Hey dude, whats the activation button from? I absolutely love that piece!
Show your custom Lightsabers!
- Thread starter GreenCircleCube
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Hey dude, whats the activation button from? I absolutely love that piece!
JaxAndTheMoon
Sr Member
Kinda caught between OT and PT style. I love the original Graflex and then Luke's Hero/V2 saber. I also really love the Qui Gon saber from TPM, and then some of the sabers from the new cannon EU, like Kanan Jarrus and then the Princes Arcann and Thexann's sabers from SWTOR.
The lower part is a shutter advance lever from an old 35mm SLR camera. The upper wheel was actually the mount inside the lower part for attaching it to the top of the camera body, which was connected to the film spool reel.
I appreciate the craftsmanship of all of them-- and I think that the more fans who take the time to craft their own-- even hardware store sabers, is a really cool thing.
That said, obviously, I'm an OT saber guy. I thought the PT sabers, in the films themselves, lacked character and I hated, HATED what they did to interpret the Graflex in ROTS.
The organic sabers are something that I think takes a very precise and delicate sense of design. There is a fine line between something artistic, and something that comes of as fanboy overkill.
OT stye sabers just embody everything that is Star Wars to me.
I love the distinction too-- I think Poopapappapalps dropped the mic and flipped the table with this post showing there was a place for all three in context with each other:
Thanks!
I actually grabbed the camera cause it was $5, already broken and I wanted it for the light meter on the front-- it looked like a great clamp bubblecard type thing. I was hoping to get more good parts out of it-- but it was mostly just a few greeblies. But still-- if you spot a camera at a garage sale for under $10 I say go for it!
Vintage photogear of any sort has the right look and feel for the OT.
Now if I could just get my hands on a few tons of cheap airplane scrap salvage like they did for ANH I'd be set.
I actually grabbed the camera cause it was $5, already broken and I wanted it for the light meter on the front-- it looked like a great clamp bubblecard type thing. I was hoping to get more good parts out of it-- but it was mostly just a few greeblies. But still-- if you spot a camera at a garage sale for under $10 I say go for it!
Vintage photogear of any sort has the right look and feel for the OT.
Now if I could just get my hands on a few tons of cheap airplane scrap salvage like they did for ANH I'd be set.
Scott D
Sr Member
My preference is converting 3 cell camera flashes, OT style and trying to avoid going over the top with the greeblies. The Graflite that I'm working on right now might break that rule, though.
Machined sabers are hit or miss for me. That Shameem guy on Youtube tricked out an old Parks "Shadow" hilt recently and I thought it looked great. If the design is in the spirit of Luke's ROTJ saber or maybe Ben's ANH, There's a good chance I'll probably like it.
DARTH SABER
Master Member
Im also an OT saber guy.
Yodas saber and Obi wans ep1 saber werent too bad though.
I like sabers that have that have moving parts and that suggest some kind of functionality rather than just greebles being added for decoration.
Thats one of my pet peves, especially when i see steampunk props- cogs and gears glued on to a prop that serve no function at all.
Im also not a fan of overly ornate organic sabers.
As someone said earlier, theres a fine line between just right and going overboard.
Yodas saber and Obi wans ep1 saber werent too bad though.
I like sabers that have that have moving parts and that suggest some kind of functionality rather than just greebles being added for decoration.
Thats one of my pet peves, especially when i see steampunk props- cogs and gears glued on to a prop that serve no function at all.
Im also not a fan of overly ornate organic sabers.
As someone said earlier, theres a fine line between just right and going overboard.
I try to look at the Graflex and ESB Vader as a guide of how much greeblie is just enough greeblie
Though I will admit I over-greeblie sometimes... I just love little textured metal knobs.
Speaking of over-greeblie-ing.
I said I was done, but I messed with the 1994 special again. I ended up getting a Heiland clamp which was what I originally had on the thing back in the day. So I got rid of the 3D printed graflex clamp and put the Heiland on, along with a cool red edge card from TCSS.
Now I SUPER swear I'm done with this thing.
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JaxAndTheMoon
Sr Member
I try to look at the Graflex and ESB Vader as a guide of how much greeblie is just enough greeblie
Though I will admit I over-greeblie sometimes... I just love little textured metal knobs.
Speaking over over-greeblie-ing.
I said I was done, but I messed with the 1994 special again. I ended up getting a Heiland clamp which was what I originally had on the thing back in the day. So I got rid of the 3D printed graflex clamp and put the Heiland on, along with a cool red edge card from TCSS.
http://sethmsherwood.com/pretty/94a.jpg
http://sethmsherwood.com/pretty/94b.jpg
Now I SUPER swear I'm done with this thing.
I like the use of the red clamp card. Not many people using different colored cards in their builds
veektohr
Sr Member
I try to look at the Graflex and ESB Vader as a guide of how much greeblie is just enough greeblie
Though I will admit I over-greeblie sometimes... I just love little textured metal knobs.
Speaking of over-greeblie-ing.
