Lichtbringer

Hi Mark, i agree to disagree. While a deposit may be a good thing to keep customers on line at high priced runs/objects, and also for commissioned builds ..... it should be not applicable for smaller items like this. No matter what will be charged later, most of the investment is time, only a minor part is material. These parts are made one by one after another, then the next customer on the list can be asked for payment. So what´s the badest thing that can happen if he is not ready for immediate payment? He can ask to be moved to the end of the list for another try, or beeing deleted - no matter what he does, Andy can just offer the item to the next person without any lost or longtime sitting on the part until it´s taken. After that - starting the next one. I don´t see any need for a deposit, and the rules say "Items have to be in hand and ready for shipment before taking money". I will never understand why some people are so crazy about paying in advance, for me taking money upfront is one of the most problem generating things in the hobby. Buyer mentions interest, and if i agree to make his part/s i inform him when i start on his item and the final price, then when his item is ready i ask for payment, he pays, i bring his parcel to the post office - life can be easy.

Hmm, as far as i understand this threads going, it´s no longer any research, nor any build for private use. So, shouldn´t it be moved over to the "for sale" section for ongoing runs? And then, shouldn´t the rules for "for sale" be obeyed? For example: 9) Merchandise must be “in-hand†and ready to ship before accepting payment. Interest threads are allowed to determine selling order. Additional to that .... the parts he´s using cost next to nothing, so any deposit should not be needed. I´ve seen to often "live happened" on sellers side, and then the buying people were crying/whining and moaning. Most often the same people who were glad to pay upfront first.

Vern, i can make you the scope so you can use it on your MGC. You can cast it for your ROTJ kits - i will charge nothing extra for that copy thing, only asking you consider that in the kit-price, so the FISD get´s them as cheap as possible. The same for the real sight piece - you can use it for the kits for free - i just want it back after you made the mold of it. I´m not talking about you would recast anything, as you would have my permission to cast them for the FISD - i just want them sold in your kits only, not as single pieces, as i feel they would be recasted faster if someone can buy a single scope cheaper at ebay (or else) than a complete kit on FISD. Control is better here than on ebay. I don´t do runs, to time consuming and to often going bad when life strikes. But if someone wants a certain piece and is in no hurry, i always try to find some time to help him with that. He just needs to pm me with his wishes, and when i´m able to do it, i will let him know. With my real world job it´s easier for me to work 2 hours here and 5 hours then, instead of doing 20 pieces with 5 hours each as fast as possible. Just look at the RPF regarding delays of such stuff - it takes the fun out of the hobby. I prefer doing one by one, maybe other things in between, to keep it interesting and fun. Just as a hobby.

My mill is still teasing me. I make my parts on actual chinese machines - but additional i bought several old industrial machines from the sixties. Refurbishing them, more than needed for just using them (all of them were in working condition) - bearings, paint ...... a complete workaround, to get them like brand new delivered. I like old machines and cars. Helping him with parts helps the FISD, so ......

Hi Mathias, yeah, i´m not that much here these days as i would prefer. Bought some vintage machines and giving them a lot of tlc takes a lot of my free time.

Oh, that´s something you need to discuss with Mrs. Licht. It might take some time, but i can. I´m just a simple man, trying to build my way in the hobby. Sure. No, not really. I´m not into the hobby to make as much money as possible, so ..... if you give your word to consider that when calculating the prices and don´t margin it up (not over your time and materials), selling no scopes on ebay (i don´t want them sold by recasters), so selling them only on complete blasters/kits for this our community ..... i will make them for the pure price according to the spend time, just like a item for private use on your MGC. That might keep the price for the FISD a little bit lower, and help those troopers with little income. If you don´t mind the costs for sending it back, after making a mold and putting the first cast by side for later molds ..... i will lend out the original pellet gun rearsight piece to you, so you can make that, too.

Aye, it´s the main part of the rearsight of the pellet gun that was used to build Jabbas Palace Guard Blaster. I have 2 of the guns, one build and one stored, but one of the sights i will use for my planned metal replica of the MGC-Sterling, and the second will remain with the gun in case i decide to sell it as a Guard blaster (kit or build). The scoperail - not sure if they used the original or machined one, but there were such rails available for the sterling at some time. I´ve posted pics/links, not sure if here or somewhere on the RPF. The scope - the closest looking real part i found was the frontbell of the compac super scope they used to make the ANH Greedo Killer scope. For the GK they disassembled the frontbell from the compac to improve it´s look resembling the Hensoldt of the ANH-Hero. In my opinion they later reused it as the endpiece of the ROTJ Solo-Blaster (and casts for the troopers blasters and Solos Stunt-blasters). The bad news - these compacs were hunted by everyone who builds a GK, but i think i can count the found real compac scopes in the community with the fingers of one hand. It´s the rarest/hardest to find scope i noticed in SW. The used frontpiece was machined and added with a pop-rivet - as far as i know noone knows what the small tip on it was. I made one for my ROTJ-Solo - real scopebell, machined frontpart, machined tip:

That needs A LOT of luck these days in Germany. More than ever in the past. At least if you gonna stay legal.

