New Angle - The Lightsaber

When one reads reviews here on SBG, there is one main factor that you can probably note in about 99.5% of them - the swords are functional. They are sharp, they cut, and they are made of carbon steel in some form or another. I've been gone from SBG for what seems like forever...I've been trying to keep up with goings on, but for the most part I've been absent. What I've been doing is researching on another forum, and at a certain few online stores to finally fulfill a geeky dream of mine - owning a custom lightsaber. They are not "functional" by sword standards, but are they not a form of the sword in one way or another?

With that said, I realize this little article may not get much attention...and if it does it may not get positive reactions. But let us face a fact - Lightsabers are pieces of fantasy, and to an end, are a form of the sword.

Through my research - and eventually experience with the product of my goal - I'd like to present food for thought in the form of lightsaber building. First, let me explain how lightsabers work in reality.

Most Lightsabers these days are made using a fairly simple setup of a battery pack, a resistor or some sort, a switch, and a very bright LED. The leading seller of LED's is Luxion, who's Lux 1 through 5 series make for great blades in all sorts of colors.

The hilts themselves can be made with PVC pipe, Sink tube, and with the right tools and imagination, the sky is the limit. It takes some learning when it comes to getting everything together and wiring, but it is very easy once you start. But you don't have to make your own either - there are many shops who make custom sabers, and there are also replica sabers one can buy as well that are built after the sabers in the Star Wars movies.

In my journey to finally completing my first saber, I was finally introduced to the shop I will make the focus on this post - The Custom Saber Shop (TCSS).

www.thecustomsabershop.com/default.aspx

While there are countless tutorials out there for sinktube and pvc pipe lightsabers, TCSS offers something completely new - machined parts. The shop was founded by Tim Yaskus in 2005, and has evolved into a high quality, reliable one-stop-shop for saber enthusiasts.

To begin with, Tim came up with an ingenious system called the Modular Hilt System - MHS. This system is made of pieces, machined by Tim and his crew, that screw together in order to let anyone make his or her very own hilt. They do not need to have electronics if you just want a hilt, but making it light up in an easy process.

The Shop offers many different things, from conversions for pre-made sabers to bits and pieces to decorate a saber (like golden switches, black screws, etc). But the main focus for me is the MHS System. This system is devided into:

- Main Bodies (the main part being held)
- Extensions (used to add length, or can be used to make your own main body)
- Chokes (adds comfort and aesthetics)
- Pommels
- Blade Holders

The blade holders, being one of the most important parts - comes in around 20 different looks alone. You've got 4 main bodies, as several styles of extensions in all kinds of lengths, several adapters, 4 different chokes, 10 different pommels....and counting. They are always adding new things and you need to watch them.

Obviously there are countless ways to make a saber. And to try and make sure you know exactly what you want to get, Tim added an MHS builder, an online digitial builder that allows you to take digital versions of MHS parts and put them together to your liking.

www.thecustomsabershop.com/mhsbuilder/

So, in the end, you put your chosen hilt together, and if you choose to do so, wire it up for LED...and even sound effects...and what do you get?



You get a hilt like so. This one here is my first custom saber, a female design sticking to a little storyline in my head, and named Licintia (Latin for "Liberty")

And lit up:



The saber is a simple set up - a pommel, a choke, a black grip section and regular smooth section for the main body (both from the Extension section), and a blade holder. It is powered by 4 AA batteries, a latching "guarded" switch, and blue Soeul P4 LED. The blade is simply 1" diameter clear polycarbonate with a saran wrap-like "blade film" inside it to diffuse the light.


Now, there are more shops out there other than TCSS. There's www.ultrasabers.com where one can get all sorts of PVC and Replica sabers. There are also many individual "Saber Smiths" out there as well.



Lightsasbers can be seen as toys, as collectibles, or as a hobby. They are fun to make if it is the sort of thing that appeals to you. A saber, like mine, costs in total around $180. But a cheap (but still fun) PVC saber can be made for around $30.

Lightsabers are a fun, easy, and relatively affordable hobby that can give the builder a great feeling of accomplishment and pride - you not only get this cool new "sword" to show off, but you also know that you made this yourself.

So, I guess the whole point to this is....would this be something that could/should be posted on SBG? Obviously, reviews for them would be limited....since custom sabers would be more-ore-less shown off rather than reviewed. Pre-made sabers could be reviewed, yes, but how would we give them criteria?

Handling? Um...well mine has awesome balance....when I added a blade and my battery pack. In the end it wouldn't do so hot in reviews, I don't think. But would lightsabers be something we could post about in the Fantasy Forums? Essentially, I guess what I am asking is...would something like the Lightsaber be a venue that SBG members would be willing to let into their discussion ranks?

Thanks for your time all, and it's good to be back!