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Grip: Part 1 |
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Main Tube |
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Grip: Part 2 |
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Electronics and Attachments |
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Emitter |
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Pommel |
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Okay, it's time to make this thing. I've tried to organize these instructions a logically as possible, but don't be afraid to go about things differently than I did.  or you might want to draw your own. Take your PVC
 and cut about a 6" length of it
 . Attach the template to the PVC with some tape
 . Using a 1/8" bit drill out the button hole and the belt clip hole, then using a cutting disk in the rotary tool carefully cut the slits out of the grip
 . With the template still attached, use the rotary tool to cut the grip from the PVC
 . Remove the template from the grip and using your rotary tool (with various heads), files, and sandpaper finish out and smooth your grip section
 . Now take your momentary switch and remove the plastic nut
 . This is the button that will need to fit into the button hole so you will definitely need to expand it. I used a spherical sanding head in the rotary tool to expand the hole until the button fit snugly in the hole
 . You are going to eventually paint the grip section black, but between now and then you are going to be using it a lot as a guide and would probably end up scratching off some paint.
 . Using your rotary tool or a tube cutter cut off a 7/8" section off of the flared end
 . Now take the remaining portion of the tailpiece and cut it to the length of 7 1/4"
 . Now you want to drill six holes 7/16" from the edge of the 7 1/4" tube section
 . The best way to do this is to create a drilling guide from a section of the PVC
 . To do this I swiped the drilling template from my style 6 instructions
 . You only need one ring of holes for this one... like I said, this template was for style 6, so just ignore the parts you don't need. Tape the template on the tube and drill out your holes with a 1/8" bit to get your drill guide. By having this guide you will be easier able to get your two rings of holes to match and it will also protect the surface of your metal tube while you drill. Just secure it to the tube so that the holes are 7/16" from the edge and drill out your holes
 . Now take your 7/8" tube section with the flared end and affix it inside the drill guide so that the guide holes are 7/16" from the non-flared end
 . Drill out the holes
 . Take your main tube section and drill a 1/8" hole 2 15/16" from the non drilled end. The hole should be aligned so that it is between two of the holes on the opposite end. I'm going to use "o'clock" terminology from here on out to denote the position of things around the tube. Think of the circle made by the cross-section of the tube as a clock. When the end with the six holes is facing you, they (the holes) should be in the 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11 o'clock positions. So the hole you just drilled is in the 6 o'clock position. slid on you grip section so that the belt clip hole in the 6 o'clock position on the grip lines up with the hole you just drilled. Use a small screw or pin to TEMPORARILY hold the grip in place
 . Now take a piece of masking tape and wrap it around the end with the holes as shown here
 . This will show you approximately the area that the strap loops will take up when you install them later. Knowing this can be helpful when adding other details to the saber. Now you are going to prepare the holes that will be used to mount the LED's. Place a piece of masking tape on the tube and mark two points for the LED holders, one in the 2 o'clock position and the other in the 4 o'clock position as shown
 . The tape allows you to mark your spots as well as protecting the tube from a slip of the drill/Dremel. Go ahead and drill out the two holes
 . Expand the holes until the two LED holders just fit
 . Don't secure them yet, just check their fit. Now you're going to create the hole that will be used to mount the button in the grip. Remove the grip and wrap the tube with a piece of masking tape so that it lies under the grip button opening, replace the grip
 . Take a pen and trace out the opening on the tape
 . Remove the grip and drill out the area
 . Now I don't recommend using a large bit on this thin metal, if it catches it'll bend and warp your tube. Just take the time and expand out a smaller hole. Slide the grip back on and test fit the button
 . I actually sanded down the "teeth" on the plastic nut that comes with button a little so that it would fit better when grip and button were installed. Now you'll make the hole that will hold your socket. Drill a hole in your tube at the 8 o'clock position that is lined up with your button hole
 . Expand the hole until your DIN socket's main body just fits into it
 . With the socket in place use the socket mounting holes as guides and drill out matching holes in your tube with a 1/8" bit
 . Test fit your rivets, but don't rivet it yet
 . One more hole and we'll be done drilling. This one will be used to mount your belt clip. Take a 1 1/2" polywasher
 and place it on the pommel end of main tube 9/16" from the end
 . This should be where this washer ends up when you assemble the pommel, so you're going to use as a visual guide right now. Take your belt clip system
 , specifically the smaller clip knob. Drill out the center with a 1/8" bit
 . Lay the clip on the tube in the position you want it
 . Place some masking tape on the tube
 , mark your drill spot with a pen
 , and drill out your hole with a 1/8" bit
 . Well, that's it, your main tube should be ready to start having things added to it
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 . I used the spray on version of Plastidip. It's not really paint, rather it coats the surface with a thin layer of rubber. I highly recommend this stuff. Regular paint should work fine as well, but in that case I recommend a primer before and a sealer after.
