Dewy and Anakin Starkiller's Accurate Obi-Wan Kenobi Episode 1 Lightsaber Design

[Anakin Starkiller]

I wish we could share the reference images that we worked with, but I had to agree not to make them public in order to get access to them. If it was up to us, we'd post everything and you would be amazed how incredibly well Drew has matched the model to every detail on the saber.

 

[Eruonen]

So just to clarify, the single hero from TPM still exists and is held privately, but has been damaged slightly since filming? So the idea is the have a replica that we can choose to match screen or the current state?

 

[thd9791]

Hot damn I’m blown away by the attention to detail.

As someone who doesn’t use 3D software, what.. trying to figure out how to ask, if the original was built a certain way, why are we unable to replicate it without custom machining it differently? Is it just the damage?

 

[teecrooz]

I believe I have those images. He’s done a great job. I was just making sure the earlier discussion on the washer and rod was clarified because I didn’t agree with the conclusion made in page 2. Drew said he changed gears and wasn’t using them, so I’m all good! Totally on board and still want to be on the top of that interest list.

 

[Anakin Starkiller]

So just to clarify, the single hero from TPM still exists and is held privately, but has been damaged slightly since filming? So the idea is the have a replica that we can choose to match screen or the current state?

No. I wish I knew where the original hero prop was. But, I don't. It went missing somewhere between 1999 and 2002.

The original prop had a misaligned emitter cap. This detail was present at least from the period in which the resin stunt sabers (dueling and belt hangers) were made. We know this because the misaligned emitter cap is visible on all episode 1 and 2 sabers.
(I own an original TPM stunt saber and have heavily referenced it for this run)

But, during filming there was also more damage to the saber, in particular, the saber was dropped and landed on the pommel cube causing the cube to break off and causing a big crack to surround it. When the metal cube and the resin part that broke off with it were glued back into place, we were left with some scaring on the pommel. We will not be replicating this damage to the pommel--but since the pommel will be machined from delrin, it will be easy to add for people who want more battle damage (I did this on my personal OWK TPM saber back when I did the run ten or so years ago).

This replica will come with the emitter cap misaligned, as it appears to have been throughout most of filming and at least from the point at which the stunts were made.

However, for people who can't stand the tilted emitter cap, and who believe that it probably wasn't originally like that--even though we do know that it was like that when the stunts were cast--there will be an option to swap out an idealized emitter cap that situates the cap in a direct alignment with the rest of the parts of the saber.

 

[Eruonen]

No. I wish I knew where the original hero prop was. But, I don't. It went missing somewhere between 1999 and 2002.

The original prop had a misaligned emitter cap. This detail was present at least from the period in which the resin stunt sabers (dueling and belt hangers) were made. We know this because the misaligned emitter cap is visible on all episode 1 and 2 sabers.
(I own an original TPM stunt saber and have heavily referenced it for this run)

But, during filming there was also more damage to the saber, in particular, the saber was dropped and landed on the pommel cube causing the cube to break off and causing a big crack to surround it. When the metal cube and the resin part that broke off with it were glued back into place, we were left with some scaring on the pommel. We will not be replicating this damage to the pommel--but since the pommel will be machined from delrin, it will be easy to add for people who want more battle damage (I did this on my personal OWK TPM saber back when I did the run ten or so years ago).

This replica will come with the emitter cap misaligned, as it appears to have been throughout most of filming and at least from the point at which the stunts were made.

However, for people who can't stand the tilted emitter cap, and who believe that it probably wasn't originally like that--even though we do know that it was like that when the stunts were cast--there will be an option to swap out an idealized emitter cap that situates the cap in a direct alignment with the rest of the parts of the saber.

Gotcha! Thank you for the explanation, that makes a lot more sense now.

I wonder if Ewan absconded with it after TPM

 

[Anakin Starkiller]

The story I've always heard him say publicly is that after filming ROTS, he asked the prop-maker to make him one, and he obliged. But, who can say?

