| Micro Collection Darth Vader Sabers on Sprue | |
| The collection of Micro Darth Vader lightsabers showcased features eight examples still attached to the sprue. A total of 16 sabers was once unified by this sprue branch. Liquified plastic travels through channels in the steel mold and cools once the appropriate cavities have been filled. The excess plastic (sprue) joining all of the sabers corresponds to those mold channels. An analogy to a car, highway, and retail stores can be made to better illustrate this process. Think of the liquified plastic as the car and the saber cavities as retail stores. The car (plastic) must travel via a highway (mold channel) in order to arrive at its final retail store destinations (saber cavities). The sprues are typically recycled (as regrind) to make additional toys after the usable portions are removed . As such, the sprue's continued attachment to these sabers after all these years makes for an interesting curiosity and provides insight into the actual molding of the accessories. |
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| Description by: | Michael G. Mensinger |
| Photo: | The Earth Collectible Toy Mall |
| From the collection of: | The Earth Collectible Toy Mall |
| Country: | United States |
| Film: | Empire Strikes Back |
| Licensee: | Kenner |
| Year: | 1980 |
| Category: | Prototypes / Micro Collection |