QuartZ's ESB EE-3 Build

QuartZ

New Hunter
Hello!

Wow, I've been gone so long that my account didn't exist anymore. In truth, I've been away from prop replica building for a while as well but I've slowly made my way back in the last few years. It feels great. So rather than blabber any more about that, I wanted to share a build I recently started (I hope I finish it... you know). But even if I don't, I hope some of the information or images help or inspire someone else.

I wanted to build a Fett ESB EE-3 blaster and so I started by looking around at my Webley base options. My goal is to have something that looks really authentic/accurate but I'm not looking to use found parts or spend much money on this. Also, I'm going to be making it out of a variety of materials/methods and using part offerings from others on this forum whenever it helps with the goals I just mentioned. I've also gotten really into using 3D printing in my recent projects so it made sense to look for an accurate model to use. I found the great model by RafalFett and after comparing other options decided that was the right base for me. So I got to slicing and printing. I printed the "metal" parts in grey PLA:

IMG_3191.jpg


And here's a quick test fit of the main parts:

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I wanted to try something different with the stock. I know I'll end up painting all the parts in the end, but I wanted to try working with Fillamentum Timberfill as it has wood fibers in the plastic. I don't know if it will make ANY difference, but it was fun to try and I already had it sitting around. The stock is too big for my printer (a Prusa i3 MK2.5S) so I brought the stock STL into mesh mixer and split it. While I was there, I also added to 1/2" holes to insert an aluminum tube for some additional reinforcement and a shorter piece of aluminum tube to act as an alignment "key" when assembling the halves.

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The alignment looks good. There's a little bit of a raised lip at the joint or "elephants foot" from the mating surfaces being the area that was on the bed of the printer. Should be easy enough to sand away. Feels really strong and has a good heft to it so I'm happy.

Next, I put everything together for a test fit. Nothing is glued at this point and I've used various tricks like dowels wrapped in blue painters tape to create snug temporary pins/hardware. Also, you'll see me using painters tape to lash the pistole grip frame to the stock bracket. It was nice to be able to handle the whole flare gun after a few days of printing.

IMG_3187.jpg


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I wanted to get an idea of how much the whole thing weighed. I'd like for it to be heavy enough to not feel hollow or toy-like, but I'd also be happy if it didn't feel like a tank. I managed to weigh it on a food scale and at this point we hit 650 g (just under 1.5 lbs). Pretty light so far... but I'm missing the revolver grip which I plan to make myself in cold-cast brass/resin. That will add a little, then there's all of the metal hardware that's missing like screws, metal dowel pins, sling mounts, etc. I'd like to hit around 2 lbs with just the Webley (I know that's like 1/4 of the real item weight). I may replace the longer aluminum tube in the stock with a solid aluminum rod and I have thought about a thin metal tube to sleeve the interior of the 3D printed barrel that could help add some strength/weight there. In this state, it does feel pretty good to me. So I'll keep my options open and try some things.

So that's my start. Let me know if anything wasn't clear or if you have any questions. Again, huge thank you to RafalFett for the superb model!

-Dana
 
Wow, it looks great! The only issue I see is that you downloaded the main body for the ROTJ version, but it is an easy fix: you'll have to cut off and sand the scope mount base.
IMG_3187_2.png
 
Wow, it looks great! The only issue I see is that you downloaded the main body for the ROTJ version, but it is an easy fix: you'll have to cut off and sand the scope mount base.
View attachment 204486
Aha! Great catch and thanks for letting me know. I'll do just that. The whole thing will go through so much sanding, filling, and filler primer that you should never notice I hacked it off. Thanks again, you continue to be a great help! Thank you.

-Dana
 
Thanks! Here's more :) RafalFett noticed I printed the ROTJ version of this part (whoops!) so I broke out my coping saw and took a few passes at the box-shaped protrusion that needed removal. After that was hacked off, I hit the area with some 120 grit sandpaper:

IMG_3194.jpg


Then I broke out the 3M spot putty (my favorite) and started frosting the cake:

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We'll see if I need to add any more filler after I sand this down, but for now we wait...

-Dana
 
This is spectacular....I need me a 3D printer
Thank you, I built my first 3D printer 6 years ago... and I've been hooked on it as a tool for prop making ever since. It's not for everyone, but I love printing. The Mando helmet in my avatar photo was printed and finished by me :). If you know how to work with this tech, know how to prep/finish the parts, and have patience, you can achieve some amazing results.

