Locate two keyboards preferably with different key heights as illustrated in the image. This will help to create depth in your finished sculpture.  

You will likely need two different types of screwdrivers. One Flat head for the key removal and a Philips head to gain access to the rest of the keyboard. Please note this will vary depending the keyboard brand and model. 

When working to remove the keys from a keyboard this tip will come in handy. Place a flat head screwdriver under the lip of a key an pry. Repeat this step until all the keys are removed.  Please Note: This a good time to put on your safety glasses along with a good pair of work gloves. 

Remove all keys and place in bin. 

Disassemble the back of the keyboard and break it down to it's smallest components. Be patient here and look for all the hidden screws. In some cases you will need to use the flat head screw driver to pry pieces apart. Remember to have fun and enjoy the process.

Keeping organized is key to any project. Place your parts from this keyboard in a bin and set them aside. We will be coming back to these items later. 

Move on to the second keyboard (with the high profile keys) and repeat the previous steps to remove keys. 

Remove all keys and organize in a separtate bin. 

Disassemble the back of this keyboard and break it down to its smallest parts. As before, be patient here and look for all the hidden screws. In some cases you will need to use the flat-head screwdriver to pry pieces apart. Again, don't forget to have fun!

Keeping organized is key to any project. Place your parts from the 2nd keyboard in a bin and set them aside. We will be coming back to these items later. 

Print the Vader template found in the introduction to this project. These images will print nicely on a 3 x 8 1/2 by 11 sheets of paper. 

Using a pair of scissors, cut out the three images.

Cut around Vader's eyes and lines on cheek. (I used an E-acto blade for this and the next 3 steps.)

Your Vader cut-out should look like this. 

Remove the lines from Vader's mouth piece as shown.

Cut around the raised center portion of Vader's hood. When completed, your cutouts should look like this.

Any type of wood will do, but the minimum size to fit the template must be 1/4 inch thick and at least 17 inches wide and 8 inches tall. 

Place the three templates on your piece of wood and trace around them using a pencil.

Cut out templates using the Dremel Moto Saw. Make sure to wear your safety glasses.

Using your Dremel Rotary Tool with a 1/2 inch Sanding Drum bit, sand down the ruff edges on each piece. Remember to wear your safety glasses. 

Using a can of Flat Black paint, paint the entire surface of the 3 cut outs. Allow 30 minutes to 1 hour for drying. 

After the paint has dried,  using the template, trace the cut-out center piece onto the wood with your pencil. (The pencil will show up nicely on a black surface.) 

Continue using the paper template and a pencil to trace Vader's eyes and cheek lines onto the larger piece of wood. 

At this point your project should look like this. 

Using the mouthpiece paper template, trace Vader's mouthpiece lines onto the smallest piece of wood.  

If you followed steps one through four your sculpture base should look like this. 

Apply a generous amount of Super Glue to the back surface of the Vader hood cut-out. Please Note: you can use wood glue here if you have it available. (I prefer using super glue because of its fast drying properties. )

Clamp hood to main Vader cut-out ensuring alignment. If you don't have clamps, holding these two pieces together with your hands for a few minutes will do the trick. 

Apply a generous amount of glue to the back of Vader's mouth piece and secure it to the main cut-out. If you're using Super Glue allow at least 5 minutes for curing. 

Our first step is to remove the small tooth from the bottom of the higher profile keys. This is easily removed using a Dremel Rotary Tool with a EZ Lock Cut-off Wheel and holding the key with a pair of Channel Lock Pliers. Make sure to put your safety googles on during this step.

The plastic bottom of the key should now be flush with the bottom. This is important to ensure a strong gluing surface. 

Be creative with this step! I chose to have fun with the key selection and spelled out "Vader" for the center portion of his helmet. The lines we drew on the hood are helpful to ensure the keys are centered. 

Using Super Glue, place a small bead of glue along the edges of the key and secure to hood. 

Locate your lower profile keys and work to ensure the backside of keys are flush/flat. Then place the keys on the edge of the hood as illustrated in the image.

Cut your low profile keys to fit the shape of Vader's hood. I'm using a metal scribe to score the edge that I want to cut, but you can also use a marker. 

This is made easy by using a Dremel Rotary Tool with a EZ Lock Cut-off Wheel and holding the key with a pair of Channel Lock Pliers. Make sure to put your safety glasses on during this step.

After completing steps one through six your "upcycled Vader" should look similar to this. Please Note: I again used the keys to spell out "Darth" running along inner part of the helmet. 

Work to cover the entire hood with low profile keys. 

Locate one of your keyboard cords. 

Run the keyboard cord down the edge of Vader's helmet starting from the raised center down to one edge and then cut using your wire cutters. 

Using super glue apply the cord to the top edge of the helmet as illustrated in the image. 

Repeat the previous steps until you have the edges on both sides covered with wire.

Using the remaining wire and glue, cover the bottom edge of the hood as illustrated in the image. 

Using the Vader template placed over top of the keyboard circuitry cut out the eye shapes using an X-acto blade.

Using Super Glue attach the eye cut-outs to the sculpture base. 

With the mouth piece template, trace over top of the metal keyboard housing and then cut out.

Using Super Glue apply the cut-out mouth vent to the sculpture base.

Super Glue the round plastic housing parts to each corner of the mouth vent.

With a small amount of Super Glue apply a screw to each inner circle. 

Utilizing wire stripped from the the keyboard cord, measure and cut the length of wire for  the outline of Vader's eyes.

Attach the wire to the outline of each eye with Super Glue. 

With scissors, cut the keyboard plastic circuitry to cover the cheek portions of Vader's mask. Once cut to fit, apply small amounts of Super Glue to the back of the circutry and apply directly to the wood base.  

Utilizing some of the wire in keyboard cord measure a length that fits the line drawn next to his mouth piece and apply to the sculpture base using a small amount of Super Glue. During the process of taking apart the keyboard cord you should have come across some metal shielding that the wire was wrapped in. Take this metal and flatten it and then apply using Super Glue to the bottom edge of Vader's chin. 

Utilizing some of the wire in keyboard cord measure a length that fits the line drawn below each eye and apply to the sculpture base using a small amount of Super Glue. 

If you plan to hang your finished sculpture like I did a small picture frame hanger works great.