Show your custom Lightsabers!

I've always loved the Graflex lightsabers as well. Qui-Gons was too sleek in my opinion. It fit better in the Star Trek universe where things are more streamlined and sleek. Star Wars always left me with the impression that yes these are elegant weapons but they are also imperfect at times. Still loved Qui Gon though!

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Zaan said:
I've always loved the Graflex lightsabers as well. Qui-Gons was too sleek in my opinion. It fit better in the Star Trek universe where things are more streamlined and sleek. Star Wars always left me with the impression that yes these are elegant weapons but they are also imperfect at times. Still loved Qui Gon though!

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Since it was during the time where Jedi were "in their prime," I always thought that the super sleek lightsabers of the Jedi Order fit the PT more. The rusted old look of the ANH Obi always fit well because it was so old and worn and he was no longer in his prime. I felt Obi's saber was a representation of the Jedi: Once a great weapon during the height of the order, now a rusted worn relic of the old republic.
 
JaxAndTheMoon said:
Since it was during the time where Jedi were "in their prime," I always thought that the super sleek lightsabers of the Jedi Order fit the PT more. The rusted old look of the ANH Obi always fit well because it was so old and worn and he was no longer in his prime. I felt Obi's saber was a representation of the Jedi: Once a great weapon during the height of the order, now a rusted worn relic of the old republic.
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Hmmm an interesting perspective... never thought of it like that. Old Republic sabers always were my favorite which fits well with your parabel. They were decadent but used often.

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JaxAndTheMoon said:
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.
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I have this theory that the lightsabers featured in a given story are often representative of the story on a conceptual level.

The PT sabers are mass-produced, don't have a ton of character, and are a bit generic... like the PT :)
The OT sabers are very worked over, beat up and feel hand made and one of a kind... like the OT
The re-appearence of the Graflex in TFA feels like JJ Abrams doubling down on his promise to a return to older style Star Wars filmmaking.

The EU sabers are over the top and always trying to one-up themselves.

As such, TFU was like Star Wars on steroids-- so it seemed fitting that the lightsaber was like the Graflex but AMPED. It was cool as hell and fun-- but I'd never really consider it canon.

And these are just my opinions-- I know people disagree, and that's cool.

JaxAndTheMoon said:
Since it was during the time where Jedi were "in their prime," I always thought that the super sleek lightsabers of the Jedi Order fit the PT more. The rusted old look of the ANH Obi always fit well because it was so old and worn and he was no longer in his prime. I felt Obi's saber was a representation of the Jedi: Once a great weapon during the height of the order, now a rusted worn relic of the old republic.
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This makes total sense-- I just didn't like getting a clean, slick and new Star Wars universe in the PT. If the Jedi and Republic were as old as we were led to believe, I don't see why 20-30 years previous to where we started would be any less lived-in.

Plus, I always felt like lightsaber construction was a carefully guarded secret-- so much so that there was no such thing as pre-made parts, or a machine shop in the Jedi temple where you could get the parts you needed. Everything was scavenged and handmade. None were alike, none were perfect, and even freshly made they were far from pristine. I know I'm seeing the difference between the hero and stunt saber on ROTJ with Luke-- but you could canonically say that Luke's NEW saber built right before the movie started is already worn in beaten... because he used found parts to do it.

Again though-- to each their own. I will say that I think the work of TCSS and fans doing machined sabers took the aesthetic of the PT, but did much more interesting things with it.
 

It definitely was an amped up game for sure!

If you've ever seen the Clone Wars TV show, there's an episode here they take younglings to find their first crystals and get to build their lightsabers. Personally it's one of my favorite episodes and I recommend it to all who haven't seen it before. I think you guys would enjoy it.
 
I'd say the OT sabers looked beaten and worn *because* the Order was gone, these are relics. Even Luke's ROTJ should look like junk because that's what he had to work with, he couldn't stroll down to the Temple to fashion up what he wanted. Also it's a galaxy of oppression, almost no one was doing particularly well from what we've seen. Nobody had quality stuff to work with to build one.

As for the PT sabers, it was still the time of the old Republic, life was good and decadent, and the sabers reflected that. Why should they have looked more worn and worked in? They were rarely used before the Clone War, none were hand-me-downs, they had endless opportunity to refurbish a hilt after it got roughed over in a hard battle. These are space samurai, we're talking about. Weapon care and maintenance would be part of the training of discipline. Samurai didn't walk around with junkie pieces of worn-out garbage, they maintained their weapons and gear meticulously. And those WERE frequently heirloom pieces.

Let's face it, OT and beyond are the Mad Max times for a galaxy far, far away.

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SethS said:
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.
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I actually like that.
Still has an overall OT industrial look.
 
One thing that bothered me about the PT sabers was the notion that Jedi werent vein, and werent supposed to attach themselves to their possesions, which makes some of the overly ornate sabers a bit puzzling.
Some were chromed or highly polished with gold and with organic lines, embossing etc.

