pvc pipe vs wooden dowel

what are peoples personal preference in terms of the lightsaber prop

 

i like pvc for the hilt, and dowel for the blade, simply because dowels dont shatter and wont cause major injury, plus they hurt ALOT less, than PVC.

 

We use PVC for choreography, just because it's safe (never, ever had one shatter, I've only broken tips off). As of tomorrow, I'll let you know what I think of aluminum tubing as my new blades will be arriving Wood's too heavy for my taste.

 

the blades i use are maybe a few ounces... and pvc is alot heaver than the dowels i use...


still wish i had carbon fiber rods though...

 

Mmmmm....carbon fiber...

 

how much are carbon fiber rods?

 

32$ at randomsabers.com

 

thats not too bad, would just aluminum rods from a hardware store work?

 

Definitely PVC for the blades. I don't know what kind of dowels you are using but in my experience they tend to be heavier than PVC pipes. And also I would like to say getting smacked in the fingers (or head) hurts a lot less with PVC than it would with a wooden dowel. And I have never had a PVC pipe break on me while fighting.

 

i'm using the standard 5/8" wooden dowel, it weighs only a few ounces, and hurts, for me at least, a hell of a lot less than 1/2" pvc piping. also, as i've said i've used both, pvc, to me, is WAY heavier than the dowels i use.

i dunno, i just think hollow plastic pipe hurts more than very light and solid wood

as for aluminum, theyre fairly light but tend to bend, ALOT

 

Well that depends on your wall thickness. During my intense research last week (yes, I actually DID search the board for all the info I needed and thus, didn't have to ask ), I found that Spiff mentioned your wall thickness should be around 2 mm...and I think he said less than (I honestly can't remember now). A thick wall may prevent against bending over all, but when you DO bend it, you've got more weight to whip the blade around--bending it more. A thinner wall means less weight to give the end of it momentum.

I probably sound like I'm talking out of my *** here, but search the forum, Spiff said it somewhere out there.

 

i went from pvc sabers with pvc blades to wooden sabers with dowels for blades. dowels are a million times better, and don't break as easily as pvc blades do. the one thing is dowels hurt more when you're "accidentally" whacked.

 

Have any of ya'll PVC haters tried PVC with metal hilts? Balances it out nicely.

 

i dont hate PVC, i just dont like them for blades, simply because i find them too heavy to perform quickly. and no, i havnt tried it with metal hilts, as i've never used a metal hilt

EDIT: also when i make a prop, my first concern is weight, not balance

 

I use PVC for most of my choreography, but every single pipe that I've gotten shattered... maybe dowels would be a good idea... but besides PVC I use bamboo which cracks !!!!!!

 

Put fiber glass around your bamboo sticks to make them stronger. Just be sure the fiber glass is not too thin a layer, or it will snap at exactly that place. But it'll take a couple whacks to actually snap. At first, it will just bend at that place, and sound like a bone going out of place. It's weird as crap.

 

where would you get fiberglass to put on yuor bamboo...

 

I've been told tape is a fairly good option as well - but the fiberglass intrigues me...

Btw, Wootaun-Hyamenus, Welcome to TFN!

 

i currently use duct tape on my dowels, it makes it hurt a bit less when you "accidentially" get hit, also if the blade breaks, ya know... you dont notice right away, so you might get that shot done before you need to get mad

 

PVC has a tendancy to bend on hard impacts, at least in my experience.

 

Polycarb tube is really nice as well, i have it, and i hit stuff really, really, hard, they barely take scratches.

 

Being cheap like myself, I just use broom handles. I'm always very careful to 'pull' each strike so I don't break anything.
The one time I have broken a wooden one, was right after we'd stuck a sparkler to it for some practical spark effects (ala Highlander). That was good - I broke it clean through the middle.

 

I use PVC mainly because I happen to have a couple flashlights which it perfectly fits and sticks into. I posted a link to a video demonstrating this in one of my first posts, I did have some difficulty keeping everything within frame though. By the way, the PVC will not fit into any other flashlight I've tried, I don't know if they still make that kind anymore.

 

i've said it before, the best thing you can get is bamboo garden stakes, wrapped in tape. their stronger and lighter than dowels, very thin, and so cheap you can break them all you want

 

I bought some golf clubs at a Salvation Army for 2 bucks each and buzzed off the heads. Pretty light. I have been interested in getting polycarbonate tubing, though. How heavy is that stuff, Mik? could you possibly weigh a 35 - 40" piece? I have a plastics company closeby who won't give me any straight answers, and when I went there to handle some personally, they were out of stock. Then they say that they won't order any more unless I commit to buy. Buncha crap.

Back to the point, scrounge around a pawn shop or the like and find a cheap golf club. moves fast and takes hits well.

But I'm open to any better suggestions.