Interest DaveP's V2 and V3 run - 2024

[Jediwannabe]

Post-Production personally. As nasty as it is, feels like the most recognizable and iconic to me

I agree that the post production version feels more recognizable but I decided to scan through the throne scene from ROTJ and I think I'm leaning towards the production version. It's a tough decision.

 

[cwoodreplicas]

Hello all.

This is an update that I sent out to all those who are participating in this V2/ V3 run, as well as to those who have signed up for the mailing list.

I am just posting it here on the thread for anyone who might have missed it.

Apologies for the lack of a significant update this week.

Work continues of course, and there have been many developments behind the scenes. I have had a particularly difficult week this week however due to an unexpected family emergency.

Without going in to too much detail, my mum was taken ill and is currently in the hospital fighting off a serious infection (and sepsis). So, I have had to take some time out to visit as often as I can, whilst keeping up with work.

Clamps are very nearly ready however, so everything is still very much on target.

I have a little production line going in my workshop and the sheet metal parts are coming out great.

I’ve taken an extra close look at the hole placements and sizes for the V3 clamp too (at the request of Chris Scott). Chris suggested I did an additional investigation in to this specifically and provided additional references to get this 100% accurate. Suffice to say, they are not all the same size (or distance from the edge). Thanks, Chris!

I will be making a template for drilling the V3 clamps this week and getting the first batch of V3 Clamps drilled.

I am currently in possession of a vintage Folmer clamp, which is just passing through. I took the opportunity to compare, and I have to say that I am more than happy with how the sheet metal parts are turning out:

View attachment 1854283

Another exciting development this morning as I checked in on the parts, and Aluminium parts have moved from “producing parts” in to “Quality Control”, so those will be shipping very soon!

Steel Parts such as V3 and V2 levers are still “in production” but scheduled for completion this week!

As soon as I have ALL clamp parts in hand, I will be heading over to the platers in person to have them plated.

Whilst the clamps are in for plating, I will then be busy throughout September preparing the small batch of DIY kits, along with the first batch of weathering commissions.

I have now organised the entire run in to four manageable batches:

· Batch One (September)
· Batch Two (October)
· Batch Three (November)
· Batch Four (December)

I have additional parts for Batch five (Jan 2025) and Batch Six (Feb 2025).

For the time being though, I am not taking pre-orders for these. I would like to complete at least Batch One (on schedule) before releasing these for pre-order. That way, we will know for sure that everything is running according to plan, and people won’t be waiting too long for their orders.

So, if all goes to plan, and Batch One is completed on time, I expect to list the last remaining stock on October 1st (for completion early 2025).

I’ll be contacting everyone separately very shortly to inform them of their position in the run, and to confirm their weathering preferences.

Please keep an eye out for that email (now sent) and respond when you’ve decided between current day and early -production weathering.

Just a brief update this week as there isn’t too much to report since last week.

Other tasks have been ticked off the list though:

· Brad has finished and shipped the first batch of V2 Clamp Cards (Thanks, Brad!)
· Brass strip for V3 Clamp Cards has arrived
· Internal rods for V3 and V2 have arrived
· Grub screws and other fixings have been ordered
· Vinyl for stencils has arrived and I have begun cutting V2 stencils
· Foam inserts for shipping have been ordered

So under the circumstances, a fairly productive week!

Signing off for now though and will be back with another update next weekend (Hopefully with images of the main parts!).

Thank you all again for your incredible support!

Please feel free to ask if you have any questions relating to the run.

All the best, and MTFBWY!

Dave

Am I correct in saying you will be releasing another batch in October? I am looking to pick up a Production version (kit) to build myself.

 

[sakanade]

How about the present day V3 hilt but with the production graflex clamp?

 

[DaveP]

**UPDATE**

Hello everyone. Please accept my apologies for the lack of update last week, and for any delay in responding to messages.

These updates take me a lot of time to put together, as writing is not my speciality, and they require that I have some free time to sit down (undistracted) for a few hours to put pen to paper.

I was hoping to post this one over the weekend, but I have been writing it over the course of several days now, on and off. It's finally written, and I have some pictures put together to show where things are up to.

I’m currently working to a very strict action plan. The target for this month is to have all DIY kits and Batch one weathering commissions completed by the end of the month.

