Discussion time! Who displays props and who actually used props for their intended purpose.

[vader45]

Like who feels that their props need to stay pretty under glass and not be touched and who actually uses their props?

I'm a mix. There are some props like my lightsabers that I can not put down. I'm an FX guy and if they have functional guts why let them collect dust on a shelf? I like to use these props for their intended purpose because that's what props are for. So what if my lightsabers get a little weathered from use or playing around? My LDM v2 has been accidentally tossed around from spinning it! But I have to much fun with it to stop! But that does not mean I abuse them. I'm careful as much as I can be and take care of them.

BUT there are other props, such as my CFO ROTJ Vader helmet, that are far to expensive and rare to let them be used as props so they sit on display.

Where do you stand with your props. Use them or display them?

 

[Nostromo2124]

I can’t lock my props away either...
There are many paper props like magazines or paintings, books (except for my grail diary) or cigarette packs lying around which I don’t remove from display often just like bottles or metal-looking-but-plastic-parts
The props I like to play around with are mostly vintage or metal parts like my full metal Dl44, vintage prepro boba fett blaster, Luke macros, alien motion tracker (the original from the first movie), Ridleys grappling hook, vintage watches or similar, Indy’s hat and so on...
Another story are my blank firing guns: up to now I’ve got Indy’s revolver and Mad Max’s shotgun and the Blade runner blaster in progress.
So, everything that works, feels solid, is vintage or makes BANG is allowed outside the shelf, the rest may stays inside!
Biggest problem is just to get the part I want out of the tons of props lying above or under or around it...

 

[Barcslay]

Most of my props get built because I need them for Halloween or Comic Con, etc, so I try to build them as heavy duty as I can so they can be used! I have my prop shelf, but everything on it is open season for people to touch and play with (except some of the paper props that could be ripped). Usable and functional props FTW

 

[Psab keel]

I'm definitely one to handle my props and wear my costumes. The whole reason I wanted them in the first place is to wear/ use them because I want to feel like I am living in the world from which the pieces originate.

That said, I do have some displays in mind that will be more museum curated style once I move into a forever home. I want my pieces to last and when I build them I am willing to idealize them enough to make them durable. I won't sacrifice too much accuracy but I also won't replicate every scratch and dent down to the millimeter, though I am in total awe of the fans who do! Which is also the reason why I opt for replicas of most props/ prop parts rather than the real thing because I won't be as crushed if something gets damaged. If I had a vintage graflex lightsaber I would be too scared to handle it which defeats the purpose of owning the prop in the first place if it's just going to sit behind glass. I might as well just have a picture of it and save myself thousands.

I try not to collect too many things that are more display oriented because I want to handle/ use them, but there are a few exceptions to that rule because some props are just not conducive to carrying around or wearing at a convention. A blast shield helmet would be one of them. Great for display and photos, bad for walking around blindly on a troop. lol

Great topic by the way!

 

[teecrooz]

I lightly handle mine. I intended on them being display pieces, which they are, but I will take one down and mess with it or hold it while I’m sitting on a conference call.

 

[jkno]

All of my props are on display inside the cabinets, but from time to time I do handle the ANH E-11 conversion, the MGC ROTJ E-11 and the Denix Merr-Sonn, liking their weight, plus the 2 MR Force FX Vader sabers. I don't handle the MR E-11 and Pugman ESB E-11 though, because the MR has its acrylic case, and the Pugman is on top of the cabinet, plus it is resin. Handling those props makes me deeply enter the Star Wars universe I love so much since I was a kid, and only dreamed about owning these blasters.

