TOPIC: To Go Initiate or Warrior for DIY

Hi All,

I've got a board or 2 burning a hole on my shelf and I would like to install it into a hilt. I have noticed that some people purchase Warrior tier hilts and then upgrade to sound and some purchase Initiate hilts and do full installs.

I'm just curious as to what are the advantages / disadvantages of each approach. Is going one way easier than the other?

So, for example, I'm thinking of getting an Oracle with Arctic Blue 12W+ and doing an install with an NEC Spark 2.

If I get the Initiate, I need to buy the LED at a minimum (and maybe the blade) and then I get into the LED switches, electronics, etc. Do I run into in snafu's this way...like the retention screws not being there or the holes not being threaded?

If I get the warrior, I get the blade and the LED and I have to then remove the latching switch (assuming with a heat gun) and add a momentary switch plus do the install. Would this be easier or harder?

Also, I realize there is a cost difference as well. A hilt, blade, and LED will be about $50 cheaper from Saberforge, but this does not include the parts I will need to do this install.

I'm just trying to get an idea of which direction you guys prefer to take and why. Thanks in advance!

Initiate would be less time consuming and more cost effective. With a Warrior you'd have to gut the hilt in order to install a board (at which point it would be essentially an Initiate). The cost of the Warrior also includes labor which you don't need since you'd be redoing it anyways. Initiates come with everything you need (screws, threading, etc.) so no worries there.

As far as self installing, one bit of advice: make sure you have enough room. I had a fairly long soundcard I installed along with a 4 battery pack. There was some cramming involved due to the choke on the saver restricting the room. Definitely possible, just some math involved.

Thank you both. It sounds like this is much more cut and dry than I thought it was. Easier on the wallet and easier to do. Sounds great! I'm planning on using an 18650 from TCSS. Thanks again for the confirmation. I'll watch the space as well.