Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Art
Craft
Food
Games
Green
Home
Kids
Life
Music
Offbeat
Outdoors
Pets
Photo
Ride
Science
Tech
Build a Lightsaber
by vv_767 on October 1, 2009
Table of Contents
Build a Lightsaber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Author:vv_767 ODST
I like making stuff when I have the time. But It is soooo hard to find TIME...
Image Notes
1. Luxeon III RED
2. MR Darth Vader
3. ElectroLuminescent (EL) Aqua
4. Dual or Maul style ElectroLuminescent (EL) Blue
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. Declaring my allegiance
2. My Less-than-authentic Jedi costume.
3. Yes, this was photoshop'd.
Image Notes
1. These brass accents used to be a sink tube.
2. These brass accents used to be a sink tube.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. The lightsaber built for this instructable features a crystal chamber with a real
quartz crystal. Here is a closer look at the chamber assembly.
Image Notes
1. These two are Electroluminescent (EL) Wire.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
2. This is a stock Master Replica Darth Vader with the LED array in the blade. Not
duel worthy as the array would break creating dark spots on the blade.
3. This was a test of 3 watt read led and a clear mylar film I was testing. LED and
lense was not aligned so the blade was not evenly lit. That changed when installed
into a hilt.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. EL Blue, double-sided lightsaber.
Image Notes
1. My first LED lightsaber.
Image Notes
1. Crystal chamber.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. EL Aqua.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. This can be clear or frosted acrylic or polycarbonate. Glue to one end of the PC
tube AFTER you attach a reflective surface on the flat side.
Image Notes
1. Polycarbonate Tube: Clear. 1" OD. 30-36 inches long.
Image Notes
1. 1.5" chromed brass sink pipe.
Image Notes
1. Film rolled up inside the PC tube. It acts as a diffuser.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. High powered LED mounted on a Star
Image Notes
1. Collimator. Get 5 or 10 degree.
2. Star with one LED emitter
Image Notes
1. The collimator/lense
Image Notes
1. This is crazy long.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. This is a section of sink tube slipped over MHS parts after being shaped with a
Dremel.
2. This is my warning label :p
3. Thumb screw
4. This is the switch
5. This is a section of sink tube cut and slipped over Blade holder style 12.
6. This is Blade holder style 12
7. this is a covertec button or stud. It snaps into a covertec belt clip (normally used
to hold a PDA or cell phone)
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. Blade inside blade holder
2. This brass screw holding this brass decorative plate is actually my blade
retention screw.
Image Notes
1. Style 4 blade older
2. LED is mounted on this heatsink.
3. screws to hold the LED down
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. Style 8
2. This holds your LED star
Image Notes
1. blade holder style 10.
2. It appears to be made of pure copper. It is heavy. I lapped mine to a mirror
finish using wet sandpaper. Lapping is done with the following sandpaper grit 300, 600, 1000, 2000
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. Lightsaber build ENTIRELY from Modular Hilt System parts.
Image Notes
1. chrome sink tube
2. sink tube adapter
3. MHS Extension
4. chrome sink tube overlay/sleeve.
5. Blade holder
6. Pommel
7. MR Lightsaber Construction Kit
8. MR Lightsaber Construction Kit.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. 1.5" chromed brass sink pipe.
Image Notes
1. the sink tube has been cut to a design I had in mind.
Image Notes
1. The blade holder is on this end.
2. The MHS pipe adapter will be on this end
Image Notes
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
1. And the MHS parts are now inside the freshly cut sink tube.
Collect random parts. Keep them in a bin. Go get some thumb screws, LED bezels, leather studs/spikes, machines screws, etc. What ever you can think of to dress up
your hilt body.
Image Notes
1. This is my "Junk" parts bin. Parts came from optical drives, hard drives, old
vcr, dead dvd player, etc.
2. This is my "useful items" parts bin. It has switches, speakers, crystals,
screws, motors, etc.
3. switches
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. Thumb screws look great on the lightsaber body
2. these are metal 5mm LED bezels. They look great on the lightsaber body.
Even more so when the LEDs actually light up.
Image Notes
1. I also keep a handful of crystals.
Try to get as much technical specs on the LED you want to use. A good example to start is here: http://www.philipslumileds.com/products/luxeonk2
Read the Datasheet . Important things to know about the LEDS are:
1. Minimum, normal, maximum Forward voltage.
2. Minimum, normal, and max Amperage
3. Light output in lumens at min, normal and max amperage
4. thermal management requirements
5. Size and mounting methods.
Note that white, blue, and green take a higher forward voltage than red, yellow and amber.
Also note that LEDs respond more to current than to voltage. Feeding your LED with current (milliamps) as close to what the datasheet states will provide the most
optimal performance.
Picture 1 shows my 3 REBELS mounted on one STAR. Besides the challenge of how to power these beast up was having a solution for the optics. Xwingband provided
the solution by mounting the LED emitters as close as possible to each other and providing a collimator with a large enough opening underneath to ALMOST encompass
all 3 Rebels.