There is a easy answer - the metal tube was always smooth. And the paint was wrinkled AND smooth, depending on version, date, and manufacturer of the gun.

Pardon, but none of my weapons used in military was wrinkle painted. You don´t want it shiny to avoid reflections by night, but if someone is not able to hold a wet and slippery gun, he better drives a green truck, or is playing vidgames in a bunker behind the lines. Sterlings were made by licensed subcontractors all over the (british) empire, they were not all made the same way over all the decades it was in production - not in details and not in paint. So there is not "THE Sterling", but many versions. I know that Vern is convinced by his opinion that his painting is the ultimate accurate version, but it is no general fact. Just the version he likes to explain. I assume this http://www.deactivated-guns.co.uk/deactivated-guns/modern-deactivated-guns/deactivated-sterling-smg/prod_223.html is also no real one, cause it didn´t match his rough (with missing areas) wrinklepaint-theory (and indeed some sterlings looked that way, but not all)? Sure, they shouldn´t have a shiny gloss black, as they are no cars with top quality paintjobs - they just got a quick and sometimes uneven bath with paint, with all it´s small imperfections. Not flat black, more a satin, semiflat black. Sometimes even repainted while in military use, if to much surface is damaged scratched. Just my 2 cants, for what it´s worth.

I havn´t forgotten that, ever. But i think of it in another way. While on duty i was a member of the 27th airborne brigade, having my papers as a group-sniper (+ some other) It´s not that i don´t like or hate weapons, but i don´t care - they are just tools, like a hammer. It´s always the person that moves the trigger that effects the kill. A gun will never have bad dreams due to that what it has seen/done. That´s why they are for me just metal, shaped to be used as a SW prop, or useless.

Thank god i´m prop fixated only, real guns mean nothing to me - so i don´t care to chop a rare gun with historical value when needed to make a blaster. But also from the prop point of view ..... they used some really castrated and cut up Sterlings in ANH, too.

Aye, probably. But i wonder why there are so many Hengstler sided pics, and not a single one from bolt and spring ...... maybe the buyer could see something there he wouldn´t like?

I think that´s not really bad - at the end of the day we are E-11 collectors, and not gun collectors. On a blaster there is no reason to open, we just need the moveable cocking lever to toy around. The best solution would be something like Erv´s "electronic blaster chamber with crystal" - but modifying on a deac is no good idea, not even if it´s "more deac" thereafter. Maybe one day i will find time to machine me a metal one with electronics - then i will use the alu t-track on that and make the real one completely accurate.

Aye, Turrican - i´ve won it in a ebay auction. Got it completly build for iirr 560€. Considered the available info some years ago it was not completlely accurate by todays standards, but the build itself was to highest levels. I´m nitpicking, and i found nothing to be upset. - The Hengstler and the M38 were resin ones - top casts, but already replaced with real stuff. - The mag-cylinders are metal, not far in size from our newest infos, just missing the 3 caps (and therefor different shaped "holder") - will be replaced in a not to far future. - The t-tracks are made from alu, the top track is one hole to long, you see the scopebar is bolted on top and not latched into the last hole - i have Marv plastic tracks here, but i love the alu so much (more gun-feeling when handling ), i can´t bring myself to replace the alu ones. And without a free last hole i can´t fit a accurate scopebar. Maybe one day ....... 290€? Ouch, therefor he needs a good beating, just to keep him reminded how lucky he was.

Should be new specs, as they seem to be completely castrated. Mine was probably deactivated in the time they changed from old to new spec, as it has something from both regulations. 6 holes in the barrel, which was also welded into the receiver, has a welded chamber and a plugged muzzle. 45° milled bolt with deac´ed pin. welded fire selector, and welded inner trigger mechanism (trigger is moving without any function). The bolt is moveable by pulling it´s lever. But no catch-function in the rear (as mentioned, no trigger function) ---------

Aye, M38 is best - for me too. ---------

It´s short, should be a M19 - much more rare and much more expensive than the correct M38. And much more people are searching for them - they are needed for the Solo/Luke ESB blaster versions

Not sure how the UK and german deac rules compare to each other - my deac was a german deactivated. I HEARD the UK sterlings are OK to own here in D - but i heared that only in a forum, not from any officials like BKA. If allowed, everything is fine. If not allowed (due to different regulations) and you are caught with having it without the german needed deactivation it will be handled as a not deactivated one, then you will be harder punished than with a live firing hunting rifle (which is allowed to own with the correct papers, as the Sterling is under 60cm and with foldable stick it´s listed as a hidden wearable automatic assault gun). Find a gun, get the papers faxed/emailed, and ask the BKA or your local Beschußamt if they may compare them with our rules.

