There comes a time in every young man's life when he receives his first soldering iron. To me, that day feels like it was just yesterday. "That was yesterday -- you f***ing stole it out of my toolbox." Haha -- finders keepers!

About 1983, when I was fifteen, I dropped my dad's red Bakelite soldering gun and broke the casing. Of course he was upset, so I did my best to "fix it." So I took my original Star Wars Han Solo pistol and gutted it to hold the soldering gun components. I even ran the lightbulb up into the scope on top. The button on the handle worked well for the trigger switch. Ten years later, when the old house was sold, the gun wound up in my belongings. To this day, when an underpowered iron just won't do, I pull out the "Han Solderer" and get the job done. Half of me likes the mod, the other half is ill over the fact that I gutted my vintage Star Wars toy. What's done is done.

Sure you gutted your vintage Star Wars toy, but you made it even better. Just like I did with this gutted deer carcass. See? Before it was just a deer. But now -- now it's a gutted deer carcass sleeping bag. Tauntaun tie-in? I think so!

A picture of what the original 1977 Blaster toy looked like before modification after the jump.

Introducing: The Hans Solderer [make]

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Han Solo's Soldering Iron [neatorama]

Thanks to Alex, who recently modded his vintage AT-AT toy into a Micro-Machine display case. Whoa whoa whoa -- WHAT ARE YOU, F***ING NUTS?!