Eighth Saber WIP

[Thexter]

This is the build thread for my eighth saber.

This is a request to build a "Luke Skywalker" saber for a kid. It's meant to look like a graflex but with smaller dimensions and some requested modifications. The activation box will be bubble-strip like. One deviation from the norm was to have the box on top of the saber (aligned with the bunny ears), but I'm also going to add the option for it to mount on the right side for more a accurate configuration.

No sketch for this, one, but here is is modelled out for fit.


I liked the Teensy 3.5 + MPU-6050 + MAX98357 setup from my Seventh Saber COMPLETE so much, I'm using the same in this one.

Thanks for looking.

[Thexter]

Main body.



The main body is turned from 1.375" OD / 1.0" ID tubing. The middle bit is where the "clamp" part is going to sit. The threads just to the left of the central bit are where the front sleeve will attach. The threaded section to the right is for the grip.

Thanks for looking.

[Thexter]

Shroud.

The front shroud is 1.375" OD tubing, turned down a bit and then shaped with a dremel. It's threaded on the bottom.



I then screwed it to the main body, to determine where to make cuts for the emitter area. I attached a template and cut it with a dremel.

Thanks for looking.

[Sethski]

Good to see another one on the way - hope it goes well!

What were the advantageous things you liked about the 3.5 + MPU-6050 + MAX98357 setup?

[Thexter]

Good to see another one on the way - hope it goes well!

What were the advantageous things you liked about the 3.5 + MPU-6050 + MAX98357 setup?

There are 4 aspects of this setup that I really like.
1. The amp is very loud. With a 5v boost, it can pump about 3W into my 4 ohm speaker.
2. Sound quality is very clear. It avoids a lot of the self-noise from Teensy's dac. Whereas, with the dac/prop-shield, I could hear some hiss any time the saber was on, with this, I only hear sound when there is sound to be heard.
3. Cost. Amp is $6 from adafruit, and a generic MPU-6050 board is about $3. While the Teensy 3.5 is higher than a 3.2 at $25, the overall cost is lower.
4. The built-in SD card on the Teensy 3.5. It's just convenient.

I still wish there was a nice single board teensy solution; something similar to the DIYino in size.

[Thexter]

Activation box.

Cut this from a piece of aluminum bar stock and milled out the interior.


Then I drilled 7 holes and cut the leads off of 7 cheap LEDs, and voila. Bubble-type activation box.



Here's the bit of delrin that goes below the box. This will attach to the hilt with screws. The box slides over the top and presses down snugly against delrin. It is held in place with a set screw. The switch is activated by the led bubble second from the front.


Thanks for looking.

[jeremy.g]

Very cool.  And now I want a milling machine...

[Thexter]

Very cool.  And now I want a milling machine...

Tool envy is a terrible thing. I has emptied many a wallet.

[Thexter]

Clamp work.

Drilled multiple sets of holes in the main body.


The clamp sleeve and clamp block can rotate into one of three different positions depending on the look needed. The first position is directly on top of the saber, in-line with the bunny ears. The second two positions are on the right of the saber. One at 90 degrees and one a few degrees off of that.

Thanks for looking.

[Thexter]

Grips and Bunny Ears.

Cut some rubber gasket and applied them to the grip. The grip is 1.375" OD. The addition of the gasket brings it to right about 1.5".


Clamped some aluminum bar stock to the rotary table and cut a small radius for the end of the bunny ears. Cut a slot down the middle and a screw hold for attaching to the hilt.



Here's how things look put together. The screw behind the bunny years is a place holder for the top faux-button.


Thanks for looking.

[Thexter]

Top and button buttons.

The top button it turned out of delrin rod and threaded to engage with the 6-32 hole in the hilt. Knurled a small spacer and now there's a button on top (my knurling was a bit off). It's purely for show.




For the bottom, I'm forgoing the typical glass eye, and instead going with a smaller aux button.


Thanks for looking.

[Thexter]

Cleaned up pieces.

Here are all of the pieces of the hilt.


Thanks for looking.

[Thexter]

Heat sink.

Here's a simple screw-together heatsink I came up with. The channel cut out of the side is for the aux button.



A plunger will thread through the bottom of the chassis and connect with the tactile switch on the heat sink.


Thanks for looking.

[Thexter]

Pommel and D-ring

[Morannon]

Look good so far! Keep these pictures coming