I’ve broken this down in to every individual task and allocated a reasonable amount of time to each one. I’ve then plotted this out on to a calendar for this month.

So, each day has a very specific job (or jobs) allocated to it.

So far, so good on the actual work, but due to the situation with my mother, I am having to deviate from the plan somewhat and make time to go and visit her in the hospital (which involves a fair amount of travelling too).

I’d just like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has sent their best wishes regarding my mum. She’s still in the hospital following a serious (and yet to be identified) infection, and Sepsis. Her condition has been steadily improving, but she is yet to be sent home. I really appreciate your kind words, and understanding.

As I said, the situation is not impacting the actual work too much, which is still on target. It has meant that ANY free time is being spent catching up where necessary though. So my usual weekend sit down to catch up on messages, respond to questions, and to write a detailed update, has had to skip a week.

It has been a struggle this weekend too, but I felt that a decent sized update was now overdue.

I’ll detail the latest developments below:

I’m just about finished taking preferences for commissions now. As always, this takes up a fair amount of my attention whenever there are multiple options available. There are often questions that need to be answered to help people decide on the direction for their commissions.

I’m just about finished taking note of these now, and the vast majority of people have decided.

I have received a couple of special requests, which I’m always happy to facilitate.

I am working on a mid – production V2 stencil that will be half way between the sandstorm and current day look. This will be something approximating the throne room references. There are obviously an infinite number of possibilities for the V2, as it gradually transitioned from how it looked on the first day of filming to the current day.

These three options should cover most people's preferences though: Sandstorm/Throne Room/Current Day

I’ll showcase the additional option once it’s finished and if anyone wishes to change their order, prior to me masking / stencilling, that’s not a problem.

The vast majority of the parts have now arrived, and I’m very pleased with the quality of the machining. There is always some work involved after receiving parts. Flat areas often require some work to remove tool marks. The amount of additional work varies from run to run, but I’m very happy to say that these are not requiring too much attention.

I’m also extremely happy to see that the drawings have been strictly adhered to as requested.

The V3 Pommel in particular was something I was eager to inspect.

Each cube is unique, with the smallest one being significantly smaller than the largest:

I’m very happy with the shared bodies. Again, they’ve adhered to the drawings exactly, and included all of the necessary details such as the irregular ring spacing/groove depths, and the accurate ridge profile between the clamp and grip sections

The bodies have been machined for use as either V2 or V3. There are, of course, some modifications that are required in both cases. The grub screw placements are different obviously. There are some differences to the profile of the wind vane too, as well as alterations to some of the ring thicknesses for the V3.

I am currently in the process of preparing the aluminium parts for both the DIY kits and Batch One.

I am ecstatic with how the V2 emitter has turned out. This time around I opted to have the damage machined in to the actual emitter. This is not just to save on work, but to ensure absolute consistency and accuracy to my 3D model:

Next up is a very small detail, but one that I was determined to get absolutely perfect this time around:

I went to great lengths with my last run, to create a model and drawings, which were based on a genuine vintage Michell thumb screw. Unfortunately though, the machinists did not do a great job at replicating the knurling. For this run, I have taken the general measurements for the thumbscrew, but referenced the knurling that is present on the actual prop. I gave very precise instructions for the height and width of the knurling patter, and I’m pleased to say that they’ve nailed it!

I’ve received the first batch of V2 Clamp Cards from Brad at SlothFurnace and they are perfect (as expected)

Work on the Clamps is virtually complete. I am just awaiting the arrival of the lever parts before I can get them in for plating. There is a slight hold up on the V2 lever, but not a cause for concern and they should be completed soon.

These runs always throw up the occasional obstacle that has to be overcome. This one is running very smoothly, but there are a couple of issues that I have had to deal with behind the scenes. Nothing to worry about, but in the interest of full transparency, I’ll fill you in with the details bellow:

The only part to have actually arrived with an issue is the V3 Emitter. The threaded hole in the side has been HEAVILY countersunk! This is not acceptable obviously, as it deviates from what is seen on the original prop. It deviates from my explicit instructions too, so these are already being remade and will be shipping on the 15th. I’ve accounted for this in my action plan, so this is not holding anything up as I will be working on other things right up to their replacements arriving.

