WIP: Mostly Hardware Obi ANH

[Tan Djarka]

I've posted another horrible pic of the saber to the page. I decided to scrap the handmade emitter and pommel and add the machined versions I aquired a while back. They aren't accurate but neither is even a single detail of the rest of the saber, so they fit perfectly! Just scroll all the way to the bottom of the page.

 

[Tan Djarka]

A year later and... I got another pommel and emitter, which inspired me to swap some parts around, and I went back to what I originally planned for the saber with the resin grenade. The original all-hardware version which I decided to use the machined emitter and pommel on now has the original hardware emitter back and needs a new hardware pommel. The most recent aquisitions will now go to an entirely new Obi ROTS inpsired saber. No wonder I've been working on the Obi ANH for 9 years!

 

[Tan Djarka]

Fabricated most of the clamp at work today. Those gutter seaming tools are great for making them bends. Picked up some 1/4" square styrene from the hobby shop. I didn't know it came solid. All this time I'd been using the hollow stuff!

Probably finish up the clamp tonight and start working on a new pommel. Soon this will be done, at last.

 

[Tan Djarka]

Been a while since I revisited this thread. I updated all the above posted links to go to the new all-inlcusive hardware and machined attempts at building the Obi ANH.

 

[Jerome]

That's a very impressive project that's come a long way!

Interesting to see the evolution of parts and material used.

 

[thd9791]

I agree, great builds, and even more impressive are the changes along the way!

 

[Tan Djarka]

I agree, great builds, and even more impressive are the changes along the way!

As long as the changes are for the better... The truth of the matter is, sometimes they weren't.

If you can believe it, the 100% hardware Obi ANH is not finished, once again. I'd made the Graflex style clamp a little long to cover for another oversight, but the forward grip ended uplooking too short by comparison. The new clamp is made from scrap stainless steel, and still needs the holes and slot cut in the one side, the transistor and washers on the other side, plus a new calc bubble strip. And then it'll finally be done. Again. Maybe.

 

[Tan Djarka]

Still no progress, but I figured I'd post just to keep the thread "alive". I picked up a new batch of cabachons at the Hobby Lobby, which actually look to be the correct size for the bubble strip. The ones I'd used in the past were a bit small. I plan on grinding off the edges of the inside ones so they look like the real deal. We'll see how that works out...

 

[thd9791]

never would have thought of gems for the bubble strip. I take it those clear bumpers are waay too big.

I also saw something next to them in a hardware store, they were trapezoidal boxes (exactly like the cubes on a sink handwheel) has anyone used these before?

 

[thd9791]

They would have been square bumpers, a little like this...

http://www.totalplastics.com/assets/0000/4919/BS32_large.gif

 

[Tan Djarka]

I've seen them used before, but they do have drawbacks. They probably won't accept paint very well (the ones I saw used remained their natural black). Also, the rubber/plastic is not very pliable, so it may not bend around a tube very well, or at least it won't stay that way.

 

[Macjedi]

Wow it's really time consuming but it's not crappy and looks really good...

 

[thd9791]

Tan Djarka:

I was afraid of that, thank you :rolleyes

I made a new little discovery, will post in my own thread.

 

[Tan Djarka]

I've updated the page to include a few new pics. It's at:

Sabre-Craft

Included is a pic of my best pommel to date ("chromed" and everything!) on the all hardware version of the Obi ANH and a "reboot" of the resin grenade based saber, which will feature a suprisingly good emitter.

As usual, questions and comments are welcome.

 

[Tan Djarka]

While they're not ANH sabers exactly, three sabers based on the 2005 Obi ROTS electronic saber and one based on the more recent "basic" saber can be found at:

Sabre-Craft

 

[thd9791]

Those are pretty cool! Your work, no matter how screen accurate always seems to come out polished and fine looking. Nice work! Have you ever made a "Windvane" without using T Track? Found a pipe wide enough to go around the fins?

 

[Tan Djarka]

Have you ever made a "Windvane" without using T Track? Found a pipe wide enough to go around the fins?

I did one where I cut slots into the "shoulder" under the windvane and inserted pieces of sheet styrene. It didn't turn out quite as well as I'd hoped. Usually, I do the opposite of finding a pipe to go around the fins. I just grind the fins to fit into a properly sized section of pipe for the windvane.

 

[Tan Djarka]

If anyone cares, I recently found an interesting piece for those of you still foolhardy enough to attempt a hardware version of the Obi ANH. It's some kind of massage device that looks like a minature dough roller (although, maybe it's a cooking device?) with multiple notched rings that look much like the frag body of the grenade. A pic can be found at:

Sabre-Craft

Scroll all the way to the bottom. Thanks for looking, and questions and comments are welcome.

 

[thd9791]

that's very interesting..are those pieces separate?

 

[Tan Djarka]

that's very interesting..are those pieces separate?

It's six pairs of two rings stuck together with spacers inbewteen, mounted on the roller. Unforunately each ring is a little wide, so once assembled at the correct length there's only room for eight notched rings instead of nine. But that's okay, because I don't think I could separate the pairs into single rings.