Bionic Battle Saber – Inspired by the Six Million Dollar Man and toys

Hello Everybody, today I am taking on another “The Vintage Toy Advertiser Challenge” and it will take us back to the 1970’s TV show starring Lee Majors…The Six Million Dollar Man. The show which was loosely based on a novel titled “Cyborg” written by Martin Caidin tells the story of an Airforce Test Pilot – Colonel Steve Austin. Steve Austin was testing a new vehicle called a “Lifting Body” known as the M2-F2, but suffered a near fatal crash. He survived but suffered massive injury resulting in him losing his right arm, both legs and his eye. During the opening intro sequence of the show you see a real life crash of an M2-F2 piloted by Bruce Peterson which took place on May 10th 1967. Peterson survived the horrific crash with just(?) a broken wrist and severe damage to the skin of his face (he did later lose his eye due to an infection that got into the injury), but in the TV show Steve Austin needed to be rebuilt…and you hear a government official state “we can rebuild him….faster, stronger….better! We have the technology!” And they did just that, giving Austin new bionic legs, an arm and a bionic eye. During the intro sequence there were lots of data screens and wireframe images of the medical operations so I had best show you the wireframe “techy” image I have of this new saber before I explain everything about it….

Now observant viewers may recognise this as looking a little bit like a rocket ship…and you would be sort of correct! The SMDM tv show was such a success that the toy company Kenner Toys brought out a range of toys and action figures. There was a Steve Austin figure with “bionic features” such as a spring loaded arm that lifted a model car engine. There was also an “Oscar Goldman” figure, Oscar being Austin’s boss after his recovery. Then there was this, the Bionic Transport and Repair Station (BTRS)…

The Bionic Transport and Repair Station

The Bionic Transport and Repair Station 2

The BTRS was Steve Austin’s special transport rocket which also opened up and doubled as an operating theatre/repair station for his bionic parts. There was an operating theatre light cluster in the base, an X-ray unit (with glow in the dark images to represent the different body parts) and a myriad of tubes and cables to run “diagnostics” on Austin. So my challenge was to replicate this toy in saber form. Not my greatest challenge to be fair as it is already tubular in shape and looks Sci-Fi, but I had a lot of details to add to make it pop. To start with I built the booster rocket base (which formed the theatre light cluster) and then worked my way up…so here are the pictures as it took shape…

Bionic Battle Saber base 1

Bionic Battle Saber base and body

Bionic Battle Saber base, body and nosecone

The complete Bionic Battle Saber/BTRS

Work in progress on the cockpit

Cockpit details.

So, as I mentioned I didn’t have much to do technically with this build but there were a lot of tiny details that I needed to add to solidify the look and leave you in no doubt what inspired it. The booster base acts as a pommel, featuring the four side pod booster engines as well as the main central booster and all the panelling. The main body of the hilt represents the main-stage body of the BTRS and houses the cockpit (more on this below), and the “stars and stripes” flag on the front. This flag is a 3D part, not just a graphic applied onto the model and I planned to use this flag as the activation switch for the hilt. The whole hilt body has little details like oxygen cylinders on the underside and various vents and panels. Two of the panels feature the name Kenner etched into them as TVTA asked that I incorporated their logo into the design somehow. The saber is topped off with a blue nose cone that acts as the emitter. However…beneath this nosecone you will have noticed the glass window and maybe you will have picked out the figure of Steve Austin himself! I actually modelled a cockpit section and then pasted a picture of Austin inside that section. But I didn’t just leave it like that, I divided the panel the image was on and manipulated it so that it formed the contours of Austin’s face, head and shoulders…so he is actually 3D too! The saber wouldn’t be a saber with out a blade of course and this hilt has a red blade, not because Steve is a Sith Darksider but because it matches with his famous red athletics “tracksuit”! You can see it in the images below, one is the real Kenner toy, one is my 3D model…

The Bionic Transport and Repair Station and Steve Austin figure

Bionic Battle Saber

The Kenner Bionic Transport and Repair Station toy

The Six Million Dollar Man show spawned numerous made for TV films and the show ran from 1973 to 1978 and the films ran into the 1980’s. And it seems the toys have lasted even longer! So I’d like to thank TVTA once more for giving me the challenge of recreating this piece of nostalgia and I hope you all like it. (BTW I did actually own the Steve Austin, Oscar Goldman figures and I had a Bionic Transport Repair Station, so this one brought back memories for me).

I think that just about wraps up this design and as I said above I hope you enjoyed. I will be returning to the galaxy far, far, away next week as I have some staff weapons I need to show you all and I think you may recognise at least one of the owners. I’d like to thank all of you, my viewers and followers for again taking time to visit today and I hope you will return for my upcoming posts. Your support has been fantastic and much appreciated. Till next time…….I have the technology!