In the case of the V2 lever, an issue has been identified prior to them being finished and sent.

This is a good thing I suppose. It’s not always obvious to the machinist that these parts are replicas and that visual appearance trumps functionality or production concerns. With the V2 lever, I have received a communication that basically says – “it would be much easier for us to make it like this, and it will not compromise the functionality of the part. Is this OK?”. My answer to this was obviously “no”.

I’ve explained that the part has to be 100% faithful to the drawings and have explained that the “function” of the part is that it is a replica of an existing part, and that any deviation from the design is going to be a problem.

Now that this is understood, production has resumed and I’m hoping to see a sample of the final lever soon.

As part of the same order, I have received sample images of the V2 and V3 rings. I’m sorry to say that I am not happy with these either, and have asked for them to be improved.

This is nothing to worry about. They won’t be accepted unless they are perfect. Installing the rings is the very last job on a commission, so I’m not expecting this to hold anything up.

I originally planned on having a jig made for both rings, so that I could make them myself to the exact dimensions referenced from the original props. This is how I make the Triangular Hero rings, and would have actually been cheaper for me! I opted to have the individual rings made though, on the basis that it would spare me some time. This was on the proviso that they adhere perfectly to the drawings provided though.

The samples I have seen are not acceptable at this stage unfortunately. I have expressed my concerns and asked if they can be improved upon. If not, I will fall back on plan A, and have my jigs machined (with fastest possible lead time being the priority over price). The money saved by cancelling the rings will more than cover the cost of having the two small jigs manufactured.

I should find out in the next couple of days which direction to take on this.

Please rest assured that either way, the rings will be perfect.

IN CONCLUSION:

In conclusion, work continues. There is a lot to do, but a lot has been done, and I continue to work through everything. Messages have now died down and the admin side of things will take up far less time going forward. It is still early days for this first batch, and based on the plan for the rest of this month, everything is pretty much on track!

I will now drop off the radar once more! As always, if I’m absent, it usually means that I’m hard at work and prioritising the workshop over the computer.

I will always respond to messages eventually though, so please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

I’ll be back with another update at the weekend, when I expect the couple of issues I mentioned above to have been resolved.

Big thanks to you all again for your support and encouragement!

All the best and MTFBWY!

Dave

 

[MojaveTrooper]

Thanks for the update Dave! The machined denting on the V2 turned out really great

 

[thd9791]

WOW I just looked this thread over, beautiful work.

If you have extra levers.... or if you want to sell a reject emitter or two to make some money back, keep me in thoughts.

 

[Darthmax]

Can't wait to see all of these finished up ! The renders are all just beautiful. Hope someday I can add a couple of your hilts to my collection.

 

[yosuke66312]

Hi Dave,
V2 DIY kit include emitter damage processing ?

 

[Woody]

Thanks for the update and really appreciate the hard work and dedication to accuracy but more importantly good to hear that your Mum is steadily improving

 

[DaveP]

**UPDATE**

Hello all.

It's update time again. The weeks just seem to fly by at the moment, and only feels like yesterday that I was posting the last one!

That said, a lot of work has been done this past week!

DIY kits are now prepared and awaiting their clamps and replacement V3 emitters.

The emitters are finished and "in transit" which is great news!

We are still just waiting on the levers and lever bars for the clamps before I can get them off to the platers, but all of the sheet metal forming is finished. The tabs have been removed too, and V3 clamps have been pre-drilled. This saves me having to do this later, but also means that these areas will be protected from corrosion in future.

I’m now in the process of preparing commission parts with their appropriate surface level details such as pommel markings, offset seems on the V3 grip section, etc. This is a particularly creative process and I can't wait to share the results in the next update!

Later next week I’ll be applying chemical darkening where needed before painting.

Both the production and postproduction V3 will be chemically aged based on the available references.

The postproduction V2 will also be chemically aged to match its appearance on Pop Culture Quest.

The sandstorm V2, as well as the throne room version will not be darkened prior to painting however. Based on the available references, the metal was still relatively shiny at the time of filming.

I have now completed work on my throne room stencils:

These are based on the current day/postproduction stencils. I applied a few processes to bridge the gaps between painted areas. This was not as simple as expanding the outline of the paint, although this was the starting point.

