I've been toying around with the idea of making a full hilt single bladed Darth Maul Force FX lightsaber for some time now. Recently I scored one that I planned on taking apart. So I started last night. Here are the very early WIP pictures and a how-to in case anyone else is interested in doing the same thing.
First lower the o-ring between the two sections of the hilt:
Tap out the retention pin with a nail or screw:
Pull the retention pin out:
Heat the hilt with a blow dryer prior to unscrewing. The threads have a glue on them that hold them in place REALLY well. If possible, have a second person help you unscrew the two pieces:
Undo the clip holding the blade to the rest of the electronics in the hilt. Push the blade out through the top hilt piece:
Remove the On/Off cover and unscrew the switch:
Before removing the electronics from the hilt, you will also have to unscrew the silver knob under the On/Off switch as well as the belt clip from the back of the hilt. Push the electronics through the hilt:
Replace the silver knob and the belt clip, and screw the top piece of the hilt back into the main part of the hilt:
Replace the o-ring and put back the retaining pin:
Super glue the On/Off cover back on and then super glue the switch onto the hilt:
Lastly, put your new hilt on your 'battle damaged' FX Lightsaber, and you now have a single-bladed full hilt version:
