A Stunt Saber is what most of us think of when we think of saber dueling.  Stunt Sabers are lightsaber props where the hilt is designed to resemble another prop lightsaber hilt, primarily used in filming or taking photos.  They usually have thin poles sticking out of them so that they can duel with them, and know where the blades are going once the picture of movie is finished.  You can made stunt sabers out of nearly anything:  wooden dowels, PVC, plumbing tubing, broom handles, etc.  I personally like to use PVC for a few reasons.  First off, it doesn't splinter or break nearly as easy as wood.  Secondly, when a PVC blade is built onto a PVC hilt, it fits so tight, you have to hammer it together, which means no wobbly blades.  This tutorial will teach you how to make PVC stunt sabers.

Under Construction; please bear with me while I straighten everything out.  As I go, I will add step-by-step photos, as well as pictures of my finished stunt blades and anyone else's who wants on the site.

Step 1:  Design
The first part of building  stunt saber is to have a design that you like...that is half the battle.

Step 2: Cutting
Assuming that you have already made a hanging version of the hilt, gather copies of any templates you might have used when cutting the special parts of the hilt.  Adjust these designs to fit on the 1" PVC, then dremel out what must be taken out.  Repeat as needed until all parts are accounted for.

Step 3: Mounting
Take a piece of 3/4" PVC, and cut to length of original hilt.  Next, take the 4 ft piece of 1/2" PVC, and sand down one end of it the same length as the piece just cut out of the 3/4" PVC.  This will allow the two tubes to slide together.  BE CAREFUL NOT TO OVER SAND IT!!!  If you do, the blade will not fit in snugly like it should.  Take your time with this.  Remember, it is easier to sand some off, then put some back on.  Once the pieces fit together firmly, make sure the two ends are flush.  If so, place a hefty coat of PVC cement so to be sure the two pieces hold together.  Allow cement 1 hr dry time before continuing the saber building process. 

Step 4: Construction
After the 1 hr, check the cement to make sure it is good and dry.  Once thoroughly dry, take the pieces cut from the 1" PVC [see step 2], and sand down the inside of them so that they can fit over the 3/4" PVC.  Be careful not to over sand.  If one cannot sand the inside of the 1" pieces, then evenly sand down the outer layer of the 3/4" pipe until all pieces fit on snugly.  Apply a layer of PVC cement to the edges of the 1" pieces, making sure to get each side of each piece, and applying enough to hold it in place without doing too much.  If you do get too much on there, wipe of with clean shop rag before dry, and re-apply.  If you plan on doing some serious sparring with these, and you would like a little more secure or a hold, put some screws in the sections to keep them in place.

Step 5: Painting The Hilt
Now, the painting is likely the part that makes the stunt saber so believable.  While it might not have all the little details that the hanging version does, such as a cell phone clip or D-ring to attach it, and little LEDs, and a multitude of knobs and thumbscrews, as long as the paint scheme is the same, only someone who is looking for a difference will find one.  With the hilt in your hand, then you will not be able to see all the little extras, and they may not be comfortable to fight with, so why add them?  Use painters tape to tape off the fist 6-10 inches of the blade area, and paint the actual hilt its base color [silver, black, copper, gold, etc.].  This will cover the screws used in Step 4 to secure the sections.  Allow that to fully dry, then apply two coats of crystal clear sealer, allowing through dry time for each coat.  If another color is needed for the hilt itself, tape off what you will leave the base color, and then spray on the other color[s], allowing dry time and 2 coats of sealer between each color of paint.  Repeat step as needed.  AFTER ALL COLORS ARE ON, take off all the tape, and seal the whole exposed hilt two more times and allow to dry overnight.

Step 6: Painting the Blade [OPTIONAL]
This step is totally optional.  You may want to leave the blade the raw color of the PVC, you may want to cover it in foam or tape.  After the hilt is totally done, use the painters tape to tape over the ENTIRE hilt.  Remember, don't use any tape on this.  If you use electrical tape or duct tape, you will peel the paint off the hilt you worked so hard on.  You might even want to tape on a paper sleeve is you used high-gloss paints, because painters tape will mess that up pretty bad.  After totally covered, grab neon color of paint chosen, and paint the top half of the blade.  Allow to dry, then paint to bottom half of the blade.  After totally covered, give 1 hr dry time, then put another light coat on entire blade, allow to dry, then apply 4 coats of sealer, allowing adequate dry time between each coat.  Then, wrap in a thin, tight layer of clear plastic wrap, and take a hair dryer to it.  That will help to preserve the paint on the blade itself.  Do this step two times at the least, and make sure each layer is tight, and it doesn't bunch up at the edges.

If you are thinking "Hey, but this doesn't look exactly like my original saber", you would be right!  Stunt sabers are not designed to look like the original hilt, they just need to be similar.  The fact of the matter is that no one will ever seen the stunt saber up close or in great detail.  If you are taking pictures with the stunt saber, then your hands will be covering a good deal of the hilt itself.  If you are using it to make a fight scene for a FanFilm, you will be far enough away to not be able to tell the difference.  It might not have all the little extra goodies on it that make it YOUR saber hilt, but it doesn't have to...it just has to resemble the original hilt, and function.  As long as you did that much, you are good.