How to put working Lights into your 75021 Republic Gunship

Hey there everyone. I've been gone quite a long time. Back when I first joined, I didn't really post a whole lot, but I've decided to return. I got myself pretty much all the fall 2013 star wars sets, and have been experimenting with an idea I had, what if it were possible to put working lego electronic lights into a Republic Gunship and AT-TE, without using any modified parts. After much work, I have finally found a way to do lights in both the AT-TE and the Gunship. So without further ado, I present to you, building steps for how to install working unmodified lights into your Republic Gunship.

Click the photos to be linked to larger versions of the images. Sorry for the change in lighting throughout the pictures, sometimes the flash from my camera makes it hard to see the separate white parts, so I don't always use it.


Step 1: Begin with a standard 75021 Republic Gunship (Mine is slightly modded with orange accents and a few other things, but the base design is still the same)



Step 2: Absolutely necessary parts. You will also need a wire of whatever desired length (I recommend the 15-stud long ones), and two of these lights.



Step 3: Recommended parts



Step 4: Remove any parts that may get in your way, including minifigs inside the hangar. I also recommend removing the wings, although you don't absolutely need to.



Step 5: Remove this chunk of the ship.



Step 6: Remove the two sides of the upper section of the ship.



Step 7: Continue by removing all the above-shown parts.



Step 8: Remove the 4 containers. It is your choice whether or not you want to keep them. I chose to turn them into a crate as shown below.



Step 9: Canister pod



Step 10: Remove these two pieces



Step 11: Replace the four openings where the canisters used to be with these four bricks. Also, run a wire from the hanger roof through the opening in front of the handle as shown.



Step 12: Place these three plates on the bottom of the battery box. Make sure to put in a 9V battery first, so you don't have to go back and do it later!



Step 13: Place the battery box in the space shown. Attach the lead of wire to the battery box (make sure to skip one set of studs, this is crucial).



Step 14: Place two of the slopes in front of the wire end, and two small cheese slopes behind the co-pilot. Place 2 L-shaped plates around the wire opening.



Step 15: Place two 1x2 plates ontop of the L-shaped ones, then another two L-shaped plates facing in the opposite direction atop those. Finally, place two 1x3 plates ontop, bridging the battery box to the L-shaped plates.



Step 16: Place two more 1x3 plates on both sides of the end of the wire. Place two rounded slopes atop them, and finally, place a 2x4 tile on top of the wire end.



Step 17: Place two more rounded slopes to cover the wiring.



Step 18: Reattach the remaining large sections of the upper part of the ship, excluding the wings. You may fill in the gaps as desired. I intentionally left the 1x4 block area behind the co-pilot exposed so you can still press the button on the battery box.



Step 19: Next comes the lights. There is no specific way you have to place them, but I chose to do it in this configuration. With a few red studs, as well as two round trans-orange bricks, I can get the two lamps to light up the whole hangar.



Step 20: Above are the parts you should still have remaining, assuming you used the same method I did.



Step 21: Reattach the wings and put all your figs back in, your done!



Step 22: And boy does it look sweet!

What are everyone's thoughts/suggestions for this? The only thing that really seemed to have me stumped was the rounded slopes in front of the handle, I couldn't figure out a sturdier design. While it does hold up, it looks a little awkward with all the obvious spaces between the bricks. I can't figure out a better looking way to do it and still have room for the wire though. Ideas?  

I will be posting the guide for how to put lights into a 75019 AT-TE soon!

Nicely put together tutorial! The end product looks great.