How to make a slicer's tools
For a scoundrel of the Star Wars variety you need some tools to help break through vault doors and Imperial codes. Believe it or not, not everything can be solved with a blaster or lightsaber. So I tinkered around with some items from my box of random stuff to make a datapad, scramble key, and computer spike for the well-traveled slicer/hacker.
Datapad Materials
-External keypad
-Black spray paint
-White acrylic paint
-Clear coat enamel sealer
Scramble Key Materials
-White-out tape dispenser
Computer Spike Materials
-Nail art pen
-Plastic oddments
-Screwdriver bit
-Silver spray paint
-Black acrylic paint
-Red self-adhesive "gemstones"
Tools
-Superglue
1. Make a keypad
It seems like every good slicer should have their own keypad to bypass or infiltrate a new system. I had a devil of a time trying to find a picture of an example, but the codebreaker DJ in The Last Jedi uses such a device when finicking with the system of the stolen pleasure yacht the Libertine.
First I spray-painted the keypad with a couple of layers of black to cover the numbers and insignia.
I wasn't able to see all the key symbols on DJ's keypad, but I transcribed as many as I could. I used white acrylic paint to carefully paint the symbols on the keys.
2. Make a scramble key
Another potential tool in a disreputable scoundrel's toolkit would be a lockbreaker or "scramble key", a tool used to bypass electronic locks that require a password or code for entry. It doesn't really show up in the films, but a prop was made for Jango Fett's character for Attack of the Clones and it appears in the Star Wars: The Visual Encyclopedia.
Again this is my approximation of a lockbreaker, not a copy of Fett's but that makes sense since underworld tools lend themselves to a custom work. My base is a white out tape dispenser, with a few bits scavenged from a dollar store clip light and a plastic ring super-glued on either side.
I added a bobbin on one side after, then painted it a base color of copper, then started painting black and gold details with acrylic paint.
And here's the other side...
3. Computer spike
Another slicer tool of the trade is a computer spike or data spike, which is a device meant to bypass security and grant access to classified information. It's mentioned in a fair amount of Extended Universe material, though the best pictured examples are in the Star Wars: Rebels animated series.
As an illegal or at least highly regulated tool, it again makes sense that individuals might craft their own and so would vary in size and shape. But it still needs the "spike" shape, so I used a nail art pen I found in a dollar store, a white plastic oddment that was a piece of a plumbing reducing tee, a shorn off piece of sprinkler adapter, and a mismatched screwdriver bit. The black rubber washer I thought about using but eventually put back in my box of random parts.
So first I painted all the pieces silver, except the screwdriver bit.
Then I superglued the parts together.
And then painted some black stripes and details with acrylic paint. I finished it with clear coat sealer.
And finally I added a few small red self-adhesive "gemstones", two on one side and two on the other to resemble buttons or indicator lights.
And here it is for scale.
Kept in a handy belt pouch, basically a cheap work belt pouch from a home improvement store:
-External keypad
-Black spray paint
-White acrylic paint
-Clear coat enamel sealer
Scramble Key Materials
-White-out tape dispenser
-Assorted plastic oddments
-Copper spray paint
-Black and gold acrylic paintsComputer Spike Materials
-Nail art pen
-Plastic oddments
-Screwdriver bit
-Silver spray paint
-Black acrylic paint
-Red self-adhesive "gemstones"
Tools
-Superglue
1. Make a keypad
It seems like every good slicer should have their own keypad to bypass or infiltrate a new system. I had a devil of a time trying to find a picture of an example, but the codebreaker DJ in The Last Jedi uses such a device when finicking with the system of the stolen pleasure yacht the Libertine.
I made a stripped down version of this with an ordinary keypad I picked up for about $2 at a thrift store. The extra boxy bit near the USB jack was a random casing that fit perfectly around the cord, I'm not sure where it originally came from.
First I spray-painted the keypad with a couple of layers of black to cover the numbers and insignia.
I wasn't able to see all the key symbols on DJ's keypad, but I transcribed as many as I could. I used white acrylic paint to carefully paint the symbols on the keys.
And here's what it looks like with all the symbols on it. I added a few coats of clear coat enamel spray paint to keep the paint from flaking off.
2. Make a scramble key
Another potential tool in a disreputable scoundrel's toolkit would be a lockbreaker or "scramble key", a tool used to bypass electronic locks that require a password or code for entry. It doesn't really show up in the films, but a prop was made for Jango Fett's character for Attack of the Clones and it appears in the Star Wars: The Visual Encyclopedia.
Again this is my approximation of a lockbreaker, not a copy of Fett's but that makes sense since underworld tools lend themselves to a custom work. My base is a white out tape dispenser, with a few bits scavenged from a dollar store clip light and a plastic ring super-glued on either side.
I added a bobbin on one side after, then painted it a base color of copper, then started painting black and gold details with acrylic paint.
And with a little more paint it starts taking shape...
And here's the other side...
And to give you an idea of size. I admit, I just kind of added random shapes in black and gold paint. But it looks different and vaguely like a scramble key right?
3. Computer spike
Another slicer tool of the trade is a computer spike or data spike, which is a device meant to bypass security and grant access to classified information. It's mentioned in a fair amount of Extended Universe material, though the best pictured examples are in the Star Wars: Rebels animated series.
As an illegal or at least highly regulated tool, it again makes sense that individuals might craft their own and so would vary in size and shape. But it still needs the "spike" shape, so I used a nail art pen I found in a dollar store, a white plastic oddment that was a piece of a plumbing reducing tee, a shorn off piece of sprinkler adapter, and a mismatched screwdriver bit. The black rubber washer I thought about using but eventually put back in my box of random parts.
So first I painted all the pieces silver, except the screwdriver bit.
Then I superglued the parts together.
And then painted some black stripes and details with acrylic paint. I finished it with clear coat sealer.
And finally I added a few small red self-adhesive "gemstones", two on one side and two on the other to resemble buttons or indicator lights.
And here it is for scale.
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