Blade Replacement questions.

This has probably been asked before, sorry if it has been.

I have obtained the Master Replica Blue Bladed Ep3 Lightsaber (I traded stuff for it, it didnt have the box or anything nor was I familiar with the handle) and I want to remove the blade for something longer and in red (If anyone remembers some person mentioning their idea for a Sephiroth's Masamune sized Lightsaber about a year ago, thats me).

From what I understand so far, that I cannot changed the thickness of the blade due to the fact I want to keep the handle the same. Also, that if the blade gets too long it will become wobbly and limp.

What I would like to know is:
1) How to properly remove/attach the blade?
2) How long can I have the polycarbonate tube before it starts to limp and become wobbly?
3) What type of blade does the Master Replica use on the inside?
4) Would I have to do a conversion of some kind to the inside blade/handle to light up the whole length (like EL or LED)? Or due to the color?
5) Anything else I would need to know about this that I didn't cover.

Thanks in advance!

 

Ultrasabers is probably your best bet for that answer as they do MR FX conversions. If the info is not on their site, send them an email. They also offer do it yourself kits.

Mind you this is for replacing what lights the blade as well as the blade itself. If you still want the LED string that is in the stock blade then I'm not sure they can help you.

Most likely the blade on your saber is 1 inch in outside diameter. As such you can probably replace it using 1" OD clear polycarbonate tubing. I recommend using thick walled (1/8th"). One source is here. I hope that helps.

 

Maybe I worded myself wrong here....

Well, the first part about the Ultra Sabers deal does help a bit. And I do want to change the color to red. But, I dont want it to be the normal 40". The Ultra Sabers conversion kits are good for most of the eletrical standpoint, however, the wire they have is only good for nromal 40" blades.

What im still need to know is that how long (in length) I can get a poplycarbonate tube before it starts becoming limp and wobbly. The ideal length for the blade would be 5' plus the extra lenght to attach the blade (I would go for the original 7' like Sephiroth's Masamune, but most of the big Anime Cons on the East Coast put a 6' long prop limit.) And even If I cant achiueve my desired length, aslong it is significantly longer than normal 40" blades.

 

Ultrasaber uses one Luxeon LED in the hilt (I think). This means that wire is not an issue as there is nothing inside the blade itself but the blade film/diffuser that allows for more even lighting.

That said, the blade will probably be too whippy over 3 feet in length (that's 3 feet exposed, not what's inside the hilt). At least it would be for me. It all depends on what's acceptable to you.

To buy polycarbonate tubing in lengths longer than 4 feet, you could try here or here.

To diffuse the blade you could buy two of TCSS's blade diffusers and cut one (or both) to fit.

 

I have a place called Tap Plastics that is close to me. Depending on where you are, I'd recommend giving this place a glance, as well.

www.tapplastics.com


With that said, Henchman, would you send me a PM, I have a question for you but I would rather not hi-jack someone else's thread. Thanks!

- Bill

 

Well, I'm not sure why you can't PM me with your question but if your having issues with the PM service, I can send you one so you can reply to it. You should even be able to reply to one of the older PMs I've sent you but I'll send you one anyways to be on the safe side.

 

Thanks! Got the PM, reply has been sent.

- Bill

 

Okay, since this is out of my budget for now atleast. what would i do to get a blade replacement of my desired length for a cheapy 20 buck lightsaber?

 

Sorry for the double post...

If i have two blade films, wouldnt i get a disgusting line showing that im using 2 films, or is it possible just to get blade in film in that length?

 

know what? just go to:

thecustomsabershop.com ALL your questions WILL be answered there. and Ultras blades are NOT normal 40 inch blades, the Normal blade length is 36 inches exposed. FYI

 

He's right. TCSS has blades and diffuser blades in 40 inch lengths. You should check their site out.... specifically, read through all of the information posted. They do have a forum there as well as a FAQ section. I got all the answers I needed for my stun baton there - ok, and I got help from Evil-Henchman as well. But go read and you will be amazed at what you find!

- Bill

 

Are you about talking replacing the blade on a a toy lightsaber?

A 5ft blade would have to be custom made, and you'd probably have to pay for an entire 8' tube (the length these come in, the longest that can be shipped) because what's left would be waste, unless someone wanted a really short blade.

You'd need custom cut film, as well.

A blade like this is going to end up costing you probably twice as much the cheapy lightsaber.

Not to mention the fact that it's going to be a very unbalanced saber, rather blade heavy.

 

i was first talking about re[lacing the blade on Luke Ep4 MR Ligthsaber. Now Im, asking about cheaply modding a 20 buck toy just to hold over until i can afford to mod a MR.

 

if TCSS has the kit for it, the kits are not that pricey at all. like a vader for instance, you can convert it with blade and all, for round 60 to 80 bucks, maybe less. i xcant remember for sure the price of the holders. unfortunately, TCSS is limited on the MR kits these days, as hes pushing more to the MHS type sabers to which i own 2 of myself.

now those can get high dollar, in fact i just dropped almost 300 at TCSS for MHS parts to do a sith style red/O dbl saber.

and another 80 bucks at another site for 4 700 mah pucks to drive the red/O's.

i think the only kits he has right now are the maul MR kits.

