Goodman's Luke ROTJ Build for our very own Kit Fisto

[Goodman]

Our very own Kit Fisto is a good friend of mine. He is the founder of LAJedi and StarWarsSpace, and has been a member of FX-Sabers for longer than most of our mods :D. He is not only a knowledgeable guy, but has a real passion for sharing our hobby with others, which to me is the most valuable contribution any enthusiast can do.

Recently he asked me to convert an MR FX Luke ROTJ for him to Lux stunt saber (no sound). Everyone knows how ugly the fat MR FX neck is on the Luke ROTJ, so a while back he had commissioned a slimmer, more accurate neck be machined by someone who shall not be named. The problem is, the neck wasn't threaded to reattach to the rest of the saber, and now it was too narrow to accept (without modification) a light source, so the saber just sat. Sad. I took on the project, and Kit doesn’t know that I’m going to surprise him with it at tonight’s LAJedi class (shh…don’t tell him )

Here is a quick build up:

To me, the most important thing in building a saber is the planning phase. So, I laid out what I had to work with. With a little creativity I was able to integrate the new neck without having to remove the soundboard. Initially, Kit Fisto said to remove the board if it was a hassle, but I really wanted to keep it in there for him as a surprise:



As you can see, I needed to cut down the stock sled to accept the neck insert. Also, I needed to bore out in ID of the neck so the protruding soundboard would fit into it firmly with the insulation (not shown) for proper gesture recognition, and chop down the heatsink. I also needed to drill and tap the neck insert so it would be secure. The set screw there provides back pressure against the stock battery pack’s springs. The set screw at the front of the neck holds a steel collet, which is positioned to hold the lens, and lens holder tightly together, much like the MHS blade holders are designed to do.



After all that, I checked the fit and alignment again:



Notice how the impact sensors are suspended upwards, so they are firmly in place but don’t touch the board or the neck insert/wall.



Then assembled it together:



Then voila, it’s finished! I used a Seoul P4 Green which, after seeing one Darth Tyranus sent me, is my new favorite green. Great brightness, close to a Lux V, but with MRboard compatible power requirements.







And here it is next to the other sabers on my current workbench:

[QUI-GON JINN]

That looks 10000% better!!!!  And i have to say,  the style of the topic looks oddly familiar..... ;)

[Goodman]

Heh, thanks.

I figure the topic format makes sense, no matter where it's posted... Good Logic is always transferable. ;)

[Master Jedye]

Great Job, Goodman!
And what an awesome gesture!

[darth_call]

Goodman,

that is really cool, great job! Lotsa good ideas in there for the rest of us too.

[darthmorbius]

BRAVO!

Nice way to take an Equinox fumble and score a touchdown! 8)

[LUMINARA UNDULI]

Wow!  Very nice.  I hope Kit enjoys his surprise :) .

[gundamaniac]

Wow. Nicely done, salvaging that neck and fitting everything in without sacking the sound! It definitely looks MUCH nicer now. Kudos. Hope Kit enjoys it!

[Sidneyious]

BRAVO!

Nice way to take an Equinox fumble and score a touchdown! 8)

Jesus god, Iam supprised you got that fumble into a touchdown.

[The Abbot]

Goodman that is bad ***
OMG OMG!!

I have waited over 2 years to get this saber done.
Between waiting 2 plus years to get from Equinox,then having it for months and not being able to find anyone that could convert ( Ultra said he couldn`t do it )

You do awesome work!!

I was blown away when I seen the saber in person right now.

It so looks like a Lux 5 and having the MR sound OMG,and it feels so much like a LE now too..

Thanks again for this and thanks as well for all the hard work you have put into LAjedi since you joined.

[Vektor]

Looks great, very nice job! Few weeks ago I was wondering why no one has thought of this kind of upgrade for MR Luke before (well, at least I haven't seen ones before this). Very good, definitely improves the stock MR version!

[gundamaniac]

It's a very nice Luke. And that P4 is soooo beautiful. I love the shade of green P4s. I need to replace my green K2 with a P4...

I'm green with envy *rimshot*

[Goodman]

Thanks Kit, I'm really glad you liked it. I hope it was worth the extra trip down to class tonight to preview it in person.

As for the build, it looks like this one isn't quite done yet after all...:)

Not content with leaving the saber as it as, I discussed a few ideas I had with Kit about customizing it even more to really make it stand out from others:

1) One of the original ROTJ props was configured so that the circuit board could slide forward, revealing wires inside. I'm going to replicate that sliding circuit board, revealing a sort of "crystal chamber", or at least showing the red and green arrow LEDs.  There's a deleted scene screen shot of that particular saber, but I can't find it now, so I'll just go from memory. 'Should be a neat gimmick when it's all done.

2) To complete the neck, I may anodize the lower neck in black, then use copper metal tape from the forward portion just below the emitter. It's up to kit though if he wants to replicate this Hero version...or if he wants it weathered like the V2.

[illz302]

This is an absolutely beautiful saber. I've been looking for a Luke ROTJ for a while now but the funds never seem to work out right when one is avail. however, this saber sets my envy into overdrive. Very Very Nice :o

[darthmorbius]

Thanks Kit, I'm really glad you liked it. I hope it was worth the extra trip down to class tonight to preview it in person.

As for the build, it looks like this one isn't quite done yet after all...:)

Not content with leaving the saber as it as, I discussed a few ideas I had with Kit about customizing it even more to really make it stand out from others:

1) One of the original ROTJ props was configured so that the circuit board could slide forward, revealing wires inside. I'm going to replicate that sliding circuit board, revealing a sort of "crystal chamber", or at least showing the red and green arrow LEDs.  There's a deleted scene screen shot of that particular saber, but I can't find it now, so I'll just go from memory. 'Should be a neat gimmick when it's all done.

2) To complete the neck, I may anodize the lower neck in black, then use copper metal tape from the forward portion just below the emitter. It's up to kit though if he wants to replicate this Hero version...or if he wants it weathered like the V2.

1. That scene was not filmed, and no shots exist.  There is a storyboard available somewhere.  I think there may have been ONE production still shot of the saber.  There used to be a video from Elstree Props that had the saber in which you are referring.  I believe parts of SW has a picture.

2. Everyone knows my opinion on that... WEATHER IT! V2 Baby!