Mercury Crystal Chamber DIY Info



Here's how you put a crystal chamber in your Mercury saber:

1 - You're going to need the 3D printed chamber parts. These are usually available from me, directly. If I have them in stock, they will be listed on the accessories page. If I don't have them in stock, I can order some for you. This will take several weeks before shipping, so keep that in mind. Message me to discuss if they are out-of-stock. I offer the three necessary pieces for the chamber as one unit. They are usually available in polished brass.

2 - You'll also need one 12" piece of K&S Metal 3/16" round tubing with 0.014" wall thickness. You'll cut this into two, 1.25" pieces to hide your wiring.  Here are the tubes I use:
K&S #8128 Round Brass Tubing (MAKE SURE TO SELECT 3/16" size!!)
K&S #8119 Round Copper Tubing (MAKE SURE TO SELECT 3/16" size!!)
K&S #8103 Round Aluminum Tubing (MAKE SURE TO SELECT 3/16" size!!)

Once you're sure you've got them the right length, and you deburr the ends with some high grit sandpaper inside and out, go ahead and glue them in with some E6000 or other removable glue.

And do yourself a favor and buy one of these little Precision Metal Saws from K&S while you're at it. They do a remarkable job of giving you neat, precise cuts and are only a few bucks. You won't regret it if you plan on doing any other crystal chamber work of any kind.

3 - Next, you'll want a 16mm ROUND crystalNobi Wan's Glass Hut sells the absolute BEST glass crystals around! Contact them to get a bangin' crystal for your saber. You'll be glad you did! If that's just not in the budget, there are many sellers on eBay, Etsy and Amazon that offer 16mm round amethyst and quartz crystals. Here's one seller in China you can try.(Caution: watch the shipping prices!) You can also try this eBay seller is in the United States but they often sell out of clear crystals. Make sure to select one of the "clear" crystals in the listing. You can "crack" these quartz crystal yourself, if you're wanting that look.

4 - You'll also need longer threaded chassis rods. The Mercury uses 4-40 threaded rods and you'll need to cut two rods down to 3.5" to allow extra length to fit your chamber. You'll use the same nuts that came with your Mercury.

I also recommend tapering the tips just a little to help the chassis nuts go on easier. I use a bench top belt sander and spin the rods between my fingers on a sharp angle to taper the tips. You can also chuck the threaded rod into your drill and turn it against some sand paper for the same effect. One 12" threaded rod will be enough to mount your chamber and chassis. Try this eBay seller. Or McMaster Carr for fancy, stainless steel rod. I also find it locally at my ACE Hardware store.


5 - Finally, you'll need something to light up this chamber! The lower brass chamber piece is designed to hold a 5mm pixel/LED. You'll want to sand down the tip of the LED so it will fit inside the hole and stay under the round crystal. I usually sand the LED until it's 0.25" long and then glue it into the bottom chamber piece with some E6000 or other removable glue. Make sure to note how to wire your LED up, as there are different schematics for each manufacturer. You can get great pixel LEDs from Saberbay for really cheap.


You'll also have to sand the top side flat so it will fit into the Mercury chassis. There's no real precision needed here. Just sand off the top so it's flat.

See the flat side? It faces up, toward the top side (soundboard side) of the Mercury chassis.

Like this:

Once you've test fit the LED with all of the other components, and you know it fits, glue in the LED. Then you can slide the entire chamber together and see the fruits of your labor!

Voila! A Mercury crystal chamber! Congrats!