 

the point isnt a simple blade conversion, if it was that, I would have stopped asking questions awhile ago. The point is to change the blade color to red and the length to 5 feet (+plus the length to fit into hilt).

 

if you listened to what was posted, the color change part of your question IS answered,

when you do a luxeon conversion, you can put any of the colors of a lux 3 TCSS has in there.

as far as a 5 foot blade, lots of luck on that one.

 

I know that that the color portion of the question as been answered.

So I take it that the Luxeons use the blade film as well?

 

theres no lights or electronics in the blades whatsoever after the convert.

you replace the whole blade with a new one, that either has a film or a tube diffuser in it.

the led in mounted in the hilt itself, thus, making the blade removeable for belt hangin, and pop in blade tighten up set screww, and wale away on some poor jedi.

 

So Luxeon utilizes just one LED light and a polycarbonate tube with blade film in it?

Whats the difference between a diffuser and blade film?

 

There are blades, which are completely clear. Then there are blade diffusers, which are blades that have a film coating on the inside. Case in point, the 40 inch blade diffuser is designed to fit inside of the 40 inch thick walled polyc blade tube.

Of course you can buy the blade film by itself and mock up a blade yourself. Sounds like you are to have an extended blade, 5 ft, right? Then perhaps it would be wise to get all of the parts like blade film, blade tips and any of the other lighting accessories that you will likely need and go to a plastic shop to get a clear tube (a place like Tap Plastics like I suggested in a previous post). Get your 5ft length and then just use the blade film that you have obtained from TCSS and get to the task of filming the blade's interior wall.

I think that is just about the best advice that can be given.

-Bill

 

The problem is that blade film is also about 40" long so regardless of what material is used, there will be a line where one piece meets or overlaps the other in a 5' blade. However it is possible that Tim at TCSS can get custom lengths of either material so shooting him an email might be a good idea.

Blade film comes in small rolls. You have to unroll it, rotate it 90 degrees and then roll it up again. The blade film that TCSS uses provides a "coring" look that looks really cool. By coring I meant that there appears to be a very small (in diameter) vertical beam of light that is brighter than the surrounding light, going up the center of the blade.

Blade diffusers are a white, thin walled (just under 1/32nd of an inch) tube. They provide a brighter blade and have more even lighting throughout (even went the blade flexes) than blade film does. However blade diffusers do not provide the "coring" look. If you were to use 2 blade diffusers, you would probably want to butt them up against each other as opposed to overlapping.

Having installed and used both, I am totally sold on the diffusers and much prefer them to the film. However that's just my personal preference. A lot of people have to have the "coring" look.

I hope that helps.

 

I have bought polycarbonate tubing in 8' lengths at a local plastic supplier, but if you want anything over 4' shipped to you, it's going to cost about triple the price, because it's over-sized. I know this because I had something over that length shipped to me, just out of curiosity.

If you really have your heart set on a 5' blade, then your best bet is definitely to find a plastic supplier that you can drive to and pick it up yourself.

 

I can't rave enough about TCSS. I placed an order for parts to complete the stun baton (yeah, I know. I am long overdue on that project). They had caught an error on my part. I has inadvertently placed a double order. Tim called me yesterday to confirm that I meant to place both orders. When I had mentioned that all I wanted was the one order ( the computer was giving me fits) he promptly cancelled that second order.

That is the mark of excellent business practices. I will be sure to do more business with him in the future!

- Bill

 

Since I'm not sure what "coring" means when it comes to Lightsaber blades. Can you supply pics of a same color color ligthsaber, just one with a blade disffuser and one with blade film? Even though I'm near certain on using a blade diffuser,due to a lot less work it seems, i want to be entirely sure.

While this is all well and good, I cant find Luke ANH conversion kit online. this is rather important to the overall task, lol. TCSS doesnt hae em nor does some other sites I checked.

 

I'll try to get some pics up for ya tonight or tomorrow but I'm not sure the coring effect will show up in digital photography.

Here ya go...

http://www.ultrasabers.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=MIC%2DLANH

You have to mail it in to them and have them do the work but it's probably worth it. It shouldn't be too hard to replace the blade on your own if you want it longer.

Edit: Here are a couple of pics I took awhile back to hold you over until I can take new ones. The pic with the lit blade is using blade film. As I thought, the coring effect does not show up all that well but you can see it a little bit. It's the brighter white-ish line running up and down the center of the length of the blade. The other pic shows what blade film looks like unrolled.

[image=http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y237/Evil-Henchman/Lightsaber%20hilts%20and%20blades/Lit-05.jpg]
[image=http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y237/Evil-Henchman/Lightsaber%20hilts%20and%20blades/Bladefilm.jpg]