Also, just in case anyone is interested. In the early 2000s, when episode 2 was in production, it became public knowledge that the episode 1 hero was gone, that's why they use chromed resin stunts so much in AOTC. When MR made their AOTC saber--which was one of their first products--they based it on a chomed resin stunt because that's what was in the archives at the time. However, when Steve and the other people from MR worked on the OWK TPM EE saber, the MR people started saying "No, the metal hero is in the archives, I've seen it." I think that at this point, they were referencing the Salt Shaker saber, which was made for ROTS, but never used. That's because the MR OWK TPM EE saber seems to have some of the Salt Shanker's proportions, but incorporates some of the TPM details. What I think happened is when they went to make the TPM EE saber, they had access to the salt shaker. But, since the RPF had already obsessed over some of the TPM details with upgraded Larbels and JediVic's saber, they incorporated some of those details into their build and essentially created a hybrid.

 

[janglesworthy]

Gotcha! Thank you for the explanation, that makes a lot more sense now.

I wonder if Ewan absconded with it after TPM

Ewan admitted he stole his lightsaber off the set. Which version I dunno...

 

[teecrooz]

What Dan said.

Here is the AOTC saber they referenced:

Here is one of the TPM sabers castings they documented.

 

[Excelsior]

I wish we could share the reference images that we worked with, but I had to agree not to make them public in order to get access to them. If it was up to us, we'd post everything and you would be amazed how incredibly well Drew has matched the model to every detail on the saber.

Hopefully one day your source will consider allowing these images to be more widely distributed. It is frustrating not to be able to contribute to the discussion on an equal footing.

 

[Excelsior]

No. I wish I knew where the original hero prop was. But, I don't. It went missing somewhere between 1999 and 2002.

The original prop had a misaligned emitter cap. This detail was present at least from the period in which the resin stunt sabers (dueling and belt hangers) were made. We know this because the misaligned emitter cap is visible on all episode 1 and 2 sabers.
(I own an original TPM stunt saber and have heavily referenced it for this run)

But, during filming there was also more damage to the saber, in particular, the saber was dropped and landed on the pommel cube causing the cube to break off and causing a big crack to surround it. When the metal cube and the resin part that broke off with it were glued back into place, we were left with some scaring on the pommel. We will not be replicating this damage to the pommel--but since the pommel will be machined from delrin, it will be easy to add for people who want more battle damage (I did this on my personal OWK TPM saber back when I did the run ten or so years ago).

This replica will come with the emitter cap misaligned, as it appears to have been throughout most of filming and at least from the point at which the stunts were made.

However, for people who can't stand the tilted emitter cap, and who believe that it probably wasn't originally like that--even though we do know that it was like that when the stunts were cast--there will be an option to swap out an idealized emitter cap that situates the cap in a direct alignment with the rest of the parts of the saber.

Accuracy vs. idealization is clearly a central issue for these replicas. I like that you are giving the option of the off-center emitter. I like the asymmetries and such because they serve witness to the fact that these were hand-made, imperfect props.

Do you know how the pommel cubes were installed? Were they glued in? Is there any evidence that they were installed asymmetrically?

 

[Dewy]

Accuracy vs. idealization is clearly a central issue for these replicas. I like that you are giving the option of the off-center emitter. I like the asymmetries and such because they serve witness to the fact that these were hand-made, imperfect props.

Do you know how the pommel cubes were installed? Were they glued in? Is there any evidence that they were installed asymmetrically?

It isn’t clear how they were installed, but they are definitely not evenly spaced. We will be including this imperfection in the replica.

 

[thd9791]

Amazing.

 

[Excelsior]

I've been wondering lately if any of the resin stunt sabers show the S marking on the purple rivet.

This image from a recent auction shows what could be the S. It also appears to show the tilted emitter cap. I drew some arrows and an S overlay in Photoshop so folks can see what I'm talking about. FWIW, the S seems to be pointing in the same direction as one of the hero reference pics.

 

[Anakin Starkiller]

 

[Dewy]

This is always my favorite part of any project; when all the research, planning, and design transition from digital models to physical hardware!

 

[Eruonen]

 

[Nycrma]

Beautiful work! Signed up again just to get in on this!

 

[lesternessman]

Looks awesome, where do I get on list?

 

[Anakin Starkiller]

No list yet. I won't be doing an official sign up until the prototypes are in hand and have been triple checked by Drew and myself. For anyone who hasn't been on my runs before. When the sign up comes, you give an honor commitment to pay up when the order is in, but I do not take money until the item is in hand and ready to be shipped.