RKD's ROTJ gauntlets converted to ESB (very pic heavy)

Necronaut

Hunter
I am the proud owner of a set of MOW's ESB gauntlets. I did a pretty detailed build thread over the course of about a year. They are now sitting proudly on my wearable display costume.
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That's DarkSide's machined aluminum and brass rocket and a scratch built flamethrower featuring a few of MOW's resin ESB flamethrower parts, aluminum and brass tubing, a couple dart bodies, etc. I reinforced the clamshells with 2-4 layers of fiberglass. I think they look fantastic! :D
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It weighs 2 1/2 pounds. :cry
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This is the right gauntlet. Aside from accurate alco-switches and Mojo's darts, it's all stock MOW gauntlet parts. Again, the clamshells were reinforced with 2-4 layers of fiberglass.
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They weigh almost 2 pounds. :cry

They look awesome on my display, but they're kinda beefy in a couple different ways:
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First, the original costume gauntlets are very form-fitting around the forearms. My MOW gauntlets are much thicker. The second and more obvious issue is the 4 1/2 pounds of weight on my forearms and wrists.

So over the last couple months, I have been gathering the parts I think I need for a lighter and more form-fitting set of 'trooping' gauntlets.
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I'm going with redkraytdragon's IOA gauntlet clamshells, and some of his resin-cast gauntlet parts.
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RKD's gauntlet set is geared towards a ROTJ/SE set of gauntlets, so they will need some modification. I will need to chop up the resin whipcord launcher. I did pick up some Mojo darts on the cheap a while back, and a set of alco-switchs on the not-so-cheap. Yeah, they're technically the wrong ones but they'll look good enough for the 501st, I think. The rest of this is very useable as is.

The biggest technical challenge of this conversion will be the flamethrower. I will be making it out of mostly styrene rod, tube, and sheets along with a couple scratch built resin parts and brass rod reinforcement.
 
I'm going to be working of wizardofflight's somewhat recently posted ESB flamethrower templates. I printed them off as-is on 11x17 sheets of paper scaled as large as possible, then scaled them up about 5% bigger on my work copier so that they would be life-sized 1:1 scale blueprints. I also printed off two copies of each page of the blueprints so that I would have a set to cut up with scissors if needed and another set for reference and measuring.

An easy first task would be to cut the whipcord launcher down to its ESB size.
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The ROTJ whipcord is much thicker than the ESB version.
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The ESB whipcord launcher on my MOW gauntlets looks about right, so I'll get the tip and end thickness measurements from it.
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With these tip and end measurements, it looks awfully thin. It is definitely too thin for the tube to fit properly inside the launcher.
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I eyeballed something that would look pretty close to the right size, yet would still allow the tube to fit into the launcher.
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I used a hacksaw to cut the launcher along the thicker line. If it didn't look right I could always trim more off, but I couldn't really put it back if I cut too much off.
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This looks pretty good to me.

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The WOF templates clearly show a U-shaped cut-out on the back of the larger flame-thrower block. As well, there are some tube-shaped grooves cut into the top rear part of the block.
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I used a 2 mm thick sheet of styrene to cut the grooves on the top of the block into. It'll be thick enough for me to file in the grooves at the back of the rear flamethrower block.
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I used a small 'carpenter' style square and a metal ruler to measure and draw out the cuts for this part. To start the smaller cut for this piece, I used a razor saw.
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To cut out the other side, I used a panel-line scribing tool. It carves out a thin engraved 'thread' of plastic out of the sheet. Do this a few times…
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And you can then snap off the piece with a set of pliers.
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I cut in a couple grooves to start the circular channels using a v-shaped micro-file.
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I finished off these grooves with a circular file to create the circular cutouts.
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I also beveled the rear edge with a couple flat files and some sanding sticks.
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I have a razor saw with a mitre box. I used this to build up a frame for the rear block using 1/4"x3/8" styrene rectangular channel. I cut 45 degree joints with the mitre box.
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I cut a second set of thinner channel to sit on top of the original channel strip that I cut. It's 3/16" square channel. The missing part in the back will be the cavity that the u-shaped cut-out at the back of the flamethrower block will be.
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Most decent scratch builders probably have a set of machinist tooling blocks & accompanying magnets to 'square up' the corners. I used the Mark 1 eyeball and a couple small dollar-store clamps to square up the open edge of this block. The 2mm piece with the circular grooves will sit on top of the rear frame on the cut-out side.