Buying L2A3 MK4 in the UK: New spec - 350 to 500 GBP Old spec - 500 to 1000 GBP Usual prices for the standard used ones, depending on condition. Very nice or pristine ones are higher valued and open to the sky - same situation as with everything else thats searched by collectors.

Ask Kai, he should have plenty of his casts - and if not he can cast a new one for you, i assume.

A good propmaker uses all info/pics he can get, takes them into consideration to make his own mind of the details - and then comes to his own version. But he never takes anything as a fact that comes from another persons assumptions. Copying something 1:1 brings always the danger to copy possible mistakes. Only measured from the real deal is really fact. And while resembling the same basic shape, usually there are always small differencies when 2 people are "guessing" from angled pics. And as i explained some posts above, i don´t think anyone will use your plans to make money - i was just teasing you . Maybe someone will bring out a version with the same appearance (3 caps, angled backplate, ...), maybe noone cares about it cause they think there is no additional profit to gain. A good part is not only made from it´s dimensions, also and foremost from the way it looks. To build this special part the bracket needs to look as made with industrial mass production of the old days, with added parts like viewable on the pics - and only the cutting lines between 2 sets should look as made from hand. Mass production for profit needs numbers made with todays tools (especially cnc), which would not resemble the way the old stuff looks - additional refining by hand would ruin their prices. On the other hand it´s also hard to achieve the needed look only with hand tools. It´s doable, but many hours need to be used and paid, only to get the look/part of the industrial appearance - that hours to recreate a machined look by hand brings the price disproportional up. I know that cause i´m a trained metal worker (have gone to school again later and now in a office since close to 20 years) and spent hundreds of hours with files and other hand tools to learn the jobs basics. And cause i wasn´t satisfied with many bought prop parts in one of these directions or the other (cnc/hand), and not willing to spend the additional hours to make it from hand myself, i decided to buy my machines. Some things are best done the same way as they did it in that days. But on the other hand - i´m german, part engineer and part number cruncher - so it is possible that i´m more nit-picking/to nit-picking on such things. But that´s a main reason for me to prefer the use of selfmade parts (unless i KNOW the bought parts will suit my expectations - so the only person to blame is myself. If my work is imperfect to my eyes, it´s not the same situation as if i had bought other persons imperfect stuff.

You think to much about it - just make as much as you can do/sell - and enjoy your work, that´s the most important thing.

Andy, i´m just playing devils advocate, so you can imagine what all may happen, and is happened before - and that you shouldn´t be to upset with the world if it might happen to you, too. It´s only a hobby. Making the same stuff is usually not considered as recasting, as the stuff is not taken and multiplied via RTV and Resin - making the same stuff usually involves the same amount of material and work for both. There is a lot of stuff out there that is offered from more than one person. Huuuh, thin line - which leads often to long an heated discussions. It´s not solely your work, it´s based on other people finding the real parts, it was a kind of group effect with discussions, opinions and sugestions of a lot of people. You made the paperwork and the main part, but you never mentioned you are gonna making parts for sale and noone else should. In fact, noone would know whith what piece you would have aired without that input. I´ve seen such things happen, that when some people noticed such teamwork would lead to one person trying to make money from it - the knowing guys just shut up and waited for him running against the wall. "I know definately your stuff is wrong, but i will not participate in you making money as long as the result is not free for everyone" - i did this several times myself, sitting on the real part and keeping silence. Willing to share for free, but not to help someone else business plan. It would be a completly different story if you would have done all the work alone and then offering the pieces - then it would be indeed a bad taste to copy them. There was never any need to copy Russ design, it is known for long that it is not really accurate, there was just no other/better kid in town with better toys. And with him having all the cnc machines makes it hard for anyone else to offer the same stuff for same or less money. There are resin versions out there for the cheaper builds. He had found a sweet and safe niche - the cheaper resin out there, his the only metal one in the mass market, and no better with higher price available. That´s why noone did offer other versions on regular basis. Atm. i´m making equipment for smugglers and rebels - so it might take some time until i can do more work on it. With my mill out of order i can atm. anyway only do the lathe work.

Sweet. I´m no expert in helmets and armor, but it looks nice.