Model gun's that act like the real thing ?

I just found this and all I could think was pulse rifle. and Iv'e never seen model guns work. I just thought they were plastic and glued together. anybody know anything about these?

M1A1Thompson_0001.flv Video by cerwyn | Photobucket

Model Gun is usually a term for a PFC (Plug Fire Cap) firing... well, model gun. Your not wrong, quite a few of them are mostly plastic and you do have to put them together a bit like a model. They're fairly accurate in that they very closely replicate the weapon they're modeled after, even down to using similar firing mechanisms. That said, they're basically glorified cap guns. They come with brass shells that you load with special caps. You load the capped shells into the gun, much like the real thing, and pull the trigger, again much like the real thing. Difference is, there's a metal plug in the barrel that pokes into the shell and hits the cap which fires it and cycles the action, replicating the real gun, in a way that can't be made to fire real bullets.

They can be fun. I have one. Mine is a copy of a Smith and Wesson M-76.

The thing about Model guns is that, the market here in the US is almost non-existent. You usually have to import the guns (I got mine from a shop in the UK) and caps. Many of them are no longer produced and spare parts aren't around so if something breaks, your probably not going to be able to fix it. The shells are expensive, some of the guns use unique shells that are hard, or impossible to find and, because they're made of soft brass, the guns tend to eat them up. They also get thrown out with quite a bit of force and, like many small things thrown behind you, sometimes they disappear. The caps are also extremely dirty and you have to clean the shells and gun after each firing or the residue will corrode the brass and some of the metal parts inside the gun.

My M-76 holds 35 shells. You have to carefully place a cap in each shell, and it's recommended to lube up each shell with some Vaseline. Helps the gun cycle better and creates more smoke. I also would spray the barrel with WD-40, again, so it ran better and made more smoke. When I shot it, if it didn't jam, it would rip through those 35 shells in about 3 seconds. Then I would spend the next half hour cleaning up the gun and the caps.

I don't shoot mine anymore. It's charm wore off years ago and I've since moved on to real guns. Only reason I still have it is because the gun it's modeled on is equally hard to find and equally expensive.

If you have your heart set on one, just be prepared to spend a lot of time and money on it. It's much more of a novelty piece than something to whip out and show off to your buds.

Hey thanks for the info on this grenadeking. I had just never seen them before and wanted to know about them. don't think I would want to buy one If everything Is so hard to obtain. and costly. looks cool as heck tho..

I use to collect these back in the late 80's. There was a shop called the Collectors Armory in Alexandria VA that imported them. I visited the store once on a trip to DC. It was awesome. I had quite a collection, but sold them off years ago. I never cleaned mine properly (didn't know better) and most of the multi-piece shells fused together from the residue. I believe the Collectors Armory now only exists as an online store. The guns from Marushin, MGC, etc are very expensive now a days. Airsoft and gun laws on toy guns put the final nails in the coffin for this type of replica. I wish they would make a comeback....

I would love to get a better look at the inner working's of one that can go full auto. shame they can't make a modern version of them that worked cleaner. seem's that everything thing I find that interest me. cost quite a bit of cash ....lol

as prior mentioned model guns were becoming a decent US market in the 80's. If memory serves some political types son was shot and killed for "holding" one. There were a slew of toy gun shootings as well prompting changes (neon colors, orange tip...) in which it took decades to get decent replicas legally here in the US.

For model guns, Robocop used one (all but the first film), Tom Hanks used one in SPR for some scenes as well as the Pacific and BofB, numerous tv shows and low budget films to date use them as even over the counter 8mm and 9mm blank guns cause a phantom issue with fire marshals and permits. Ive got a few Beretta's, a Desert Eagle, a Glock, and a few others.

Robiwon said:

I use to collect these back in the late 80's. There was a shop called the Collectors Armory in Alexandria VA that imported them. I visited the store once on a trip to DC. It was awesome. I had quite a collection, but sold them off years ago. I never cleaned mine properly (didn't know better) and most of the multi-piece shells fused together from the residue. I believe the Collectors Armory now only exists as an online store. The guns from Marushin, MGC, etc are very expensive now a days. Airsoft and gun laws on toy guns put the final nails in the coffin for this type of replica. I wish they would make a comeback....

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When my buddy turned 21 and purchased his first .45 (Colt series 80) he already knew how to completely strip it down (trigger group, mainspring housing etc) because he owned a Collector's Armory 1911a1 that he got when he was 18.

Try these guys. They have quite a selection: Home Page

Dumb question If I may. are the fake bullet's forced onto a rod that detonates the cap? or dose the rod get forced in to the bullet from the front? trying to wrap my head around the workings of one of these. And thanks again everyone for all the links and Info...


Sean...

