and has been for the past week. I've been given an estimated delivery of mid-March. I hope that this is ok with everyone? It's a bit longer than I'd originally requested to be honest, but we literally placed the order smack bang in the middle of Chinese New Year unfortunately, and it does take a while to get back up to speed.
It's not unheard of for parts to come in before their “expected delivery date”. I’ll obviously keep you all posted as and when I hear anything.
I've asked for frequent updates and for any images to be forwarded to me to share on the thread.
* Just to reassure you all, no-one's money was ever at risk. The absolute worst-case scenario, would have been to cancel the run and to issue a full refund to everyone. Thankfully it didn't come to that!
I’ll be posting regular updates as news comes in, and as I work on various experiments relating to the weathering commissions.
Preparations/Experimentations:
As well as getting everything into production, I’ve been ordering supplies and equipment needed for the run. All additional screws/nuts/pins, etc have arrived, along with self adhesive foil and vinyl. There is PLENTY for me to be getting on with between now and the arrival of the parts.
I’ll be cutting clamp foil next week and vinyl stencils for clamps.
The Dry Rub Transfers for the transistors have arrived and they are fantastic! I couldn’t be happier with them:
View attachment 1666039
I’ve ordered letter stamps for the wind vanes in a variety of sizes and fonts too, and have been experimenting with those this week. This is a skill in itself and it’s safe to say that I’ll need a bit of practice before I feel proficient enough to stamp the rings. I’m beginning to get a feel for how hard to strike them, and how to get them spaced correctly.
I’ll post another update on this once I’ve had a little more practice!
I’ve cut some vinyl spacers to help with spacing the letters correctly. I’ve found that a solid guide is required too to ensure that each letter is at exactly the right height.
View attachment 1666040
I’m still working on my technique, but certainly getting a feel for it. The above example is a vast improvement on my first attempt! I believe that with a bit more practice, I’ll be ready to move on to something cylindrical.
I have some other experiments to perform over the next couple of weeks with regards to chemical darkening of steel/inconel. I'll be posting my progress on that soon....
Weathering Commission Details:
Over the course of next week, I’ll be contacting participants of the run individually to ask them to think about their preferences for the weathering commission.
I’ve made the following list and diagram to help explain the various details that will be added as part of the commission.
Emitter:
- 1 - Damage to edges
- 2 - Pitting to surfaces
- 3 - Chemical darkening/discolouration (more so to inner part)
- 4 - Soldering at rear of emitter to insert and top of neck
- 5 - Emitter insert painted black
- 6 - Mark to face of emitter
- 7 - General weathering and highlighting of edges
Neck:
- 8 - Chemical darkening/discolouration (more so towards base)
- 9 - Accurate buckling of windvane
- 10 - General weathering and highlighting of edges
- 11 - Application of tape to the windvane, accurately weathered to match references
Grenade section:
- 12 - Addition of some light dings/scratches
- 13 - Chemically darkened to match references
- 14 - Rust deposits in grooves
- 15 - General weathering and highlighting of edges
- 16 - Sealed to prevent further rust build up
Clamp Section:
- 17 - Accurately drilled for additional screws/pins
- 18 - Damage to plating with exposed, darkened metal
- 19 - Application of accurately cut foil to match references
- 20 - General weathering/wear/dirt
Booster Section:
- 21 - All damage to fins accurately replicated
- 22 - Chemically darkened to match references
- 23 - Rust deposits in grooves
- 24 - General weathering and highlighting of edges
- 25 - Sealed to prevent further rust build up
Handwheel:
- 26 - Diagonal scratch to one of the grooves
- 27 - Light weathering surface scratches
- 28 - Light build up if dirt (weathering powder)
View attachment 1666041
** I’m happy to omit/tone down any of these details. So if you’ve decided to have the full weathering commission, could you please take a look and have a think over the weekend. **
I’ll be in touch via DM over the course of next week.
Available spots:
Now that the parts are officially in production and the numbers are fixed, I can confirm that there are X8 available spots remaining. These will need to be sold as soon as possible, so I’ll be letting them go on a first come-first served basis. They are full hilts and can’t be split in to separate parts I’m afraid. If you’re interested in taking one, please get in touch via DM.
Thank you!
Thanks again to everyone who has made this run possible! Your participation, patience and trust is truly humbling, and I can’t tell you how much it means.
We’re now on the final stretch, and I can’t wait for the parts to start coming in and to share more progress with you over the next few weeks.