“Bionic Battle Saber” is a For Tyeth Editions design and is ©Copyright of For Tyeth/FTSabersite 2016-2019. The design was inspired by The Six Million Dollar Man tv show and the toys produced by Kenner Toys inc.  Respective Trademarks and ©Copyrights belong to Harve Bennett, Kenneth Johnson, ABC Television and NBC Universal Television Distribution and Kenner Toys/Hasbro.

Starkiller S-Curve Saber – Inspired by Galen Marek and TFU 1+2

Hello Everybody, first off the bat I apologise if I sound a bit congested and sickly but I have been battling a nasty chest infection this past week! I normally don’t complain about being ill and just try to get on with things but this is the worst case I have had. But I have used it to my advantage and really concentrated on 3D modelling to distract myself from runny noses, headaches and wheezy coughs…and I think it was worth it. I had already built a base model of this hilt owned by Galen Marek, who was Darth Vader’s secret apprentice in the Playstation computer games “The Force Unleashed” and “TFU 2”. Marek was a “Force Sensitive” as a child and caught the attention of Darth Vader who killed Marek’s Jedi parents and kidnapped the boy to train him as his right hand servant. He was trained in the Dark Side of the Force and forgot his roots and real identity as he attempted to gain the official position of Vader’s apprentice. But before he could do that he had to build his saber and here is a picture from the game of him doing just that…

Copyright of LucasArts ltd and THQ Games.

So I had to build a version of this hilt as it is quite popular within the saber community and is thought of as a “holy grail” design, but, as I have mentioned before I struggled to make smooth sweeping geometry and parts with previous software but when I discovered Blender I had more control. The problem was, the shape of the emiiter is iconic and in engineering terms complex to get right. The emitter is known as an “S-Curve” and the edge of the opening curves in all three axis and the shape has to be symmetrical! I just couldn’t do it, so ended up with a slanted emitter as seen here…

Starkiller S-Curve early model 1

Starkiller S-Curve early model 2

I liked the saber but I was annoyed by the emitter as I had to leave off some details which would only work with the much more elegant and curvy shaped S-Curve. I tried numerous times to create a tube, then shape another “block” to use as a form and cut into the tube to achieve the shape. No luck. I eventually had to resort using an engineering trick to cut pipework and use a template to wrap around the part and cut to the template. Well I couldn’t attach a real template but I did use an image of a template as a guide like I did with my recent Star Destroyer hilt. I then dragged and positioned the individual points (known as Vertices) that connected the surface faces of the model into the right places. This was very tedious and had to be exact and so with this chest infection I decided to concentrate 110% on modelling the emitter and forget my illness….and I think it worked! Here are a couple of studio work in progress pictures…

Starkill S-Curve Studio 1

Close up of emitter showing S-Curve opening.

In the wireframe images you may be able to make out the blade socket and the “mouth” of the emitter and see a curved line that moves from left to right, front to back and which wraps up and down around the blade. That is the S-Curve and there is now a band, around 20mm wide that forms a collar which was missing from my original. This is important as the saber was modelled after a photographic flashgun handle known as the “Graflex” (but more on that later. Now enough talking Starkiller needs to get this saber ignited and I need to show you the Glamour Shots…

Starkiller S-Curve 1

Starkiller S-Curve 2

Starkiller S-Curve 3

Starkiller S-Curve 4

Starkiller S-Curve 5 (glass eye and crystal chamber)

Starkiller S-Curve 6 (S-Curve and bulb retention band)

Starkiller S-Curve (S-Curve more visible now)

As I mentioned the tube for this design was inspired by the 1930’s-40’s style camera flashguns seen used by newspaper reporters in old movies. They were called Graflex flash handles and LucasFilm used one to build Mark Hamill/Luke Skywalkers’ saber from Star Wars. The funny “Bunny Ear” shaped bits are actually the release mechanism for the flashbulb and the metal band held the bulb when pressure was released on the “Ears”. The Graflex flashgun however didn’t have a crystal chamber, that is strictly a Star Wars inspied detail. The other details include low profile activation switches on the ridged box, a pinched in “wasp-waist” midsection and the four rails running the length of the handgrip. Oh and a copper plated band!

