TOPIC: My Customized Gladius: Reliquum

Hey guys! I just wanted to share with you some pics and info on a saber that I've been working on lately. If you're in the Custom Lightsaber Owners group in FB, you've likely seen lots of this already, but for those who haven't, I give you the Reliquum:


This began as a Gladius bought second hand. I had in mind for a while to custom weather it and put on a different, more rugged grip to make it more mine and to fit with my character. So, first I'll tell you all about how I turned my Gladius into the Reliquum (which is Latin for what is left/remnant), and then I'll give you the story of the saber and the character.
So, for the longest time I wanted to weather my Gladius. I ended up posting on the FB page asking about how to weather a saber without taking out electronics, and our own Aletani led me to the video by Tim at TCSS on weathering a saber. I ended up using the basic technique for my saber but using a) several paints and colors, and b) a different method of removing paint.
The first thing I did was mask the saber off and scuff it up with some sandpaper. I used 180 grit, but you can really use any grit if you're going to be painting over it. Once I had finished that, I proceeded to completely paint it with gloss grey spray paint. Once the paint was on I used a heavy duty paper towel with paint thinner to dab the paint off and give the saber a mottled grey and silver look. I took no paint out of the sections that were originally black at first. Below is what I ended up with after this first step.












I let that grey coat dry for a day and then painted over that with a hammered bronze spray paint. I put this one on fairly thick and used the same method to remove some, dabbing away at it, but using less paint thinner on the paper towel to leave more paint on the hilt. I also left the bronze on entirely in the places where I left the grey on before. Both the grey and the bronze took time to get just right, but patience paid off in the end.
After I painted the bronze on, I let that dry. I should note here that I removed the masking tape that I put over the switch several times and replaced it to avoid covering it with too much paint and peeling off a bunch of paint when I ended up removing the masking at the end. Also, as Tim notes in his video, it's important to prevent the paint from acting as a glue, so I made sure to break free the pommel and both blade and LED retention screws.
Once the bronze coat dried, I did some sanding where the paint was not exactly as I wanted, mostly using fine grade steel wool but also using the 180 grit sandpaper again. Then put on a matte finish enamel clear coat to preserve the finish. In the areas where the paint had gone on thickly and I hadn't weathered, the clear coat caused the paint to bubble. For some, this is undesirable. On my hilt, it worked out nicely. A few more coats of clear coat over the bubbling locked it in and prevented it from flaking off. That left me with the finish pictured in the following posts.

Whoa, that's pretty awesome, just simply badass. Kinda makes me if Mad Max and Star Wars combined; very deserty looking, kickass man

greyjediDude wrote:
greyjediDude has a point. that is a badass saber man! Ride eternal, shiny and chrome!

