I apologize for the delay in posting an update. I wanted to wait until I had a decent update to post about. Unfortunately, I think there is a higher power destined to make this run the most difficult and time consuming run I have ever done. I don't know how I managed it, but I had to scrap and redo 280 parts. I over-cut one part and undercut the other - I have no idea how this happened as I worked from the 3D models - but the parts were sloppy loose and I was not happy with them. And since they fit into another part that is already completed, there was no adjusting to make it work. I had to toss them and start over to ensure accuracy of the parts without making sacrifices to save myself some work. Anyways, I have finished up this 'batch' and am now ready to move on to the next batch of parts.
The hero blade plug and blade tube plug are completed. While they may seem deceptively simple, there are multiple part operation on both the lathe and mill - and the need to do 70 + 70 + 70 + 70 parts over means a lot of valuable time was lost - and I can only blame myself for that. The brass nipple in the hero plug was done correct so I only had to do it once.
Next weekend, I will start on the parts for the copper 'red' button and copper 'glass eye' detail pieces.
Also, it is not set in stone 100%, but I may be having the grips molded in rubber instead of machining them and anodizing them. This would save me a lot of machine work, and would be more accurate (as I am pretty sure the original hero saber had rubber grips).
