The uber accurate Stormtrooper blaster power cylinders made by Andy (PlayfulWolfCub) on FISD 501st forum finally arrived.
The details of these greeblies are simply amazing, their accuracy surpasses any other attempt in making these cool parts of an E-11. He used a real trio of capacitors, added a great accurate weathering, and even beautiful display cases and numbered COA's.
You can find out more about the long research and the work involved in making these fantastic E-11 cylinders here:
E-11 Power Cylinders Research Thread - 501st First Imperial Stormtrooper Detachment.
From Andy's research: "We know that these were made from some type of electronic component but, despite fans searching long and hard over the years, no-one has yet discovered exactly what they were originally used for. The most recent research suggests that they were probably taken out of British military RADAR equipment from the 1950s.
There aren’t many detailed photographs of the Cylinders on blasters for us to study. Fortunately the same electronic components were also used on the MSE droid, Luke’s landspeeder and the Y-Wing targeting computer. Studying good photographs of these props provides us with enough information to recreate the E11 Power Cylinders very accurately."
There are 2 versions I chose to be made for my Sterling E-11 (though there are all 5 versions available):
- shape A - "Leia's Escort" used by the Stormtroopers escorting Leia on Tantive 4, this one is more weathered, and comes with a cool straggly wire
- shape B - "Detention Block" from one of Han’s E-11 blasters in the Detention Block corridor
Now I can finally say my Sterling blaster is finished, and I could display it with any of the 2 cylinders, because they come with strong earth magnets on the back. But I intend to display my blaster with the Detention Block version, and keep the weathered one in its small display box on the shelf next to the E-11.