This left me with one final task - figuring out what to do for the grip. Initially, I wanted to used T-grips all the way around the grip section, like on the emitter of the Jade Fire. The local hardware store didn't have what I was looking for, however, and ordering online was not an option as further saber-related purchases are banned by my parents. Instead, I wrapped the grip in electrical tape and then beat it up with 80 grit sandpaper to give it a weathered look to match the rest of the saber.
Now, here's the story of the Reliquum.
My character, Jyn-Toar Balir, was once a Jedi Master. This was perhaps three years before TPM, and Jyn-Toar and Qui-Gon Jinn were close affiliates and friends. Both shared similar viewpoints and were considered unorthodox among the Order. But Balir, unlike Jinn, married in secret. He had a wife and children, and the Council knew nothing about any of them. Jyn-Toar was forced to live in secrecy and fear of being found out by the Jedi. Which, somehow, he managed to do - for a time.
Now fast forward three years, just before the events of TPM. The Jedi Council discovers what Jyn-Toar has done, and he leaves the Order as soon as he finds out, refusing to be exiled. He took his wife and children and fled from Coruscant to Raxus Prime, hoping to start a peaceful life there. Placing his saber in a chest, he buried the weapon in a place where only he would be able to find it. He reasoned that the less affiliation that he had with the Jedi, the better off he would be.
Balir lived through the Clone Wars and the establishment of the Empire on Raxus Prime, working as he could and making a living as best as possible. He, his wife, and his children were happy, despite their circumstances. Unfortunately, the establishment of an Imperial Shipyard above Raxus Prime shattered the tenuous happiness and peace that Jyn-Toar had found on Raxus, and he and his family were forced to flee. Their flight led them to Kashyyyk, where Jyn-Toar befriended the Wookies and made his dwelling for a time. Though he had recovered his saber and brought it to Kashyyyk with him, he refused to use it and affiliate himself with the Jedi again.
Things changed, however, when Galen Marek came to Kashyyyk in search of Leia Organa. Though Marek and Balir never came into contact with one another while Marek was on Kashyyyk, Balir realized that things were changing. He and his family could no longer hide and let the world go on around them. Such a course of action was no longer safe. And so, after resisting his past for so long, Jyn-Toar opened the chest that he had sealed many years ago and took up his lightsaber.
The hilt had been ravaged by time and by the filth that it had been buried in on Raxus. It was filthy, covered with indelible grime. And years of disuse had caused the internals to decay. The power cell was totally dead, the crystals had shattered, and all of the internal parts were rusted and corroded.
Balir didn't have much trouble rebuilding the saber initially. He found a power cell with ease and was able to fabricate most of the other required materials. He was even able to fashion a focusing crystal. But for all that he was able to find, Jyn-Toar could not find a new power crystal for his saber. He knew that he couldn't go to Ilum to attain another crystal, for fear of running into Jedi or the Empire who may have overrun the planet in an attempt to control the crystal supply. And Balir had no knowledge of other crystal locations. Unable to attain a power crystal, Jyn-Toar meditated on the problem. He found his answer, of course. Without being able to attain a crystal, he was forced to create his own crystal using the Force and the life that surrounded him.
For ten years Balir poured his time and energy into forging a new power crystal for his saber. With the Force alone sustaining him, he had no other focus than the crystal. And after ten years, he achieved his goal. Using the Force and life around him, Jyn-Toar had created a new power crystal for his saber. But he had paid a price.
In creating the crystal, Balir had taken from everything near him life and energy. He had killed trees, Wookies, birds, animals, insects...and, when he came out of his trance, he found that to create the crystal he had taken the lives of his wife and children. And the crystal, when he looked, was red, for blood and life given, and engraved upon it was the word "sacrifice".
Again, Jyn-Toar meditated, unsure whether to use the crystal or not. His loss hurt deeply, and the crystal was all that remained of his family. To use it in a saber seemed a base thing that would desecrate his family. But when he meditated, Balir found that the opposite was true. Giving life to the saber, the crystal would serve a far greater purpose than being hidden away and kept only as a memory.
Putting the crystal in the saber, Jyn-Toar brought his long-dead weapon back to life, and he named it Reliquum, for he was alone, all that was left in the universe to stand for good and for peace and for the Force, not for light or dark, but for what was right. And whenever the crimson blade came alight, life and energy filled Balir, not from the thrill of battle but rather from the memory and gift of his family. For this reason he used the blade sparingly, only igniting it when it was absolutely necessary, for fear of marring the memory of those he had so dearly loved. It is in their memory that he fights, and it is for them that he continues to stand for what is right.

Thanks to anyone who read all of that! I know it was a lot, but I wanted to get it all written out. Anyhow, there you have it: Reliquum and the story of its wielder!

Glad you guys like it. It's my pride and joy (and my only saber).

Everytime I see this...



Other than that, fantastic job! Looks very rugged and you can definitely tell you put a lot of thought and effort into it, not just a quick slap job and called it "good enough." I am truly impressed.

Knytiri likes it! It took all of like three or four days to finish. And it was so worth the wait. Now I just need my new LED to come in. I ruined my old blue one so I'm waiting on the red one I got.

For some reason, I envision this saber with an Amber, or Blood Orange LED. Red will look sharp too tho, I imagine. =D

I thought the same once I finished it! I almost got a blood orange LED but switched to red at the last second.