Galen was raised as a Sith Apprentice so you may wonder why I have a blue blade on this hilt? Well, Galen was double crossed and betrayed by Vader during a particular mission and left for dead (Vader was testing Marek to see if he was worthy enough to be his apprentice…a do or die test) But Marek survived and later learned of his real identity, the son of Jedi Knights and turned to the light side. However as he was originally a Dark Side user and his saber was red once I made a few pictures showing his Sith version along with the Jedi hilt…

Galen Marek as a Jedi

Galen Mareks Sith Starkiller S-Curve 1

Galen Mareks Sith Starkiller S-Curve 2

Galen Mareks Sith Starkiller outdoors!

I thought I would take this hilt outdoors and see how it looked… er sort of, just a Blender image trick but I think it looks alright out in the wild. I have nearly finished this post but I have to let you know about some upcoming designs. The first and biggest news is that I have recreated an absolute ICON in Star Wars…the aforementioned “Graflex/Skywalker Lightsaber” The Graflex is a holy grail for saber collectors, builders and 3d modellers and I have achieved building one myself through the efforts I put in for this Starkiller hilt. The Graflex will be coming soon but I also have a few double bladed staff weapons (and the single hilt versions) so I hope you will return to see all these new designs in future posts. I really need to say a big thank you once more to all of you, my viewers/readers/followers as you keep supporting me and this site to produce more. You are all appreciated… Till next time….

Oh Wait! You may be wondering why the name Starkiller? Starkiller is the codename given to a clone of Galen Marek that Vader and the Emperor created after Marek died saving some Rebel fighters including Mon Mothma (Leader of the Rebel Alliance who gave the speech to the Rebels about Bothan Spies stealing the Death Star plans!)

“Starkiller S-Curve Saber” is a For Tyeth Design inspired by the saber seen in LucasArts/THQ Games’ “The Force Unleashed” series of video games. It is ©Copyright of For Tyeth/FTSabersite 2016-2019. The original design and all names, logos, images and related material are Trademark/©Copyright of LucasArt/THQ Games.

 

 

“Furious” Saber – Inspired by the 709th Red Fury Stormtroopers (Sith Troopers)

Hello Everybody, I hope you all enjoyed last weekend’s post and the little animation I dabbled with. Today I don’t have a new animation (but I have worked on one which I’ll post soon) however I do have the final version of my Trooper series of hilts. The inspiration for this redesign are the 709th Red Fury Stormtroopers, a legion of crack commando troopers of the First Order. The 709th were Kylo Ren’s private squad of troops (around 800 of them at full strength) and the equivalent of Darth Vader’s 501st Legion (known as Vader’s Fist). The 709th are best known as the troopers who were stationed on the planet Batuu, which you may have heard of as this planet was the inspiration for the new Disney “Galaxy’s Edge” theme park! It was also rumoured that these crack troopers would be appearing in The Rise Of Skywalker due out this December, this has yet to be confirmed (as far as I know) but a YouTuber known as Star Wars Explained posted a video about the Stormtroopers and their distinctive appearance.

Image from “Star Wars Explained” on YouTube

I was really taken by the new camouflage striping and thought that would look sweet on a saber handle. But how to include the stripes and make them “Pop”? Well, I had learnt how to create ribbed sections so I could make a vertical striped handgrip…however I also learnt how to “twist” those ribbed sections so the ribs wrapped around the handle in a spiral style. I thought the spiral ribs looked like the diagonal “Zebra” stripe camouflage. So, here are a few work in progress studio pictures…

Trooper Pommel

Wireframe of new handgrip.

The pommel is shared from previous Trooper hilts but the handgrip needed to be remodelled and as you can see in the wireframe image it sort of resembles a Harlequin! But those diamond panels are just the flat surfaces (known as Faces) that the 3D model is made from. Carefully positioning and rotating the Faces creates the spiral effect (like a screw fastener or Helter Skelter ride). Add the textures in alternating colours and you get the effect I am about to show you in the Glamour Pictures…

Furious Saber 1

Furious Saber 2

Furious Saber 3

Furious Saber 4

Furious Saber 5

Furious Emitter with components

As you can see using the techniques I mentioned above you get a striking look! I imagined that the black raised ribs were a tactical high grip material to prevent the saber from slipping from the trooper’s grip when raiding wet planets (or just on a messy battlefield in general). The red and black form an intimidating look especially as Stormtroopers usually wear white armour (The Imperial DeathTroopers from Rogue One and Captain Phasma’s chrome look being the two other non white armours). I have also started to add details in the mouth of the emitter to represent the in-universe components where the plasma blade projects from. I am really beginning to push my limits now adding more and more details and learning new functions of Blender. One of which is animations as mentioned above and I can say I have a very special hilt for Luke Skywalker which I will post nearer the release date of The Rise Of Skywalker which features animated details!

