What age do Padawans get to use their lightabers? In Clone Wars episodes we see them assembling the lightsabers after a trek into the cave.
Is there a rule about what age Padawans get real lightsabers? I'm guessing it's after several years after they start melee practice to make sure they don't kill each other over petty fights.
Younglings practice with training lightsabers, basically low-powered sabers with no cutting ability. These replicate the look and feel of a normal lightsaber but with next to no chance of accidentally cutting your fool head off if you make a mistake.
Sometime between the ages of 8-13ish, when a youngling is ready to become a padawan learner, they undertake a ritual known as "the Gathering" with an eye to constructing their own (real) lightsaber.
The Gathering was a rite of passage of the Jedi Order meant as a lesson to teach the young Jedi to overcome their own personal fears or failings to find a kyber crystal attuned to their Force presence on the Crystal Caves of Ilum. Upon retrieving the crystal, a Jedi initiate began the process of constructing his or her lightsaber, under the guidance of Professor Huyang. Part of the training process of a Jedi, it signified a youngling's readiness to be selected by a Jedi Master and begin training as a Padawan learner.
