Home Depot Lightsaber Prop Build
Ladies and Gentlemen…Jedi and Sith…this is the lightsaber you are looking for. A sturdy stage prop with a realistic hilt that is great for kids as well as adults working on lightsaber choreography. Please note, this lightsaber does not actually light up. The lightsabers used in the 6 films did not light up either, those special effects were later added using a technique called rotoscoping. Rotoscoping involves adding a laser-like effect in each frame of film. For each frame, the film tech draws the laser, then moves on to the next frame. As you can imagine, it is a time consuming process.
Anyway, here is a tough little lightsaber that you can build for about $30US in about 1 hour. The video below will help you complete the build and hopefully inspire you to add your own modifications and finishing touches.
Parts List
– 1-1/4” Plastic Pop-up sink drain assembly ~7$
– At least 36” of 1/2” PVC pipe ~3$
– 1/2” coupling (optional but gives a snug fit for the blade into the hilt) ~30cents
– Friction tape or hockey tape ~3$
– Electrical tape ~2$
– Epoxy ~5$
– #10-24 x 2” machine screw ~1$
– 2 x 1/4” flat washers ~1$
– #10-24 cap nut ~1$
Tools
– Dremel rotary tool or power drill with a sanding drum and a 1/8” drill bit
– Sharpie or other marker
– Scissors
– Saw & mitre box
Blaster @ 3:12 is the Nerf Strongarm pistol with custom paint job.
Soundtrack: Hypnothis by Kevin MacLeod available for free at incompetech.com
Fan Builds
Fellow Star Wars fans, Reggie C. & his son, added their own creative finishing touches on the pop-up sink drain hilt. Very creative guys, thank you for sharing and sending in your pics! These 2 fans just got back from Star Wars Celebration in Orlando, and they’re ready to go to the next one. Hope I can meet you guys there!