And as this is my final Trooper hilt I thought I would just add a gallery of the hilts together…

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Sadly this wraps up my series of Trooper inspired hilts (well till Disney and LucasFilm bring out a new trooper type!) I hope you have enjoyed them all. I am moving on to more new designs including some inspired by the computer games Star Wars Knights of The Old Republic (SW KoTOR) and Star Wars The Old Republic (SWTOR). I still have the hilt belonging to Darth Vader’s secret apprentice to show you all so I hope you will return to see those in future posts. But for now I have to say a BIG thank you as I have now broken 12,000 views, so if you are a regular viewer or a first time visitor thanks for all the support. It is very much appreciated. Till next time….

“Furious” Saber is a For Tyeth Editions design and is ©Copyright of For Tyeth/FTSabersite 2016-2019. The “Trooper” series of designs were inspired by Ralph McQuarrie’s original Stormtrooper concept art. All Star Wars names, logos, images and related material are Trademark/©Copyright of Disney/LucasFilm.

 

Annihilator Saber – Inspired by the Empire’s Star Destroyer

Hello Everybody, hope you are all well. I have a BIG saber to show you all today and not just a saber, but if you don’t like this design as a lightsaber you can remove the handle and use it as a model! (Plus I have a bonus item at the end of this post to check out!) The inspiration for today’s hilt is the awesome Star Destroyer. The Star Destroyer was the second ship we ever saw in the Star Wars universe and movies as it chased down Princess Leia’s transport ship the Tantive IV. That opening scene where the destroyer overflies the camera (and us) was phenomenal, the ship seemed to be never-ending. These ships were big, powerful, and could destroy planets (or at least wipe the surface clear of any inhabitants). They also carried dozens of TIE Fighters and hundreds of troopers. So I figured I should try and replicate an SD ship in saber form. So here is a work in progress picture of the basic outline model..

Now as you can see there are a few differences between the space ship and the saber, firstly there seems to be a long handle sticking out the back end (sorry, stern of the ship) and a big tube for the blade extending out of the bow. But I did try to make this model accurate as far as the basic shape was concerned and I used a set of blueprints I found on the net to help build the model. In Blender you can import and display images to act as reference guides, then you build the model “on top” of the pictures, pulling and shaping parts till they match the outlines. The blueprints I used look like this…

Ok so you have seen the studio WIP pictures, it’s time for the Glamour Shots gallery and you will notice I have a very special backdrop for the model this time…a 3D Space Panorama!….

Annihilator Saber 1

Annihilator Saber Emitter

Annihilator Saber Keel

Annihilator Saber “Hangar Bay Crystal Chamber”

Annihilator Saber Switch on rear of forecastle

Annihilator Saber Handgrip and Shield Generator Pommel

Annihilator Saber – or just as a model!

I recently perfected the trick of adding a 3 dimensional background for my models so thought a star scene would look better than a plain backdrop. From the images you should be able to pick out details such as superstructure which I etched into the body, the two secondary hangar bays on the port and starboard sides along with the forecastle (or bridge as it is sometimes called). I placed the red activation switch on the rear of the bridge structure. The pictures also highlight that I included a crystal chamber to represent the main shuttle hangar bay on the underside of the ship. Finally, on the handgrip I added a pommel that represents the SD’s “Shield Generator Globes”. These globes are the emitters for the shield and were originally located on the top of the bridge structure but after watching SOLO – A Star Wars Movie and seeing a Star Destroyer being assembled on Corellia I thought the globe would look great as a pommel. You can see the Generator Globe being lowered into place in this screenshot…

Copyright of Disney/LucasFilm Ltd.

Alright, that just about….WAIT! I still have a bonus to show you all yet! Not only have I learnt to add 3D backgrounds to my models but I have been working on my ANIMATION skills. I did a small animation of my TY Silencer Saber and thought the Star Destroyer would look “Impressive…most impressive!” animated with a space background so, if my video works….here is my animated Annihilator Saber (CAUTION!! There may be a Flashing Image issue for some people so if you are Photo Sensitive please be aware!!)

If the animation doesn’t work please let me know (but I tried it on YouTube and it seemed to display). I know it is a basic orbit and lasts a few seconds but I kinda liked it. However I have a much more advanced animation for my upcoming saber for the most famous Jedi Master ever, Luke Skywalker.

This time that does wrap things up for this post. I hope you enjoyed this design and I’d just like to say thanks to the developers of Blender 3D….because tomorrow marks the anniversary of my first Blender model based post. You can check out my first model by clicking HERE . I have only been using Blender for 365 days and it has allowed me to create sabers, pictures and animations like this ^^. And Blender makes it soo much fun!

