Well for those who are interested in the whole story of the making of this saber, here you go.
I was originally contacted by Primrodo in mid-April of last year looking to get a set of buckles made for an Anakin ROTS glove (see this thread about the latest on these:
buckle thread). We exchanged emails and IM's for a while and we started asking about getting some sabers made (the Anakin, a few stunts, and a few custom ones). Because it would take forever to make all the sabers he wanted, I asked Primrodo to pick the ones he wanted most and I would try to do those. Primrodo first thought about just having the two stunt sabers done, but finally decided he wanted the Anakin more. In July we started discussing the differences between the C3 saber and the MR and he emailed me pictures of the C3 saber for reference. Using an MR LE saber I purchased for myself and with the pictures as reference, we decided on all the details that this saber would have. Finally, on August 24th I started the first pieces.
I began by cutting 3 pieces of 1 1/2" od 6061 aluminum solid round stock: an 8" piece for the upper s-curve section, an 8" piece for the lower grip section, and a 4" piece for the knurled section. Both ends of each piece were trued, pilot drilled, and then turned to an actual od of 1 1/2".
Starting with the lower grip section in the lathe, I drilled the hole for the threaded rod, turned it down to a "T" profile (1.5" od at the 'clamp' and 1.375" od for the rest), cut to length, drilled the hole for the endcap screw and machined the small step inside the endcap. I changed to my mill and rotary table and drilled the hole for the activation box screw and covertech knob. Then I used a small ball end bit and made the two grooves in the endcap. All holes were tapped the correct size and the lower section was completed.
Taking the piece for the knurled section I used the mill and rotary table to cut a series of 90 degree grooves both axially and radially on the piece to get the heavy knurled pattern. Back the the lathe and a 3/8" hole was drilled through and the piece was cut to size finishing the knurled section.
For the upper s-curve piece, it was first through drilled for a 3/8" hole and then drilled with a 1.25" diameter hole 5" deep. This piece was also tuned to a "T" profile so the bottom of the 1.25" hole was even with the step in the outer diameters, and then cut to length. Switching back to the mill and rotary table, and using a template made from the scaled C3 pics and the MR LE, I drilled the holes for the bunny ears screws, copper button bezel, copper eye bezel, screw for holding the emitter base, recharge ports, and activation box screws. A second template was made to cut the s-curve and this was done using a dremel tool with a cut-off disc. After an hour or so of final sanding on the dremeled cut, the upper s-curve piece was finished. To attach the three pieces together, I needed to make a cone shape washer to drop in the upper section to fit snug against the drilled end of the hole and leave a flat surface for the nut. This was accomplished on the lathe by turning a piece of aluminum to just under 1.25" and through drilling a 3/8" hole. It was then bevel faced and cut to length.
A piece of 3/8" all thread rod was cut the correct length and the three pieces were assembled and the basic shape of the saber was achieved.
Now came all the little details that make the saber. I started with the emitter base. A piece of 1 1/2" od aluminum was was turned to just under 1.25" od and the step at the top was also turned to the correct od. the emitter end was drilled and tapped for the emitter tip screw and the base was drilled to clear the 3/8" rod and nut. The piece was cut to length and then put in the rotary table to mill the recharge port recesses, drill the holes for the brass pins, drill the holes for the brass button and copper eye attachment screws, drill the hole for the attachment screw, and mill a flat seat on each side for the brass button bezel and copper eye bezel to sit. All the holes were then tapped the correct size and the emitter base was finished.
The control box was entirely machined with the mill from a piece of 1" square stock. It was milled to the correct dimensions and a 1.5" ball end mill was used to cut the rounded groove on the bottom. A slot was milled in the top, three holes were drilled (one was threaded) and a slot was milled for the brass button. Once finished, it was attached to the saber. A piece of brass stock was then milled to the correct dimensions with a small tab to slip inside the activation box. All the shape of the brass button was done with a dremel tool. A small standoff for the activation circuit was also milled to fit inside the activation circuit and a hole was drilled for recessing the attachment screw. Both of these pieces were then assembled to the activation box.
The emitter ring itself (also of aluminum) required a lot of lathe and mill work to get it to an good idea of what the C3 saber has. I had no good view of the inside of the emitter so I approximated what the MR had as a substitute using the scaled dimension I had from the C3 pics. Like wise, I used the lathe to produce an idealized emitter tip from brass based on what the MR has inside. Using a small screw with the head trimmed off, the emitter tip and ring were then screwed on to the emitter base.
The brass pins were then lathe cut from brass rod stock to give a reasonable facsimile of what the pins in the C3 pics look like (because I can not determine the exact shape from the photos, a little liberty was taken in their profile). These were then screwed into the emitter base.
The covertech knob was then lathe cut from aluminum using a cutoff blade with a small standoff integrally machined on the bottom so it will sit above the grips. The hole and recess were dome on the mill and it was attached to the saber.
A piece of copper stock was turned to the shape of the copper eye and it was threaded to fit the emitter base. An aluminum bezel was lathe turned as was a spacer ring to get the copper eye to sit flush in the bezel. These were then attached.
An aluminum bezel was lathe turned and threaded to accept the red button bezel. A small threaded slug was also also machined to allow the bezel to be screwd to the emitter base. It was a piece of round stock turned the correct diameter, threaded, drilled through and cut to length. A piece of copper stock was turned to the shape of the red button and a small aluminum washer was made to get the copper button to sit in the desired position. The copper button replaced the red button and the whole assembly was screwed to the saber.
The bunny ears were then milled from a piece of 1" square solid stock. The basic shape was milled, the radius curve was milled, the holes were drilled and tapped, and it was cut to length. Then a dremel tool was used to give the small details the desired shape. The emitter ring was removed and the ears were screwed on.
Finally, the six grips were milled from black delrin 1/2" square stock. All the angles were cut and the groove was milled on the bottom. They were cut to length ready to be finished.
The saber was then disassembled and all parts were final sanded, and polished.
I was originally planning to chemically etch and darken the activation circuit card from brass sheet stock, but was unable to obtain satisfactory results so I resorted to a third party trophy engrave who helped me. Once I got these they were trimmed to size test fit.
I was also planning on anodizing the saber. I did finally manage to get acceptable results on the 3 black anodized pieces (after 4 attempts of anodizing, stripping. repolishing, and retrying). But I was not able to get satisfactory results in keeping the clear anodizing to maintain a polished appearance. It was decided to just leave the polished pieces un-anodized but highly polished.
The saber was then reassembled, the six grips attached, and the activation circuit attached. After a final polishing, the pics posted earlier were taken and it was wrapped up and mailed.
Sounds simple enough I guess. But during the 24 weeks it took to machine this saber, I was beset with problems with my machine, personal issues, work related issues, and acts of God that all threatened to end this project. Throughout it all, Primrodo was very understanding and gave me the time I needed to take care of my problems and finish his saber. I must say he was a very nice person to work with. We have spoken may times through emails and IM's and I really can't thank him enough for sticking with me through the bad times I encountered on this project. His reassurances that I was doing a good job made it easier to tackle the negatives and keep pushing through with my work. I believe his patience with me will be rewarded with a saber he will be proud of.
