Spank em with them Pics!
Even the "bee knees" Long P-1 was in error which shocked a few in the collecting community
Even the "bee knees" Long P-1 was in error which shocked a few in the collecting community
New Star Trek TOS Phaser coming November 2014
- Thread starter jhusel
- Start date
redshirt
Sr Member
Please no versus thread, I've pointed out the differences already. This thread is about the Wand phaser anyway. It's an incredible effort and I stand behind it as a decent replica for an outstanding price. The Wand company went above and beyond what they had been asked to do, just out of sheer homage to the original prop, because they are fans too.
I agree that, as a prop, to hold and play with the Wand phaser is a better experience (not taking into account accuracy).
They will be selling these on Amazon (in 2015) and elsewhere after the end of ThinkGeek.com and StarTrek.com's exclusive contract in 2014. These will be around for awhile and I suggest buying more than one.
I second that welcome to laser1959. I saw the series when it first aired at the ripe age of 6 years old.
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Bernie
Member
I don't agree. Both have their flaws, both have inaccuracies and neither is perfect. The MR isn't closer to the Jein, the Wand isn't closer to the Jein. What it all comes down to is opinion. What inaccuracies can you live with and what inaccuracies kill you by looking at them. For me it's the rear fins on the MR. Looking at that gives me a heart attack. Those fins weren't like that on the Jein and they weren't like that on the MR prototype. At some point MR decided to change the angle of the fins but they didn't change the shape of the body. The shape of the body still has the angle of the fins of the prototype. And the Jein has deteriorated so much you can't tell what the angle should be. On top of that the angle is different on each side of the Jein.
That (the worst part) combined with the front of the P2 being too high
and the P1 being too flat makes the MR in my book very inaccurate. The small inaccuracies of the Wand Phaser are nothing compared to this.
So no matter your personal preference, you can not say that the MR is more accurate and that that is fact. No, it's a matter of which inaccuracies you can live with and which of them kill you. Personal preference.
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redshirt
Sr Member
opcorn
I know flame wars ensue.
The MR has more accuracies overall, but none are perfect. Enjoy your Wand phaser like I do and drop it. :facepalm
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Bernie
Member
That's your opinion. Overall the Wand is more accurate is mine. ;-)
But indeed let's not start a war over it. I know I'm right. :-D
My pictures prove that much. The first thing you see when you look at a MR is how inaccurate it is. With the Wand Phaser you really have to search for the inaccuracies.
Enjoy your MR. I'm glad I didn't buy one at the time. ;-)
One of the thing I REALLY like about the Wand Co. Phaser is that there is every indication this is a mass produced item that will be available for a long time. That means that, unlike a limited edition (more $$$) collectible, or a fan made garage kit, I have no worries about using it for cos-play, or running around the house going "Pew! Pew!" (yes, at 56, I still run around the house going "Pew! Pew! ) or letting the nephews play with it, etc. I know if if gets broken I'll be able to get another.
) or letting the nephews play with it, etc. I know if if gets broken I'll be able to get another.
redshirt
Sr Member
The facts say your wrong Bernie, and your images prove it (MR has better handle, 10-turn, side dial, screw under the P2 body, off center seam, better metal parts, extending P1 emitter nozzle, etc.).
Yikes Bernie, give up the this vs that debate. No one cares.
Your are stubborn to seeing what I stated in your own images. So be it.
I prefer the Wand for experience best too, but know it's not more accurate. Can you not see what I'm saying!?
I do enjoy my MR phaser and my Wand phasers…all 4 of them.
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redshirt
Sr Member
One of the thing I REALLY like about the Wand Co. Phaser is that there is every indication this is a mass produced item that will be available for a long time. That means that, unlike a limited edition (more $$$) collectible, or a fan made garage kit, I have no worries about using it for cos-play, or running around the house going "Pew! Pew!" (yes, at 56, I still run around the house going "Pew! Pew!
Yes, no short supply like on Roddenberry. With the accurate handle sale thread here and the forthcoming autopsies of the Wand phaser I'm sure we'll see mods to fix some of the inaccuracies. But, if you just buy this and don't change a thing it's still a great phaser.
Wand company stated it should be available 1-2 years. So don't wait too long.
My guess is that people are convenience shopping on eBay for gifts (not shopping around) and have no idea ThinkGeek.com is selling these at a discount. I got mine for $117 each with discount.
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asalaw
Sr Member
I keep hearing this from all sorts of sources, but there's never a reference to what the issue supposedly is, nor who discovered it and how; as for the difference in length, I've heard everything from 1mm to 1/8". So it has all the earmarks of an urban myth -- lack of specifics, different details every time you hear it, and no traceable source for the information.