Wishing you all the best, and as always, MTFBWY!
Dave
Thanks for that, Asen.
Certainly food for thought. It's also worth considering that the transistors didn't actually come from a calculator.
It's certainly the correct model for finding them, but also worth considering that they came straight from the factory.
Here is an Arial view of the area around Elstree studios:
Elstree is over to the left. A short journey along the road leads to where the GEC - Marconi factory (formerly Elliot Automation) used to be:
The building shaped as an "E" (for Elliot).
It's conceivable that since the factory was literally on the same street, that they could have come directly from there, and not from a calculator.
Just something else worth thinking about as a possibility.
That's not to undermine what you said in any way. It would make sense to take them from the same board if they were salvaged.
I just wonder if they might have gone rummaging through the skips at the Marconi building for useful bits and pieces, and maybe found them that way?
v312
Sr Member
For sure, the transistors could have come from anywhere.
I personally believe calculators are the most likely source for the reasons I describe below.
My understanding is that the later GEC was a huge corporation with multiple locations, but the earlier Marconi-Elliott only made this type of semiconductors in their factory in Witham (that looks to be some 100km from Elstree studios) and only during 1968-1971. When in1971 M-E were merged into GEC they stopped the semiconductor production and closed the factory.
So, by 1976 I guess they could be found only in junk or some surplus (which was practically also junk because they became so obsolete just for few years).
That could include prototypes of devices that were still lying around in that other GEC facility close to Elstree, it is a very interesting possibility. Maybe the a prop guy met one of the GEC engineers in the local pub and asked "Do you guys have some junk electronics that we can use for our props?" I mean you never know how things could have happened so many decades ago.
We don't see much electronics used in the props, unlike the jet engines, the Michell and V8 parts that are all over the place - so probably they didn't get a large pile of electronics scrap (if such a thing existed back then) to scavenge, but just some random device or pieces.
But, if it was an obsolete or defective device that was just lying around at the time, it should be a very short list of possible sources.
Let's say once these semiconductors available on the market it takes an year or two to design and produce some device that uses them. That leaves a very short window of probably 1969-1972 that any devices that use them were made.
We know so far that they were used in the calculators, some obscure early British computers, the DAT11 was in a TV and I won't be surprised some were used in military electronics. Add to this some fancy (for the time) radios maybe and I can't think of any other common device in the very early 70s that would have advanced electronics in it.
These bulky calculators with limited capabilities were for sure junk by 1976, totally obsoleted by the pocked sized ones like the Exactras. TVs made in 1970 might still have been decent in 1976 I'm not sure, but they tend to have longer upgrade cycles and the military stuff as well.
So that's my theory, and that's all it is - just a theory.
I personally believe calculators are the most likely source for the reasons I describe below.
My understanding is that the later GEC was a huge corporation with multiple locations, but the earlier Marconi-Elliott only made this type of semiconductors in their factory in Witham (that looks to be some 100km from Elstree studios) and only during 1968-1971. When in1971 M-E were merged into GEC they stopped the semiconductor production and closed the factory.
So, by 1976 I guess they could be found only in junk or some surplus (which was practically also junk because they became so obsolete just for few years).
That could include prototypes of devices that were still lying around in that other GEC facility close to Elstree, it is a very interesting possibility. Maybe the a prop guy met one of the GEC engineers in the local pub and asked "Do you guys have some junk electronics that we can use for our props?" I mean you never know how things could have happened so many decades ago.
We don't see much electronics used in the props, unlike the jet engines, the Michell and V8 parts that are all over the place - so probably they didn't get a large pile of electronics scrap (if such a thing existed back then) to scavenge, but just some random device or pieces.
But, if it was an obsolete or defective device that was just lying around at the time, it should be a very short list of possible sources.
Let's say once these semiconductors available on the market it takes an year or two to design and produce some device that uses them. That leaves a very short window of probably 1969-1972 that any devices that use them were made.
We know so far that they were used in the calculators, some obscure early British computers, the DAT11 was in a TV and I won't be surprised some were used in military electronics. Add to this some fancy (for the time) radios maybe and I can't think of any other common device in the very early 70s that would have advanced electronics in it.
These bulky calculators with limited capabilities were for sure junk by 1976, totally obsoleted by the pocked sized ones like the Exactras. TVs made in 1970 might still have been decent in 1976 I'm not sure, but they tend to have longer upgrade cycles and the military stuff as well.
So that's my theory, and that's all it is - just a theory.
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