There is a stationary rod mounted in the barrel that the cartridge slide over as it's chambered. The hammer falls, strikes the cartridge pushing it forward. The cap ignites and the exploding gases forces the cartridge back and ejects. The slide moves forward loading the next cartridge. Cycle starts over. In the revolvers the cartridge is already sitting on the firing pin.

Robiwon said:

There is a stationary rod mounted in the barrel that the cartridge slide over as it's chambered. The hammer falls, strikes the cartridge pushing it forward. The cap ignites and the exploding gases forces the cartridge back and ejects. The slide moves forward loading the next cartridge. Cycle starts over. In the revolvers the cartridge is already sitting on the firing pin.

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Thanks for the explanation of that. Robiwon. seems like It would be easy for a misfire. but i'm a take It apart and see how It works kinda guy...

BornKilr said:

Try these guys. They have quite a selection: Home Page

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If you live in the US, don't bother. They won't ship here - regardless of what the site says. I've been trying to buy an M93-R model gun for a couple years now. The European dealers get them from time to time, but the cost is outrageous!

Sean - Todd's Costumes sells a PFC replica of Indy's S&W from ROTLA, if you're interested.

There used to be a hobbyshop in Michigan called Alcove Hobbies that sold these in kit form. They made them both ways back in the late 80's, kit or built up. I bought many of them from that hobby shop. As for missfires, not very often. They were pretty reliable.

I had a huge collection of them. But that was before I ever had a digital camera so no pictures exist of what I had. My favorite was a Marushin Uzi, MGC Walther P-38, and a S&W revolver that was nickle plated.

WarPig said:

If you live in the US, don't bother. They won't ship here - regardless of what the site says. I've been trying to buy an M93-R model gun for a couple years now. The European dealers get them from time to time, but the cost is outrageous!

Sean - Todd's Costumes sells a PFC replica of Indy's S&W from ROTLA, if you're interested.

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Thanks warpig. my ongoing search now. Is for something with a metal frame that would mach the charter arms bulldog .44. I have the cylinder and everything else needed. but from what I can tell. I think I'm going to have to buy the real part or whole gun. but these model gun's are wild. wish I knew of them when they were coming out back then.

This is a brilliant forum for everything you need to know about model guns Free forum : MP40's Modelguns Forum

WarPig said:

If you live in the US, don't bother. They won't ship here - regardless of what the site says. I've been trying to buy an M93-R model gun for a couple years now. The European dealers get them from time to time, but the cost is outrageous!

Sean - Todd's Costumes sells a PFC replica of Indy's S&W from ROTLA, if you're interested.

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Ahh, didn't realize that. I mainly use their site as reference for scratchbuilt guns I make.

Robiwon said:

There used to be a hobbyshop in Michigan called Alcove Hobbies that sold these in kit form. They made them both ways back in the late 80's, kit or built up. I bought many of them from that hobby shop. As for missfires, not very often. They were pretty reliable .

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we had Paul Freilers Historical Models in Torrance Ca back in the day. They had mass amounts of Model Guns along the highest wall mounted shelves and behind glass.

Here is a small picture of various Beretta's. Top middle is a blowback cap gun, cheap airsoft to its left, blank fire to the right.

So are these readily available in the U.S. or not...? And how much? In line cost-wise with an airsoft, or more like the real deal?

the Beretta and nickle plated Desert Eagle cost, if I recall, around $150 at "friend" prices just within the last few years. Another work colleague needed an emergency back up Beretta so he ended up paying near $300 for a different model. They are not common at all in the US and havent been for many years. In most instances you will end up paying near real steel prices for them. In turn however their ease of use and safety not to mention savings with permit costs pay off ten fold when the time comes for film prop use. The real cost comes back to caps as they will run roughly a dollar per cap when all is said and done yet I believe they still sell in Japan for around $1 per box. You pay a hefty mark up on the "black market". There are ways around it by making your own caps but much of the time its more trouble than its worth as too hot a shot will have ill effects on the guns internals. They are made of pot metal.

robstyle said:

the Beretta and nickle plated Desert Eagle cost, if I recall, around $150 at "friend" prices just within the last few years. Another work colleague needed an emergency back up Beretta so he ended up paying near $300 for a different model. They are not common at all in the US and havent been for many years. In most instances you will end up paying near real steel prices for them. In turn however their ease of use and safety not to mention savings with permit costs pay off ten fold when the time comes for film prop use. The real cost comes back to caps as they will run roughly a dollar per cap when all is said and done yet I believe they still sell in Japan for around $1 per box. You pay a hefty mark up on the "black market". There are ways around it by making your own caps but much of the time its more trouble than its worth as too hot a shot will have ill effects on the guns internals. They are made of pot metal.

http://i42.tinypic.com/xpvqxv.jpg

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Thank's Rob. these fascinate me for some reason. I guess because they work much like the real thing. is the slide all the way to the rear on that eagle?