 

[russellsch]

Ages ago, while at SDCC, I saw my first Star Wars Prop replica. It was the, at the time, brand new ICONS Obi-Wan lightsaber from ANH. I was star struck by this piece! I knew it wasn't actually used in the movie, but at the time, that was the closest I'd ever come to something like it. The guy had it behind plexiglass, & I kept coming back to it, to stare longingly at it. I was a teenager with no real money, at the time, but I finally built up the courage to ask if I could just hold it. That's all I wanted, to hold it. It would have meant the world me. It WAS a lightsaber!
I asked if I could hold it, & the response was, "Are you gonna buy it?" There was no price listed for it, so I asked, "How much are you asking for it?" At that point I was told, "If you have to ask, you can't afford it. Go away." & he turned his back to me & went & sat down.
I was crushed!
Now, all these years later, my house is full of props (all are replicas I've bought, built, or found real parts), & anytime I have guests I invite them to touch, hold, & wear anything they want. I've seen people with the same star struck gaze - that I had all those years ago - while staring at lightsabers, helmets, blasters, or whatever & I make it a point to put it in their hands. Seeing their reaction makes me happy.

 

[AJK001]

Most all of mine are either on display or still in the box they arrived in. There are some I play with, or handle if I'm trying to be an adult, but those are more like The Wand Company products since they were fairly cheap. I don't handle any of my sabers or helmets, I just keep them in their cases or behind glass.

 

[Apollo]

I handle and use all of my props except the fragile ones.

 

[Trooper_trent]

when I read "who uses props for their intended purpose" I thought you meant for example, who uses a graflex as an actual camera flash on their old 4x5? lol
Not star wars related, but I use my Oblivion Skeletool all the time, as well as the Krupps coffee grinder (Mister Fusion from BTTF)

 

[thd9791]

Psab Keel and I are on the same page. I sacrifice a little accuracy in finish or construction so they can be handled. I invite folks that come through my place all the time to handle them, check out my wine rack or whatever blaster happens to be ontop of my cabinet.

There are a couple resin casts I don't handle due to their source

I also have a shelf for some of my old PotF action figures that I remember the most. And my mini rock collection - the coprolite gets handled quite a bit.

 

[Psab keel]

I made these things so that I can be immersed in this world. The thought of all of my pieces being behind glass sounds like torture. Lol. I might as well just watch the movie if that were the case.

 

[mugatu]

I guess it depends on how fond I am of the prop... meaning, I have a Jawa Welder but I haven’t messed with it too much, simply because before I had it, it really didn’t mean all that much to me from the movie.

Now, my very first prop (besides a Fett scope) was my Graflex and once I got that I could not set the damn thing down! Seriously, it became a problem. Before that, one of my friends had bought a few of the Hasbro or MR commercial Toys R Us light up sabers (Vader, Luke, Yoda) and we had lightly dueled with them once or twice. And of course I thought they were cool, but they were plastic, but once my Graflex arrived, OH MY GOD...
It was so heavy.
And metal.
And you know: THE REAL THING without actually being the real thing.

I was constantly chopping things in my house, constantly chopping my wife, chopping my kids, chopping my dogs... They all humored me for a lot longer than they should have really.

I had gained this (what must have been really REALLY irritating) habit of responding to my wife or my kids when she or they would say something innocent to me or ask me a question, where I would stop whatever I was doing, turn my head slowly to face her and say something stupid related to something someone in Star Wars had said mixed with vengeance, etc. and then bring up the Graflex and I think you get the picture.

This probably happened a good 30+ times the first two weeks. The worst part is none of them are huge SW people so they weren’t getting the specifc references but knew I was obviously making some stupid reference to SW.

Anyway, we did finally have to have a sit down talk about it. I do want to say that I can stand here today honestly and say I have been Graflex sober for 67 days now and am going strong. I almost fell off the wagon when anakin Starkiller’s Maul saber finally shipped to me, but I resisted the temptation to windmill that son of a bitch through the dining room!

 

[Psab keel]

I'm crying! That's exactly how I get sometimes!

 

[Lightning]

My Indy gear gets the most use. I wear the jacket all the time (I now need to replace the lining). I wear the hat a fair bit. I'm wearing the Alden 403 boots right now. I used to wear the Wells Lamont leather gloves while doing yard work. They are now naturally distressed too much (hole in the index finger). The gas mask bag is my standard satchel.