-Dana
 
I spent some more time this afternoon sanding the main barrel part and working on that patch job. I did end up doing a second pass with the spot putty too. I think it's good enough for now. I'll know more once primer is on it.

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I didn't mention it before, but I also printed this in 2 parts (didn't fit on my printer in the orientation I wanted). You can see the slight seam line mid-barrel. To get the two halves aligned for gluing, I put a 1.5" OD tube inside both parts to act as a guide. I'll probably put a bit of spot putty there next just to clean that up.

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A little more sanding on the underside and I should be ready to move on to the next part(s)

-Dana
 
Put in a little more time on it today. Here's that seam:

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And here's a look at the underside and rear all rough sanded with 120 grit:

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Another angle below. I left the serrations alone (we'll see how they look when the filler primer is coating them).

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I'm trying not to sand any areas that won't be seen when assembled. I'm not looking to have any moving parts or functionality with this build so that means I can get away without sanding a bunch of hidden surfaces.

I may give the trigger movement and a return spring since people ALWAYS want to pull triggers on replica blasters. And if you don't allow for movement... people tend to break your replicas even when you tell them not to pull the trigger :)

-Dana
 
I may give the trigger movement and a return spring since people ALWAYS want to pull triggers on replica blasters. And if you don't allow for movement... people tend to break your replicas even when you tell them not to pull the trigger :)

-Dana
Literally every damn time!!! I tell them it’s just a prop and the trigger doesn’t move. What do they do. Pull the trigger, break it, then say oops my bad as they hand it back to you awkwardly. :lol::lol::lol: *shaking my head*
 
That stock came out amazing, it's pretty cool it has wood fibers inside it! That's so damn cool, can't wait to watch the progress.
 
If you plan to do some of the internal pieces for a working blaster, you can check out WoF's templates ==> !!Update - 3/17/05!! Boba Fett EE-3 Blaster/Webley Drawings or this awesome album ==> Webley.
Thanks for that link, I'll do some more in depth looking at those drawings to see how I could utilize them in this build.
That stock came out amazing, it's pretty cool it has wood fibers inside it! That's so damn cool, can't wait to watch the progress.
I has really does have a different feeling to it than the standard filament plastics. When you feel the surface it is much more believable. Again, I'll be sanding it and painting it... but it is cool and has be wanting to use it for some other projects!

-Dana
 
I just received a set of parts from Fettology in the mail and wanted to quickly throw everything roughly into place to snap a photo:

IMG_3209.jpg


All of the parts are very nice and he was able to make/ship them to me very quickly. Thanks again for these! In the photo I also have a chrome tube sitting in for the MPP. I think I'm going to use a template and drill/cut out the holes on that for this replica. I'm not sure. Anyway it helped make the blaster look more complete so I dropped it in for now. I know I'm still missing a grip, some hardware like sling mounts, etc. But it was cool to see it like this.

-Dana
 
Another small update. I've been doing a bit more sanding (plan to do more this weekend) But while I've been waiting for this part to arrive:

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It's a replica Webley MK VI revolver grip (from a set I bought online). It's not exactly the same as the flare gun grip, but it looks really close to me other than the notch that needs to be cut at the top rear for the stock frame bit and the hole in the grip which looks too big. I plan to make mods to this, and I plan to mold it and make attempt a cold-cast brass/resin copy. We'll see how that goes!

-Dana
 
Literally every damn time!!! I tell them it’s just a prop and the trigger doesn’t move. What do they do. Pull the trigger, break it, then say oops my bad as they hand it back to you awkwardly. :lol::lol::lol: *shaking my head*
I'm worried about that with my sidearm. It's 3D printed and the trigger is just glued (CA+) in place. I'm confident it will stay will stay if the trigger itself isn't touched but it would take very little to pull it off. Maybe I just won't let anyone handle it. : )
 
I'm worried about that with my sidearm. It's 3D printed and the trigger is just glued (CA+) in place. I'm confident it will stay will stay if the trigger itself isn't touched but it would take very little to pull it off. Maybe I just won't let anyone handle it. : )
Ya, as strong as CA glue is, you'll probably get a broken trigger somewhere else rather than where the glue bond is. Half the fun is letting people handle this stuff and enjoy it with us. That is until that awful "crack" sound happens :)

-Dana
 
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