Cool Stuff: DIY Floating 'Star Wars' Training Remote

Luke Skywalker fought one. So did a bunch of Jedi Younglings. And though Master Replicas did create a really nice prop replica, now, for only a fraction of the cost, you can build your very own Star Wars Jedi Training Remote. The best part is, unlike the Master Replicas one, yours can actually float. Check out the do-it-yourself video, as well some history on the device, seen in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones as well as Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, after the jump.

Here's the video. Turn your speakers down.

As you can tell, the main thing you need, besides a lot of time and patience, is an IFO 3000 Floating Globe. There are several websites that sell them, but many are sold out. However, with a simple Google search we were able to find this one site so chances are there are more. It's kind of pricey, though: 65 British pounds, which equates to about $100. Still, that's cheaper than an after market Master Replicas one that won't even actually float (a quick check of eBay saw one selling for about $400).

Here are some facts you may or may not have known about the training remote, thanks to the Star Wars Database.

"The most common model of remote is the Marksman-H , used extensively by sharpshooters to polish their skills. Han Solo owned one with which he refined his quickdraw abilities, firing at the remote with light-only blasts."

"In the most extreme cases, the remote's stun blasts can render the trainee unconscious."

"Remotes can also be programmed to serve as microphones, cargo lifters, baggage carriers, and long-range surveillance units."

And while all of that is hilariously detailed, here's something that is actually kind of cool, from the same page.

The concept of the training remote came from Imperial seeker drones that George Lucas originally intended to have patroling Mos Eisley in the first Star Wars film. They appear in at least one well known Ralph McQuarrie production illustration of Luke Skywalker encountering belligerent aliens at the Mos Eisley Cantina. When shooting floating remotes proved impractical, Lucas adapted the idea to Luke's training device aboard the Millennium Falcon. In the Special Edition release of A New Hope, Lucas was finally able to get his Imperial seekers in the forms of floating Imperial sentry drones accompanying the stormtrooper patrols searching for the droids. Training remotes have not too distant mechanical cousins in the forms of Darth Maul's Sith probe droids.

That sounds like something I wouldn't mind having in my possession, especially if it floated like in the video.

Does anyone have the desire to try this out? Or, if you really wanted one, would you just buy a replica?

Source: Gizmodo; Image: Rebelscum