They just didnt look like something thst was made by an individual but rather somethig that was mass produced by Cartier or Rolex with a primary concern on style.
 
Well since It's finally finished I figure it's time post my Saber here

All in all I loved this mini-build, it was challenging at time but I throughly enjoyed coming up with new solutions that I hadn't seen elsewhere, like what I did for solving the rivet holes. The best part is I can now say I made my own Lightsaber it looks awesome on display with the rest in my collection!
Insert obligatory "I see you have constructed yourself a new Lightsaber, your skills are complete" quote here, don't think I'd miss that opportunity did you!
wink.gif


I did document the build for this but not in is own dedicated build thread. This saber is part of my Darth Vader ROTJ Build thread so if you want see the build photos for the saber and all etc the bits and pieces for Vader, here's the link here: http://www.therpf.com/showthread.php?t=244639


12A_zpsttel6bjo.jpg



12B_zpsxgrcaots.jpg



12C_zpsmlfwdhec.jpg



12D_zps7zdvsbbf.jpg



12E_zpskbxbnana.jpg



12F_zpsyj2kuzei.jpg



12G_zps15kooyks.jpg


12I_zpsbtppwlpp.jpg
 
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Project D said:
I'd say the OT sabers looked beaten and written *because* the Order was gone, these are relics. Even Luke's ROTJ should look like junk because that's what he had to work with, he couldn't stroll down to the Temple to fashion up what he wanted. Also it's a galaxy of oppression, almost no one was doing particularly well from what we've seen. Nobody had quality did to work with to build one.

As for the PT sabers, it was still the time of the old Republic, life was good and decadent, and the sabers reflected that. Why should they have looked more worn and worked in? They were rarely used before the Clone War, none were hand-me-downs, they had endless opportunity to refurbish a hilt after it got roughed over in a hard battle. These are space samurai, we're talking about. Weapon care and maintenance would be part of the training of discipline. Samurai didn't walk around with junkie pieces of worn-out garbage, they maintained their weapons and gear meticulously. And those WERE frequently heirloom pieces.

Let's face it, OT and beyond are the Mad Max times for a galaxy far, far away.

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This is 100% on point and I can't argue it a bit...

My problem is that I just didn't like that decision Uncle George made.

But that said, there is logic behind different saber aesthetics, which even if I don't like them all, shows how deeply rich lightsaber lore can be. :)
 
Project D said:
While I spoke 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 want overly thrilled with Qui-Gon's, but I really liked most of the rest.
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Unbelievable! I thought I was the only one turned off by Master Qui-Gon's weapon, as well as OT Obi-Wan's and Luke's. The Graflex design was fine, the emitter part is what I most gravitated towards to, the rest was just ok, but Vader's saber was more "IT"...amazing, it really looked like the hilt of a sword. I hate to disagree but the EU sabers as others have mentioned just seem "overboard":

DARTH SABER said:
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.
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Those EU sabers seem more about form, and form that somehow wants to say "I'm evil", lightsabers are TOOLS IMHO, and as tools, they should convey some functionality, some internal logic, if you allow me a bit of rant: we have by now been brainwashed by the "cross-sections" saber where it says how a saber "should work" and supposedly what is inside, and by that they completely destroyed any attempts of visual explanation by fans. What if we don't want to adhere to that cross-section? the saber is instantly apocriphal! Anyway, rant over; as I was saying, the OT sabers looked like they had a reason for things, the PT sabers had a lot of flair and a machined look that seemed unrealistic to what we have been told about a lightsaber: it is constructed by the Padawan, on his own...they should look more relic-like, and build-in-a-garage kind of feel but still in line with being a tool. And please.....no organic look....it...it's just not right (for me)
 
I never bought greeblies and knobs being for adjusting length or intensity or anything like that-- I always just felt like lightsabers were unstable and wild, and those controls were there to keep it in check.

But if we wanted to be realistic-- I always thought Jedi would put the controls on the inside and user the force to flip them on, making it useless to anyone else.
 
SethS said:
But if we wanted to be realistic-- I always thought Jedi would put the controls on the inside and user the force to flip them on, making it useless to anyone else.
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That's a good argument for me, not to put so much switches and stuff to the outside of my first saber! :D

Maybe something like that: (3 minute build made of stuff that's lying around!) :)
IMG_20160216_184830.jpg
 
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veektohr said:
Made this emitter from a Kalart and a Canon today.

View attachment 592558 View attachment 592559
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Daaaamn! Best use of a Kalart bulb mount ever! (Always thought those pieces looked promising.) The whole thing looks incredible. Can't wait to see it finished. :thumbsup

This thread really makes me wanna build flash-based custom sabers but I just don't have the time or spare cash to put into it right now. :unsure
 

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