I initially expanded the outline of the painted areas. I then created a work path from the outline and used a textured chipped brush to rough up the edge of the paint and to shrink it back a bit. I then overlaid the original current day pattern to ensure that there are no areas of exposed metal where there shouldn’t/couldn’t have been.

I’ll be including All three sets of stencils with the DIY kits and will eventually make these available separately. (when my workload has died down a bit)

** If you have a V2 commission ordered and would like to change your preference to the throne room paintwork, please drop me a message and I’ll update my notes! Otherwise, I’ll assume that there has been no change. **

I now have a busy week ahead of me! I’m hoping to have batch one parts prepped, darkened, and stencilled up ready for painting by the end of this week. Very much achievable, but it will require that I drop off the radar once again!

*IF* I manage to get to this stage before Friday, I’ll be making a start on the painting. If not, that will be the focus of my final week in September.

I am beginning to have my doubts on whether the clamps will be finished, plated and installed by the end of the month. I DO intend to have all of my tasks completed by then, however.

I’m just a little concerned that by the time I receive the Levers, it might not leave enough time for everything to be plated and installed. It’s still possible, but it really does depend on the parts being finished and arriving within the next week.

As I mentioned in my previous update, the machinist’s first attempt at the levers was rejected by me due to them having not adhered to the drawings. We are now on the same page and the levers are in back “in production”.

It might just be a case of me finishing everything (on time) and moving on to batch two. Batch one will be safely stored until the clamps are completed. There is still a chance that this will not be necessary, but I did just want to raise it as a possibility.

I hope this is ok.

The rings are now being remade and should be completed this week too. I have supplied the manufacturer my own solution to help in their efforts to make them correctly, and accurate to my design:

The worst-case scenario is, if their second attempt is still not acceptable, I will have the above jigs made for myself and will make the rings in-house.

I’ve been assured that this will not be necessary, and I’m expecting to see the improved samples early next week!

I will of course continue to keep you all updated here on the thread and will post a link to this update on my FB page. I’ll send out a link via email too.

Thanks again to everyone who has taken part in this run! And to all those who have been following its progress so far. I’m really looking forward to seeing this first batch come together over the next couple of weeks!

Signing off for now!

All the best and MTFBWY!

Dave

 

[DaveP]

Hi Dave,
V2 DIY kit include emitter damage processing ?

Hi Yosuke. The DIY V2 does include the emitter damage. I hope this is ok? Please let me know if it's a problem. Based on the available references, the damage was present prior to filming of ROTJ. It probably occurred during rehearsals behind the scenes of ESB, when it was used as a practice stunt.

 

[Woody]

Thanks for the update. I've sent you an email to change my V2 from current day to the Throne Room version

 

[Psab keel]

These look incredible! Will the Throne Room stencil be available for purchase separately?

 

[molasses flood]

These look incredible! Will the Throne Room stencil be available for purchase separately?

I'm assuming they will be. He said "I’ll be including All three sets of stencils with the DIY kits and will eventually make these available separately. (when my workload has died down a bit)"

 

[CopperRevan]

That Throne room weathering looks immaculate!! The V2 Lever? I want one...lol. Sell those separate as well please, if you didn't already say so.

 

[Media Man]

Throne room style looks great!

 

[Psab keel]

I'm assuming they will be. He said "I’ll be including All three sets of stencils with the DIY kits and will eventually make these available separately. (when my workload has died down a bit)"

Thank you for the answer. Clearly, I over looked it!

 

[MojaveTrooper]

That Throneroom stage is the sweet spot between Sandstorm and Post-Production IMO. Definitely had to change my commission to that

 

[ScourgiousJinx]

I didn't realize the edge of the emitter on the V2 throne room saber was so "weathered." Makes me wonder what they did with the prop to cause it to be like that. Very cool looking. Definitely high on my want list.

 

[molasses flood]

I didn't realize the edge of the emitter on the V2 throne room saber was so "weathered." Makes me wonder what they did with the prop to cause it to be like that. Very cool looking. Definitely high on my want list.

If you're talking about the dents, they were most likely obtained when it was being used as a practice saber for ESB.