Picture 2 and 3 shows how the lense (collimator) would normally fit on top of a star with 1 LED emitter. Not shown is the Optics Holder which keeps the lense centered.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. One Rebel
2. Two Rebel
3. Three Rebel
4. The LED emitters are connected in SERIES.
Image Notes
1. Collimator. Get 5 or 10 degree.
2. Star with one LED emitter
Image Notes
1. The collimator/lense
Image Notes
1. See how the LED emitter dome is INSIDE the collimator (aka, lense)
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. 700mAmp output
2. Each LED puts out 130 lumen @ 700 mA. i have the three connected in
series so each LED is getting over 650 mA. That means I still have over 300
lumen total output.
3. 3.6v Li-ion battery. only three are being used to power the LEDs. the fourth is
used to power the sound and accent LEDs. 3 bateries in series = 10.8v is being
supplied to the BuckPuck
Image Notes
1. This is the microswitch used in the example saber. the amp rating of this tini
switch is very low and it would melt if the power went through this from battery
to LED. instead it is used as a "logic gate".
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. Push on/Push off. This switch is well suited for high amp usage.
Image Notes
1. The LED under the Optics.
Image Notes
1. I keep an assortment of switches in my parts bin.
Image Notes
1. These are Normally Open (NO) switches. The circuit is ON when you push
the button, BUT turns OFF the instant you let go. This is no good for a basic
lightsaber but is used on the high end sound boards.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
How did I get purple? Well, I put 4.8 volts through the soundboard and split the positive wire going into the LEDs - one wire to the Blue LED and the other wire into a
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
resistor then to the Red LED (remember, Red needs less voltage than Blue, hense the resistor). Both LEDs use a common Negative wire. Green was not used.
Blue+Red = Purple.
See Picture 2 on how to wire a Hasbro toy circuit board.
Image Notes
1. Hasbro Board. This board requires a Momentary (N.O.) switch.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. Crystal Focus version ##.##
2. I did not want to give away Erv's secrets so the boards parts are pixelated.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. Here are all the parts. Already to assemble.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
Image Notes
1. Other than removing the background this picture was not photoshop'd. My
lightsaber really was that bright.
Related Instructables
CR-Tutorials
Special-Star
Wars 1/3-Two
Lightsaber
Props (video) by
ChemicalReaction
CR-Tutorials
Special-Star
Wars 3/3-Other
Effects (video)
by
ChemicalReaction
how to make a
somewhat solid
lightsaber blade
by cah el
Comments
50 comments Add Comment
whisper199 says:
mastermind14150 says:
kage_no_akiri says:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
pman123 says:
dcatalystmx says:
vv_767 says:
Sergnation says:
So are these clash able, like some ones you can buy in store. just these are so bright.
vv_767 says:
StArwArsN3rd says:
vv_767 says:
StArwArsN3rd says:
Thank you but i think the 3 dollar resistor at Radioshack shall work, I'm cheap, just not that cheap.
vv_767 says:
StArwArsN3rd says:
vv_767 says:
mikethemaster123 says:
vv_767 says:
10 degree with an extra large opening at the bottom. Not sure where it came from. I got it as a kit with the star.
mikethemaster123 says:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
vv_767 says:
mikethemaster123 says:
any links?
vv_767 says:
vv_767 says:
Sasq23 says:
So I should go with a Lambertian then? or does it matter once you get the focusing lens on it?
vv_767 says:
Sasq23 says:
Sasq23 says:
And it looks like Xwingband AKA incomsabers.com is out of business as well. Does anybody make this cool stuff anymore?!!
Sasq23 says:
Sasq23 says:
Can you/will you post instruction on how to build the crystal chamber? Or do you sell them?
Applerust says:
vv_767 says:
The website was hacked. The owner of the store is working with his ISP to get the site restored.
vv_767 says:
vv_767 says:
Joeduke545 says:
I really really want one but it is too complex for me, You did an insanely good job with it
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
amando96 says:
"The author of this instructable is not responsible for property damage, personal injury, amputation of limbs"
So it works like the one in starwars?
vv_767 says:
Verga says:
This is a must build, great pictures, and isntructions, going right intothe favorites
techturtle2 says:
NO ONE KNOWS HOW TO SPELL LIGHTSABRE!!! L-I-G-H-T-S-A-B-R-E that is how to spell it. -the grammar nazi
rciafardone says:
Snapshot says:
rcisneros says:
LOL.
You are absolutely correct. It's a name. If you want to spell your name with a Q and U and V, it's up to you.
vv_767 says:
bricabracwizard says:
It is a made up word but using conventional artifacts - Sabre (a sword) and made of light.
Snapshot says:
It's using the American English spelling, "Saber," not the traditional British English "Sabre."
dudeguy1234 says:
brandon9271 says:
and If you Google "lightsabre" it says "Did you mean: LIGHTSABER?" I think that pretty much settles it ;)
bricabracwizard says:
Aeshir says:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/
vv_767 says:
vv_767 says:
The specialty parts would be a harder to find. Things like the LED, polycarbonate tube, circuit board, film, and lense.
Just to give you an ideas of where the electronics come from - Crystal Focus is in UK, Ultraboard is in US, Makoto is in Japan.
These guys are hobbiest who took their electronic skills to build lightsaber specific electronics to sell to us.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-a-Lightsaber/