 

[OdiWan72]

I guess it depends on how fond I am of the prop... meaning, I have a Jawa Welder but I haven’t messed with it too much, simply because before I had it, it really didn’t mean all that much to me from the movie.
Now, my very first prop (besides a Fett scope) was my Graflex and once I got that I could not set the damn thing down! Seriously, it was becoming a problem. Now one of my friends had a few of the commercial bought at Toys R Us light up sabers (Vader, Luke, Yoda) and we had lightly dueled with them once or twice, and of course I thought they were cool, but they were plastic. Once my Graflex arrived, oh my God. It was so heavy. And metal. And you know: the real thing without actually being the real thing. I was constantly chopping things in my house, constantly chopping my wife, chopping my kids, chopping my dogs... They all humored me for a lot longer than they should have really.
I had gained this (what must have been really REALLY irritating) habit of responding to my wife or my kids when she or they would say something innocent to me or ask me a question, where I would stop whatever I was doing, turn my head slowly to face her and say something stupid related to something someone in Star Wars had said mixed with vengeance, etc. and then bring up the Graflex and I think you get the picture. This probably happened a good 30+ times the first two weeks. The worst part is none of them are huge SW people so they weren’t getting the specifc references but knew I was obviously making some stupid reference to SW.

Anyway, we did finally have to have a sit down talk about it. I do want to say that I can stand here today honestly and say I have been Graflex sober for 67 days now and am going strong. I almost fell off the wagon when anakin Starkiller’s Maul saber finally shipped to me, but I resisted the temptation to windmill that son of a bitch througg the dining room!

That‘s hilarious and I see –way too– many parallels to myself

 

[mugatu]

That‘s hilarious and I see –way too– many parallels to myself

Hilarious? More like embarassing! I wish that even 5% of that story was embellished. I swear it is true.

In fact, the first several Graflexes I sold after that, if it was someone’s first Graflex, I would warn them:

Listen, are you married? Have a roommate? Okay, I know when you get this you are going to love it, but I’m telling you, even though it will be the coolest thing you’ve ever held in your hands, and even though you will reap untold joy from it, DO NOT walk around your apartment chopping things all day. I get it, it is glorious, but don’t do that ****, man. No one else thinks it’s funny besides us. It could cause problems for you, for real. Apparently that **** is super annoying if you aren’t really REALLY into Star Wars like we are...

 

[Halliwax]

Everything I have is basically behind glass or on a NO touch shelf lol

 

[vader45]

Hilarious? More like embarassing! I wish that even 5% of that story was embellished. I swear it is true.

In fact, the first several Graflexes I sold after that, if it was someone’s first Graflex, I would warn them:

Listen, are you married? Have a roommate? Okay, I know when you get this you are going to love it, but I’m telling you, even though it will be the coolest thing you’ve ever held in your hands, and even though you will reap untold joy from it, DO NOT walk around your apartment chopping things all day. I get it, it is glorious, but don’t do that ****, man. No one else thinks it’s funny besides us. It could cause problems for you, for real. Apparently that **** is super annoying if you aren’t really REALLY into Star Wars like we are...

Your story rings so true to me. I'm in a third floor apartment with a vent directly to the second floor. I'm shocked no one has come up to tell me to shove my lightsabers up my a$$.

 

[Solos blaster]

I've had some stuff behind glass, mix of props and helmets(ESB Darth Ugly and Gino V2 ESB TK), but I've moved and changed up the display a bit so now they're all on shelves. I handle the props quite a bit, going lightsaber to lightsaber or blaster to blaster and I very much enjoy doing so lol. My Indy stuff tends to get more love whether it's wearing my ToD fedora and crack my whip or have my light up Sankara stones twinkling while I imagine Indy picking up the first one.

Probably the worst I got was when I had my 300 props. I LOVED wearing that SGT Fang helmet once completed and posing with my awesome GotMaul shield and the spear I had built. I don't have those items anymore and they are sorely missed, but just thinking about it brings a smile to my face.