I said I was done, but I messed with the 1994 special again. I ended up getting a Heiland clamp which was what I originally had on the thing back in the day. So I got rid of the 3D printed graflex clamp and put the Heiland on, along with a cool red edge card from TCSS.
http://sethmsherwood.com/pretty/94a.jpg
http://sethmsherwood.com/pretty/94b.jpg
Now I SUPER swear I'm done with this thing.
I love those shorty Heiland clamps!
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For me, it depends entirely on the final design. Does it look like it work? How does it inform someone of the character that wields it or: what's the story of it? What's the context?
OT sabers are wonderful because they are based on things real-world things that were built for a specific function; flash handles were meant to work. From that, it already has what I call a "build logic", where the parts are where they are because they need to be there, and that can be used for inform alterations made to them.
The PT kind of lacks that but I don't necessarily poo-poo them out right because of that. They lack the robust qualities of the OT sabers but, having said that, my two favorite lightsaber designs from the PT are Dooku and Palpatine's (particularly his V2, the one he fights Yoda with).
The more artsy, organic/ancient sabers is where I have more qualms with. More often than not, they go overboard in designing them; preferring form over "function" (Kylo Ren's a good recent example). They tend to have too many things on them, jetting out from the sides or something littering the emitter, where I think the idea of keeping it simpler is the better. Again, they're not all like that, some fan interpretations of these sabers (some of them posted here) are really good and they fit in this categtory; I think you just have to know when to stop.
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JaxAndTheMoon
Sr Member
Bingo. Sabers like Malgus from TOR and a few others are way overdone with all of those crazy emitter claws and things of that nature, where it just has no purpose of being on the saber hilt other than to look cool. At least Ren's saber has a reason for having the "cross guard" exhaust. I'm not exactly the biggest fan, but it was an interesting enough design for me to want to add it to my collection.
Big fan of Palpatine's and Dooku's as well. Still trying to acquire Dooku's hilt, but I'll work on that...
I totally agree-- but I give Kylo Ren a pass for some reason-- mostly because I love the scrap-yard approach. Those EU sabers that get me are the ones that basically just try to win some unknown competition. They are the Mary Sues of props. They are total kitchen sinks in terms of features and functions.
While I can appreciate the look and craftsmanship of the OT sabers, the only one that ever resonated with me was Vader's MPP. The Graflex is cool but does little for me, and Obi-Wan's & Luke's ROTJ just turn me off.
I wasn't overly thrilled with Qui-Gon's, but I really liked most of the rest. I also like a lot of the EU stuff. My absolute favorite, though, is Master Orgus' saber, with the embossed leather, gem-like buttons and detailed shrouding. I wouldn't call it "organic," but certainly artisan.
I have to disagree. You'll notice such details are almost exclusively found on dark side lightsabers. They're psychological details. They make the weapon look more menacing, more dangerous. It makes it look like even the hilt is designed to cause harm to others when it's off. I absolutely adore those details. They really speak to the nature of the wielder.
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JaxAndTheMoon
Sr Member
Qui Gon's for me was simple, neat, and to the point. It wasn't overly complicated like some of the other PT sabers, and the nice two tone black and silver detailing really made it look great, along with the scallop grip section.
Rahm Kota's saber is another EU favorite of mine in terms of "organic" builds. The leather wrap really lent itself to portraying the saber as a heavily used weapon that has seen a lot of use in action.
And then! On the opposite spectrum of that, Starkiller/ Galen Marek's saber from TFU is also an all time favorite. The scene where he's putting it together with the force while meditating and all of the pieces are exposed, really shows the design of the saber off to the player. It's been a long time favorite since I played it back in 2008
Rahm Kota's saber is another EU favorite of mine in terms of "organic" builds. The leather wrap really lent itself to portraying the saber as a heavily used weapon that has seen a lot of use in action.
And then! On the opposite spectrum of that, Starkiller/ Galen Marek's saber from TFU is also an all time favorite. The scene where he's putting it together with the force while meditating and all of the pieces are exposed, really shows the design of the saber off to the player. It's been a long time favorite since I played it back in 2008
Oh yeah. You just described everything about Qui-Gon's saber I actually liked. It was the strange curved points in the chrome at the top of the grip I didn't like. It spoils the overall for me. No logical reason, it just puts me off.
And yes! That scene when Galen is assembling his lightsaber was when I knew I was really going to groove on the game.
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And yes! That scene when Galen is assembling his lightsaber was when I knew I was really going to groove on the game.
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I'm the exact opposite.
The Graflex was the first lightsaber we ever saw-- and while the changes to it between flashgun and lightsaber are minimal, it is like Excaliber to me. It set the standard, and the further sabers drift from it the less enthused I am.
The Graflex was the first lightsaber we ever saw-- and while the changes to it between flashgun and lightsaber are minimal, it is like Excaliber to me. It set the standard, and the further sabers drift from it the less enthused I am.
JaxAndTheMoon
Sr Member
I'm the exact opposite.
The Graflex was the first lightsaber we ever saw-- and while the changes to it between flashgun and lightsaber are minimal, it is like Excaliber to me. It set the standard, and the further sabers drift from it the less enthused I am.
I have to ask then, where does your opinion stand on the Starkiller saber? It has very obvious Graflex influenced top half, which I think is why I was very drawn to it. That and the exposed crystal chamber.