So to you my viewers and followers, new and regulars, thank you soo much for joining me on my 3D modelling/saber designing journey and thanks for the continued support, it really means a lot me reading your comments and thoughts. Till next time…..

“Annihilator Saber” is a For Tyeth Editions design and is ©Copyright of For Tyeth/FTSabersite 2016-2019. The “Star Destroyer” and all Star Wars related names, images and related material are Trademark/©Copyright of Disney/LucasFilm Ltd.

Dishonoured Saber – Inspired by EA Games’ Jedi Fallen Order

Hello Everybody, I was going to post a hilt based on the famous Star Destroyer ship today but I have had a change of plans. The reason being that I have been working on a hilt inspired by the upcoming computer game by EA Games and Respawn Games, named Jedi Fallen Order. There has been a trailer posted online advertising it and numerous pictures of the cover art for the game featuring a damaged hilt with wires hanging out of it and a blue blade projecting from a distinctive emitter.

Box Cover Art Copyright of EA Games and Respawn Games

Well news of this game buzzed the Internet and Social Media and the very day these images were posted certain individuals set to work “creating” their own 3D take on it. I liked the design and wanted to complete the hilt as it looks as if part was missing. so I set to work and came up with my own version. Well, it turns out one professional saber designer posted his design and complimented himself on how quickly he had built “his” model – within 24 hours. I built the base model of mine in roughly the same length of time but didn’t post it as I was going to post it nearer the release date of the game. However the designer works for one of the big saber manufacturers in America and they have started selling the model and people have started receiving them, so I felt I should post my version now as twin pronged emitters seem to be popular right now. So here are a few work in progress images…

Dishonoured Saber in studio 1

Dishonoured Saber Wireframe 1

As you can see it has a distinctive double prong emitter (my own modified design), a nice thin necked section, the Knurled handgrip section but it has my own designed pommel part. The original emitter had two flat plates above and below the blade but I made an inset and raised it to make the plate seem embossed up. The pommel I also made to reflect the emitter having a twin pronged opening and some nice inlaid segments, not visible in these pics but there is one that show the details below in the glamour pictures. The knurling on the handgrip are properly aligned on my design and appear as “blocks” (as per the original EA/Respawn version) rather than the “diamond” shaped cutting on the other designer’s model. However enough chat, you want to see a few more pictures so it is time for the Glamour Shots….

Dishonoured Saber 1

Dishonoured Saber Emitter 1

Dishonoured Saber pommel with inlays

Dishonoured Saber Emitter lit

Dishonoured Saber Thin Neck

Dishonoured Saber full length lit

You can now see that the pommel has some nice inlaid sections filled with an accent colour. You will also be able to see the two tiered plates on the emitter making them look like medieval shields. And there is also some etched circuitry patterns located between these plates – just like EA/Respawn’s original. But to demonstrate I am not just copying a design and that I am always trying new stuff I made a few variants of the design and I have finally worked out how to add 3D image backgrounds so here are a few more pictures for you to enjoy…

Dishonoured Saber in the Falcon

First model I made named “Orderly”

I also have a Darkside Version!

I aso have a Darkside Version Two!

The EA Games original prototyp model.

My new “Temple” emitter for an upcoming new model.

I have a Dishonoured Saber in the Falcon! You can also see my original model I made which I called “Orderly” as in Fallen ORDER but I thought “Dishonoured” fit better as a name. There is also my Darkside versions with Sith red blades and a much darker and sleek black and silver colour scheme. The next picture shows a prototype model that was built by EA/Respawn Games’ design team to evaluate “THIER” design. The picture was circulated on the internet after the lead designer (allegedly) posted it on his Social Media – I included this to give credit to EA and Respawn Games for their work. Finally the final picture shows how I have modified my own design and modelled a new emitter named “Temple” with silver and gold and a Jedi symbol embossed onto it. (This will feature in another new build of mine in the near future!)

I think that just about wraps up this offering. I want to thank EA Games and Respawn Games for creating the original design. It was fun testing my skill in making this tribute of sorts. I hope you enjoyed it and I will post the Star Destroyer hilt next week as I have gone overboard with the 3D image backdrops. I want to thank you, my viewers/readers, whether a regular or new first time visitor I really appreciate your support as it keeps me designing and building. Till next time…..

“Dishonoured Saber” is a For Tyeth Edition hilt inspired by “Jedi Fallen Order” and is ©Copyright of For Tyeth?FTSabersite 2016-2019. “Jedi Fallen Order” is an EA Games/Respawn Games developed computer game due out in November 2019. All names, logos, and related materials of the game are Trademark/©Copyright of EA Games/Respawn Games.