When I first heard this claim almost a decade ago, there was no evidence for it; however, back then there was also no shortage of people who had a financial interest in claiming John's kits were wrong, because they sold their own kits and castings. Needless to say, none of these people had ever even seen, let alone measured, an original prop themselves. I suspect they're the source of this notion.
As for being 1mm too long:
The originals could not possibly have been within a millimeter of each other -- that's well inside the margin of shrinkage for resins, especially 50 years ago. 1mm is less than 1/25 of an inch!
Even with mass-produced, injection-molded plastic parts, small variations are possible because now and then cooling time can be off after the part is shot, or mold temperature can be off before the shot, either of which can affect the dimensions of the part as it cools. Usually we don't see those because QC throws those parts into recycling, but now and then they slip through.
And finally, the question remains, accurate to what? Even after 3D laser-scanning Greg Jein's original, Wand Co. had to make adjustments in some places just to make the prop symmetrical. And not just the center seam -- the two halves don't match each other at all, because the masters were made by hand.
Thank God phasers don't have rivets...
Oh wait...
CRAP.
Well, at least there's only one....
Sean
Sr Member
I keep hearing this from all sorts of sources, but there's never a reference to what the issue supposedly is, nor who discovered it and how; as for the difference in length, I've heard everything from 1mm to 1/8". So it has all the earmarks of an urban myth -- lack of specifics, different details every time you hear it, and no traceable source for the information.
When I first heard this claim almost a decade ago, there was no evidence for it; however, back then there was also no shortage of people who had a financial interest in claiming John's kits were wrong, because they sold their own kits and castings. Needless to say, none of these people had ever even seen, let alone measured, an original prop themselves. I suspect they're the source of this notion.
As for being 1mm too long:
The originals could not possibly have been within a millimeter of each other -- that's well inside the margin of shrinkage for resins, especially 50 years ago. 1mm is less than 1/25 of an inch!
Even with mass-produced, injection-molded plastic parts, small variations are possible because now and then cooling time can be off after the part is shot, or mold temperature can be off before the shot, either of which can affect the dimensions of the part as it cools. Usually we don't see those because QC throws those parts into recycling, but now and then they slip through.
And finally, the question remains, accurate to what? Even after 3D laser-scanning Greg Jein's original, Wand Co. had to make adjustments in some places just to make the prop symmetrical. And not just the center seam -- the two halves don't match each other at all, because the masters were made by hand.
Thank God phasers don't have rivets...
Oh wait...
View attachment 413032
CRAP.
Well, at least there's only one....
OK as I'm still learning here. and need to know this stuff for a project. please point out the rivet. please..
Bernie
Member
Oh now I get it. To you those tiny little details are more important to the accuracy than the big in the eye popping inaccuracies of the MR. In small details, yes the MR is more accurate. In big overall shape however the MR is completely inaccurate. The prototype yes, but the production model wasn't worth 30 bucks.
What I"ve been saying all along however is that it's not a matter of fact, but a matter of taste.
And why did they have to make the body of the P2 out of metal? The original was made from resin.
Pardon me, but who said I didn't buy the John Long Kit, or his communicator?? I have had many a conversation with John..I also bought brad Nelsons phaser, Ed Miarecki's and Jim Kirks,Sreve Horch's as well as Mike Deschenne's..I ain't some new kid on the block either.I don't think anyone is ever going to get a "dead on" phaser, as I said before, no two were exactly alike, and most of them were dummys..Suffice to say I am content with The Wand piece for what it is. a VERY nice and for me, accurate enough phaser replica for its price.what completely turned me off on Mr's unit, was the frankenstein front. No way I was ever gonna have a phaser with that glaring mistake in my collection. It just annoyed me too much, even more so than all the other replicas I had, and I doubt there is anyone no matter what they think they know about the original phaser, that "knows it all"..
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redshirt
Sr Member
The originals were made out of fiberglass on the P2 bodies and hand phaser.
redshirt
Sr Member
Glad you got Johns kits. They are for the discriminating prop collector. Yes, there is an authority that knows it all…Greg Jein. Greg hung around the original set and has talked to the prop guys for the original series.
asalaw
Sr Member
Sorry about that -- here you go!
In the kit, John included a BB. You put the BB on the rivet and squeeze down with a pair of pliers to make that little cam there. You have to be careful, because if you squeeze too tightly, the cam won't turn properly and your emitter won't extend (a problem I've had since I entered middle age).
