I am looking for an inexpensive source for material to use as the
blade portion of a lightsaber project.  The material should be made
out of electroluminescent ribbon/tape/film/paper/whatever, measure
approximately 36 inches in length, and be able to be wrapped around a
wooden dowel (via adhesive) and be able to be connected to a 9-volt
battery for power. Wrapping method is either spiral (thus needing to
be longer than 36 inches) or length-wise, needing to be exactly 36
inches by 2 inches (to wrap around completely). The Indiglo material
used in Timex watches uses this same-or-similar effect, and has an
almost indefinite lifespan.

Another option would be to simply have a solid rod of this material
that is sturdy enough for mock swordfighting, and still be able to
take a beating without breaking/shattering.  Target price for one
lightsaber blade: $30 or less, at a quantity of anywhere from 1 to 50.

To clarify, I am looking for a material than can be powered on its own
via a 9-volt battery, to be used as a sword for demonstration or
re-enactment, glowing of its own ability, NOT aided by any exterior
source (such as a black light).  Options that are NOT compatible:
Californeon, glowsticks, neon lights, flourescents.

A similar product of which I am trying to build can be found at:
http://www.parksabers.com/features_info.html
(stole my idea! Grr! (though, he has been around for 8 yrs, sheesh))

Payment will be granted to the Researcher (I will be very selective)
who can point me to a company who can manufacture precisely what I am
seeking in under 50 items, sell to an individual, and for under $30
per item.  If I could get ParkSaber's manufacturer, that'd be even
better! heheh

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Clarification of Question by thehomeland-ga on 22 Jun 2002 03:34 PDT

Regarding the Californeon question:

Yes, but Californeon is a retail product.  I am seeking a
non-brand-name product of the same calibre that is less expensive and
more customizable to my needs, instead of adapting a pre-existing
publicly-available product to suit me.
Thanks for noting that, though.

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Request for Question Clarification by spot_tippybuttons-ga on 19 Jul 2002 06:02 PDT

You stated you were interested in knowing Park Sabers' manufacturer.
According to the Park Sabers website and an article in "The Facts"
newspaper (http://thefacts.com/story.lasso?-datasource=facts&-table=newsb&ID=3396&-search)
all lightsabers from ParkSabers are hand assembled by Jeffery Parks,
the owner/proprietor of Park Sabers.

Would you be interested in doing something similar? (i.e. aquiring
parts that could be hand-assembled by yourself or your employees?)

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Clarification of Question by thehomeland-ga on 19 Jul 2002 12:26 PDT

Please clarify your question further--all questions you asked are
already answered in the original listing.  Park's blade lamps (the
part that glows) are NOT manufactured by him, but are produced and
shipped from overseas, according to the article.

In your question, you explicitly ruled out Californeon:
http://www.californeon.net/

However, their products seem to meet all your requirements:
electroluminescent, can be powered by a 9V battery, under $30 in
single quantities, sell to individuals or in bulk.

Elliott C Evans has made a 36-inch long 9V lightsaber by
spirally-wrapping Californeon tape onto a dowel:
http://www.ee0r.com/proj/elrod.html

Try here, I know they are in UK but could be a start.

http://www.rhti.co.uk/prod_prototyping.htm

I am working on a similar lightsaber project, and I found a site where
on can order polycarbonite tubing similar to what they use at
parksabers.  4 feet of tube cost me about five bucks, and it shipped
in like a day!

the site is http://www.mcmaster.com

may the force be with you!

to spot_tippybuttons:

Note that I am not seeking a manufacturer of the lightsaber as a
whole, I am seeking the manufacturer of a specific piece (the glowing
rod portion).  The ParkSaber's site says that he/they receive the
glowing rod material from an overseas manufacturer.. I was interested
in who that was exactly, or a comparable source.