Harmy said:
They used the reflexive sticks in all lightsabre scenes in the original STAR WARS with like one exception, that's why Obi-Wan's lightsabre stops glowing in one of the shots where it's at a big angle.
They used the reflective sticks, yes, but they look to have been rotoscoped out in most shots. There's a couple interviews/articles out there (in Korean) where Nelson Shin talks about doing the lightsaber animation. At the time, he was working at DePatie-Freleng, who you may recall being credited for "additional optical effects."
The point is, most shots have the reflective blades covered over with roto animation.