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[Jaster Fett]

Oya ner vod!

I've been playing around with this idea of doing my own EE-3 scratch build and ever got around to it. Mostly, because the amount of work felt in intimidating at the time. Now, I'm taking the plunge.

I'm using the Happy Trooper ESB EE-3 Build Tutorial as a foundation to work with, but rather than build the whole prop from scratch

https://happytrooper.com/?p=5900

I'm using the body of a Rubies EE-3 blaster as the base.

I downloaded and printed the WoF templates I need to make the stalk out of, knowing full well the existing templates will need to be modified as the Rubies body is actually slightly smaller than the templates will allow. So, rather than build a prop around the template, I'm going to build a template around an established prop piece.



I will start by tracing a pattern of the grip of the Rubies as my foundation and scale it to that. I will then attempt to trace the new patterns on poster board paper and get started from there


This scratch build is a custom build, combining elements from the two Trilogy versions of the same blaster, in addition, modifying the muzzle to resemble the E-11d used by the Death Troopers in Rogue One

[Vor'en Marr]

Good luck Vod. I've planned loads of times to build one, never got round to it. following with interest

[Jaster Fett]

Here for an update



This portion went WAY easier than I feared.

I made some very small and miniscule adjustment to the stalk connector template. The stalk itself might be a hair shorter than I planned but it should still work.

The blaster sits at 20" in length as it is right now. The barrel will easily cover the remaining 13" to make it a 1:1 scale length

Next phase will be to get the wood, adhesives, screws, and cutting tools to get started on the stalk as well as the PVC pipe needed for the barrel

I'm going to order a Tasco scope soon

[MMcFett]

Looks cool! I too am planning to build an EE-3 based on that video. One of these days.

[Jaster Fett]

Back with an update everyone!

I went out of town this weekend, but before I did, I got all the wood and tools I needed. Each template needed different thickness of wood for the stock to come together. The left stock used 1/2" wood, the connector used 1/4" wood and the right stock used 1" wood. I took the templates and traced them into their assigned wood boards and cut them out using a jigsaw. The connector's grip hole had to be cut using a dremel drill bit







Next will be to sand down the connector to smooth down the rough edges and to fit the left stock

Both halves of the stock will be glued together and have their edges be sanded down to a nice, flat surface

[Jaster Fett]

I sandwiched the two halves of the stock together to form the whole pieces and started sanding down the edges with a sanding drum from my dremel. This will make sanding the edges a little easier. I went on ahead and drilled the two connecting holes into the stock for the connector and the one on the handle to hold the connector in place. I will bring these pieces together with 1" post screws and a combination of wood glue for the connector onto the stock and E-6000 for the connector and blaster handles to hold the pieces in place. This step will be done near last as I still have to paint the connector and apply varnish to the stock. I was planning on doing this on Tuesday as that was my next day off but I picked up an extra day of work (more money for Celebration next year).




Next immediate step will be to work on the blaster barrel. I'm going to get a 16" long PVC pipe of appropriate size here tomorrow.

[MMcFett]

Looking good!

[spideyplumhead]

looking good ...did my stock the same way

[Jaster Fett]

The blaster is almost done


I bought a 1½" PVC pipe for the barrel and cut it down to 16" and secured it first 3" into the body of the blaster.

I initially thought of making it resemble an E-11d but felt it lacked detail. So instead, I used some inspiration from Kruser, my Alor'ad from Gurreck Clan.

I bought some flat balsa wood sticks, a 1½" PVC pipe connector, and auto-fluid funnel. I added the connector to the end of the muzzle. I then cut the funnel down to the appropriate fit and fixed it into the muzzle with glue.

I cut about 7 pieces of balsa wood down to 13", the length of the barrel from base to muzzle, and glued them to the barrel to emulate the spines on the barrel of Boba Fett's ROTJ. blaster.

After that, I cut out a half inch wide hand inch thick piece of wood left over from building the stock and screwed it to the blaster to act as the scope mount.



All that's left on the body is a quick sanding to smooth down some rough areas before painting it with a satin black gunmetal


The stock connector is being glued to the handle with E-6000 up your extra hold and reinforcement.

Next up, I will be painting the blaster

[Anansi]

Very nice. Can't wait to see the finished product.

[Jaster Fett]

Well, that's it. She's done!




When I initially finished the blaster, I did not like how shallow the muzzle was or how long the barrel turned out. So, I redid the whole barrel using the same methods as before, but this time I shortened the barrel by about 3 inches. I used a smaller oil funnel for the muzzle, which gave it a longer and more pronounced profile than before. I painted the body with Rustoleum Universal Gunmetal black (kid you not, they make a gunmetal colored paint. Blew my precious mind).

I then dry brushed silver over the raised areas and edges and topped it off with a matte clear coat and voila! One EE-3

I took some action shots with it to give you an idea as to the scale.




I know this WIP was VERY brief but I hope you enjoyed it all the same!

[MMcFett]

Dude, that looks good!