 . You'll see that it won't quite fit into the tube. Use a sanding head in your rotary tool to take a little plastic off the corners until it will fit snugly into the tube
 . Set your modified battery holder aside, you'll come back to it later. The first thing you're going to install are the LED holders. Take your LED holders
 and disassemble them
 . Install them in the proper holes, using the washers and nuts provided
 . Don't put the rubber inserts back into the holders yet. I put a little epoxy on the nuts and threads once I had them in place to help keep them secure, just make sure you don't get any epoxy on the inside of the holder. Cut yourself some lengths of wire
 . Four 3" sections (2 red, 2 black) and two 7" section (1 red, 1 black). Strip the ends of the wire to expose the metal
 . Now you're going to prepare the LEDs. Take your two LEDs and carefully insert the metal posts through the rubber insert that came with the LED holders
 . You'll notice that one of the posts on each LED is longer than the other, that's the positive, the short is the negative. Take a short black and red section of insulation that you stripped from the wire and slide it over the posts to more clearly mark the POS and NEG and then gently bend the posts 90 degrees as shown
 . Now take your four short wire sections and affix them to the proper posts on the LEDs using the butt connectors
 . These connectors
 work by inserting the wires you want connected inside the insulated metal tube and then crimping the tube closed on the wires. You can use a pair of pliers or vice grips, but I do recommend picking up an actually crimping tool...it's easier. Now take your two longer sections of wire and two more butt connectors and connect the leads with appropriate long wire as shown
 . Basically you're wiring the two LEDs in "parallel", and if you're not familiar with that term as it pertains to electrical circuits..... no big deal. In fact, it'll be easier if you just take a look a very basic and stylized circuit diagram of the saber electronics
 . Now take your LEDs install them into the LED holders mounted in the tube so that the two leads stick out he pommel end of the tube
 . Okay, time to wire the switches. Now, I used a soldering iron to attach the wires to my switches
 , but if you don't want to solder it, both switches have the "eyes" in the their metal leads, so that you can actually loop them through and with a little twisting and tape you can get a secure connection. I'm also pretty sure that you can buy cold solder that comes in a little tube that you can apply like glue. Let's start with ON/OFF switch
 , since it is the more complex of the two. The wires you attach to this should be about 3" long. Disassemble the switch as shown
 . Now take the large section from your disassembled showerhead
 and insert the post of the switch through the opening
 . You'll find that it doesn't stick through far enough to attach the nut. Just grind down some of that shower head until you can get that nut on it
 . It doesn't have to be pretty, just secure, because this will not show on the finished saber. Go ahead and pop that little red button cover back on
 . It should look like this from the back
 . Now attach two wire leads (about 8") to the momentary button. Place your painted grip onto the tube and line up the button hole with the one on the tube
 . From now on you'll have to be very careful not to scratch the grip. You may notice in my pics that I often rest the saber in a cloth when working on it now. Carefully insert the wires and button into the mounting hole from the outside and secure the button in place with the plastic nut
 . The can require a little patients as the interior of the tube is getting crowded, but it can be done. The lead wires from this button should now be sticking out the pommel end of the tube. Take your DIN socket and remove all those little metal contacts
 , they'll just make you saber rattle when you handle it, not to mention get in the way when you try to install is. Okay, secure the socket using two rivets
 , being careful not to damage your wiring within the tube. Go ahead and wire up the saber
 following this diagram
 . Be sure to slip the painted 1 1/2" polywasher on to the tube
 before connecting the wires to the button in the pommel
 or you won't be able to get it on. If you're happy with the grip placement and wiring go ahead and rivet the grip in place
 , being carful no to scratch the grip
 . I always place masking tape around an area I'm going to set a rivet, to protect the surface for a jumping riveter. Using the same method, rivet the belt clip knob in place on your tube
 . Carefully slide the battery holder into the tube with the other wiring and slide the wired pommel section onto the tube. If you press it on firmly the tapered interior of the shower head with give you a fairly secure friction hold. You can use an adhesive to hold it on, but if you do I don't know how you'll change the batteries when they die.
 and cut a section with six or seven ribs
 . Be sure to cut it so that there are recessed sections on the ends of you cut tubing. Then take your clear mini reflector
 and remove the adhesive pad on the back. Pop the reflector into the end of the sump tubing as shown
 . Now take a strap loop
 and rivet it to the main tube
 . Rivet another one on the opposite side
 . Now place your sump tubing in between the main tube and the short metal tube section and secure with a screw driver or nail as shown
 . The plastic tubing should be under some tension and the reflector should be on the end nearest the emitter. With the pin holding the emitter head in place, rivet the strap loops in place
 . Insert the smaller painted polywasher into the emitter for aesthetic effect
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 and slip it over the threads of the main pommel body
 . Now take your metal hole plug
 and your o-ring
 and slip the o-ring over the prongs of the plug
 . Take the screw endcap of the shower head
 and install the hole plug into it
 . Screw the modified endcap onto the pommel
 and you're done.
Well, that should be it. How did it go? If you did it right you should now have a pretty cool looking saber. -Brian. |
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