Blade Runner Blaster - where to start?

[Vanitas]

Hey all,

Longtime RPFer here whose primary experience lays in Han's ANH DL-44, but is now looking to branch out a little to other blaster props. Where would you recommend a relative newcomer to Deckard's blade runner blaster prop to begin from as far as studying the details of the prop, purchasing a good introductory kit/project piece to get my hands wet with?

From what I have read, eventually I assume that the Tommenosuke blaster is the most accurate replica one could purchase short of simply building your own out of actual firearm parts?

As well, are there appreciable differences between the different blasters of the original movie vs. the 2049 sequel?

 

[userd1402]

Of the main ‘hero’ type guns/kits available I think;
*Tomenosuke are indeed the most accurate visually to the hero prop, polymer frames but still plenty of metal and very well made.
*Sidkit are not so accurate but are all metal and have great character. also come mostly assembled. Very good value.
*TipTop Workshop’s new kit is mostly metal and is both characterful and accurate. The new standard for affordable kits.
*Coyle’s kits are very expensive and a lot of work to make look good, very overrated in my opinion.

On the history of the real gun’s manufacture;

Thoughts about building a hero (part 1)

Image Copyright – WIRED Magazine. 2017. Over the years there have been many tales told about exactly how the ‘hero’ Steyr Bulldog pistol from Blade Runner came into existence. Som…

bladerunnerthoughts.co.uk

Thoughts about Frankie and Chuck

Image Copyright – WIRED Magazine. 2017. November 2020; As I mentioned in the post entitled “Thoughts about making a hero (part 1)” Ridley Scott visited B&B sales in north Holl…

bladerunnerthoughts.co.uk

 

[ave4uevoli]

Paragon Fx Group also has a ready to go fully assembled hero gun. same amount of metal as a Tomenosuke.
They also have a resin kit. The resin kit is static, but it comes mostly assembled already. I like the amber grips that came with the kit.

 

[IFA]

Limited Run - Metal Blade Runner Blaster Based on AndersEFP Design

Production has started for the Metal Blade Runner Blaster based on AndersEFP designs, I have a build log of this project HERE that is now almost two years in the making. This run will be made in batches of 5 at a time due to the work involved and my own sanity. :lol: The run(s) will be for a...

www.therpf.com

 

[Jedisushi]

Customize a Tomen and swap in upgraded parts. It’s definitely the best route in my opinion.

 

[Hirohawa]

Customize a Tomen and swap in upgraded parts. It’s definitely the best route in my opinion.

Agree with this. Tomenosuke is the best hands down.

 

[IFA]

If you want to go the Tomenosuke way, buy a Paragon model : it is the same as Tomenosuke but it is licensed by the Studio......Tomenosuke is not !!!

 

[eethan]

If you want to go the Tomenosuke way, buy a Paragon model : it is the same as Tomenosuke but it is licensed by the Studio......Tomenosuke is not !!!

To be completely correct, Tomenosuke was licensed by the studio for several years before Paragon if licensing is important to the buyer.

to answer your second question, Vanitas , the blasters used in the 2049 sequel are Tomenosuke, so if wanting a replica of that specific blaster, the Tomen is the way to go.
There was a bit of drama with this as Tomenosuke was never listed as providing the replicas and the propmaker said he did the Hero guns if I remember correctly. But it was made pretty official that Tomen were used in the movie.

Tomenosuke is also the most accurate blaster in my opinion. And can be upgraded to be absolutely amazing. My prefered route is the kit if possible but those are harder to get by.
Now, I was extremely impressed by the new offer by Dave Chaos listed above. Very impressive result, to me, the new best "home made" kit out there. The list is a bit long though so patience will be in order if going that route.

 

[bingoh]

If you're ok with working with resin and paint, the Tip Top Workshop resin 3D print is extremely clean (and considerably cheaper than the Tomenosuke).

 

[PoopaPapaPalps]

Build your own from scratch.

 

[Vanitas]

Build your own from scratch.

I don't know; are you sure I shouldn't try making a blank fire version right off the bat?

 

[drusselmeyer]

 

[Starganderfish]

Paragon Fx Group also has a ready to go fully assembled hero gun. same amount of metal as a Tomenosuke.
They also have a resin kit. The resin kit is static, but it comes mostly assembled already. I like the amber grips that came with the kit.

I haven't watched the BR 2049 movie or examined its props in any detail. The Paragon props are both marketed as licensed from the BR 2049 sequel.
Is there any difference to the original blaster or is the one from the new movie identical to the original?

 

[robotprops]

I agree with what's being said here. Depending on what you're looking to spend, Tomenosuke is the top of the line. Dave's Tip Top Workshop resin print of Anders design is nicely detailed and has a sliding bolt, but I was unlucky enough to get a bad batch of very brittle resin. Dave replaced the major parts but I had pieces snapping all over the place. If you splurge and get his metal kit, it looks amazing. It's on my "to get" list.
Happy hunting.

 

[drusselmeyer]

You can expect wide tolerances from original props since there is no industry standard.

The only way to truly know is to examine one and get measurements. That said, these days, with ready access to programs like Autodesk, masters tend have much more industrial level precision than props of the not so distant past.

 

[PoopaPapaPalps]

I don't know; are you sure I shouldn't try making a blank fire version right off the bat?

Why not? You've been killing yourself working on the steel DL44, what's going the extra mile now?

 

[Vanitas]

Why not? You've been killing yourself working on the steel DL44, what's going the extra mile now?

In all fairness, I think the ANH hero is a fairly straightforward design with rather less intricacies to it than something like the Blade Runner blaster, at least comparatively anyways. Most of the time I've spent on the details have been largely unnecessary refinements and upgrades, wheras just from what I've seen the Blade Runner blaster is just a more involved prop with many more individual components.

 

[David3]

For my money I'm going with Davechaos / Anders version, its all metal, no upgrading needed, and a great price.

Tomenosuke is super accurate, thanks to phasepistol's (Karl Tate) research for them back in the day, its expensive and some of the main parts are metalized plastic so it needs upgrades to accurize it further.. but just a tad too perfect for my likes. The original was hand made with real gun parts and I just think Davechaos's captures that asthetic better.

BR2049 used Tomenosuke (I'm thinking production did the upgrades which might be why they're not clearly credited) so if you're after the 2049 version then go with them, or Hollywood collectors.

 

[drusselmeyer]

Tomenosuke owes more than Karl Tate for their accuracy. They made errors in their early editions because they copied other's work. So, be careful of which edition you emulate. They also had to drop the metal barrel from their design due to legal considerations.

Anders used a lot of other's work to cobble together their version, but for printing it looks pretty good. The problem with printing is that durable printing resin is much more expensive than casting resin. Printing seems the most effective way to go for masters, but hand finishing is still required to get it to look and feel right. Casting from a printed master should yield great results. Certain structural parts should really be made in metal though.

The Coyle version is almost all metal and feels more real than a plastic prop. While the precision can vary, this was the first edition of the Worldcon out in the market and the RAC editions go all the way back to the 1980s. It also features a metal barrel. He had a prop master version that could be built on a real bulldog available, but the ATF procedure was laborious and the average collector would not want to work that hard or wait so long. The buyer had to provide the bulldog for example.

Sidkit uses the RAC design but a bit more metal. Both are much heavier than any resin versions, but not as heavy as a real Steyr on a real bulldog... Much like the weight comparison of the Aliens' pulse rifle.

In the end, it really all depends on what you want.

 

[IFA]

Sidkit needs ton of work to be displayed.....at least the one I received long time ago !!!