Stay tuned for how I figure out how to create the u-shaped channel at the back of the block. I am still working out how I might do that… :confused
 
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Thanks everyone for looking and commenting! This is my first time ever really scratch-building something from styrene parts.

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I glued in a couple posts to act as a backing to the indented u-shaped rear block.

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Before going any further, I wanted to install the tubes that will run throughout the flamethrower. After carefully measuring the locations of the tubes/holes, I drilled a pilot hole.

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I reamed out the holes through the entire block until they were 1/4" big. I did this by hand using pin vises, small round files, and a couple drill bits. In the past, I've used power drills to do this sort of work, only to have the drill split or crack the part (my knee dart holes come to mind…). At this point, it doesn't have to look pretty yet. I'll be skinning, covering and gap-filling any cracks or pits later on in the build.

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This shot best explains what my plan is for this entire piece. I'll be using 1/4" styrene tube as the framework. I'll build the barrels and the gas cartridges around these tubes. Inside of each styrene tube will be a single continuous length of 3/16" brass tube. It will extend from the nozzle tip all the way to the rear block. It fits very snugly in the styrene tube and will stiffen and support the entire flamethrower.
 
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Back to the detail on the rear of the flamethrower. I cut a square from 0.040mm sheet styrene and punched a 3/16" hole in it with a hobby punch and die set I have. This hole will line up with the tubes I'll install later. This is why I needed to drill in the tube holes in the previous post. This square will be the 'show' side of that surface.

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The square is glued in place at the rear socket I cut out. I also cut out a rectangle out of the same 0.04mm sheet to sit over the back of the block. It's thin enough that I can see through it to trace designs, shapes, etc. from the blueprints. I've traced the points to punch out the big U-shape and the smaller circles on either side.

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I picked up this 1/2" circular punch from WalMart for about $3 in the scrapbooking aisle. I used it to punch out the top of the U-shape, and trimmed the rest away with my X-Acto knife. The punch and die will knock out the smaller circular holes.

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I cut a thin strip of the 0.04mm styrene and glued it to the bottom side of the u-shaped channel. When it dried, I adjusted the curve to the shape I wanted and glued the other side.

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Here's the piece right now. I glued on the rear cover, the rear top that I carved the grooves into in my previous post, and I cut another piece of the same 2mm styrene for the front top.
I'll skin the front and sides with thin styrene sheet, then fill the gaps with Bondo/putty filler. Tomorrow, I'll start building up the three 'gas tubes'. :D
 
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I decided against skinning some of the sides of this block, as it would add too much thickness. Instead, I sanded them as flat as possible and applied a couple coats of putty. It'll take a few passes before it's all flat.

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I cut 3 pieces of 5/16" tube to serve as the gas cylinder bodies. Inside of it, I glued some 1/4" tube for the brass to grab onto during final assembly.

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For the detail on the cylinders, I used 3/8" styrene tube, cut into thin and thick pieces. Since I would have to replicate so many pieces, I cabbaged together a cutting jig by using a clamp on the side of the mitre box.

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Here are the completed gas cylinder bodies. I use Tamiya Extra Thin styrene cement because its capillary action allows the cement to flow and pull into the spaces between parts. However, I tend to leave little glue marks wherever I apply this stuff. I applied it all to the same side, with the idea that I could have the ugly side with the glue marks facing inward.
 
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The cylinders didn't take too long to fabricate, so I started on the block between the cylinders and the nozzles/barrels of the flamethrower.
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I used 3/16" square tube to build up the frame for this part. I stacked 2 or 3 pieces of square tube in the mitre box if I needed to replicate parts, so they would be cut the exact same length. As well, I glued all the top parts together to complete each face of this part rather than glue together 3 rectangular frames.

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Like the other box, I imagine I'll be puttying the top and some sides. The sides that have the barrels and cylinders will need to be skinned with some thin styrene sheet.

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I'll still ned to hollow out some pieces of this to install those bit of 1/4" styrene tube for the brass to go through. That's what the black marks on the inside are for: it's where I'll need to file out some room for said tube.
 
I'm just....completely....bewildered, here.

This is amazing! We're drawing stick figures, while you're designing skyscrapers.

Bravo and please keep posting updates.

...but shame on you for cutting up the whipcord housing. A little. :)
 
...but shame on you for cutting up the whipcord housing. A little. :)

Duly noted, rubio95. :lol:

Anyways, I have done a little more work on the flamethrower.
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Even though I used a mitre box to get 45 degree cuts, they're not perfect. You can see little gaps between the mitred edges. Guess I'm no cabinet maker. ;)

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I cut up little strips of plastic to fill those gaps.

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The plastic strip was jammed into the gaps and glued in place. I'll trim off the excess later. This is just so there's plenty of surface contact and strength between the pieces of plastic channel at the joints.
 
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I glued in 1/4" styrene tube inside both blocks. This is what will hold that 3/16" brass tube that will run through all of the barrels and cylinders. Once again, it took some filing to get the 1/4" tube into the new block.

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I glued together a bunch of different sizes of plastic tube to get a nice, thick column of plastic with a hollow gap on the inside. These will be the screw posts that will attach the flamethrower blocks, through the backplate, onto the left gauntlet.

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This is where these parts are right now. The cylinders are done, the rear block just needs a little more gap & seam filling, and the front block needs all of its smooth plastic faces put on and the gaps all filled. I am considering filling the cavities between the tubes inside of the blocks with plastic casting resin for more strength. Any thoughts on that, anyone? I'd appreciate someone ringing in with a little experience on this before I try it.
 
Awesome work. Much respect for your skills. It is so gratifying making something with your own hands. I enjoy watching builds like this so that I can pick up tricks & techniques to help in my own personal builds. Just fantastic.
 
Another update:
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I started skinning the sides of the front cylinder/barrel block. As I did each one, I punched a hole where the brass tube would run through and used a circular file to widen the hole. After it was flied flush with the inside tube, a thin bead of glue was run around the front to make sure the styrene skin would stick well.

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The top of the front barrel/cylinder block needs a 'button'. I found this in my spare parts drawer. It's a resin pin that comes with MOW gauntlets meant for fixing a hinge to the inside of the gauntlets. Its top will make a great stand-in for the block 'button'. Simply saw off the body of the pin.

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I glued it to the cylinder block with some CA superglue. Styrene cement won't dissolve/chemically weld resin, so you need to use something else.
 
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There are three trapezoid-shaped blocks that sit on top of the rear cylinder block. I used the same 1/4" by 3/8" styrene channel from the first part of this build to make these. Again with the mitre box, I cut in 90 and 45 degree faces for these bits. The middle trapezoid block is wider, but not quite wide enough to just use two bits of channel glued together. I trimmed off the sides of two pieces of channel instead to make one bigger block that's the correct width.

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My cuts weren't perfect, so a little styrene strip was glued between to make up for the gap that I had somehow made.

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Some thin styrene sheet was glued to the faces to finish off these parts. A little flush sanding and filling will still be needed once the glue dries completely.
 
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Time to cut out the backplate! I used 2mm thick styrene for it. To cut it out, I cut out a paper version of it from my 1:1 scale blueprints, then traced the perimeter onto the styrene sheet with a sharpie.

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I used a combination of razor saws and scoring/snapping to cut out the general shape. It will need some filling where I went off course a little…
I also drilled in the locations for the screws that will attach the cylinder/barrel blocks to the backplate and the gauntlets. The blueprints have both block locations laid out. I just laid the blocks over the backplate template I cut out, did a quick pencil rubbing, then punched through where I put the screw holes. The template was laid onto the backplate, and I then marked the drill-through marks. I drilled the holes to a 3/16" diameter.
I think I only have room for a single screw on the front block. I drilled it through the bottom, careful not to pierce the top.

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Here's where I stand with the assembly.
 
Back at it…
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I cut a length of 1/4" styrene tube to serve as the barrel/core of the lower nozzle. Where required, I sleeved 5/16", 3/8", 7/16" and 1/2" tube over it. As well, I used a 1/2" punch to cut out thin sheets of styrene for the flat faces of the thicker parts.

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Some of the parts have a bevel on them. I put the drum sander attachment onto my Dremel and used it to hold the barrel parts that needed the bevel. With a file and the Dremel on its lowest setting, I ground away at the tip of the plastic tube. I then turned off the Dremel and spun the chuck by hand and used a fine sanding stick to give the bevel a nice finish.
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I cut up lengths of 3/16" brass rod that would sleeve into all of the parts. That's what I used to mock up the assembly up to this point. Those brass rods will eventually be glued into place and serve as the frame for all of the parts.

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To finish off the evening's work, I applied some putty to the gaps and cracks still on some parts. For thin gaps, I used Mr Surfacer 500 thinned with a little lacquer thinner so it would flow into recesses a little better. For the larger jobs, I used some Tamiya basic putty.
 
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