It was brought to my attention from one of the Bat forums, that Bronze Armory may have been recasting my grapple gun. Upon seeing the thread, I could see immediately that it is. This is a build that I documented here on the RPF and had alot of help (in the form of photos of the original props) from members.
The following are two pictures taken by a member of that forum, who owns both guns. I then marked up the photo to illustrate the "tells" that give it away as a recast. The top one being the recast and the bottom being my original.
1. Between the slide and the main body, there is a .193" gap which does not appear on the screen versions.
2. My company name is engraved around the allen screw on the upper disc. There is no text on screen versions.
3. Dial indicators are in exactly the same place on both. This was a movable dial on the screen versions and available pictures have them in many different locations. If this was a new sculpt, he just happened to pick the exact same configuration I did.
4. On the upper slide you can see where I stacked plex to create the shape, but did not sand enough in the groove. The lines between the layers are clearly visible.
5. In the first picture you can see a ridge on the grip that was an artifact from how I sculpted them. While not visible on my original in the same picture (because of photograph angle), you can clearly see it in this picture of an unpainted grip. Also, if you look closely, you can see that the random texture, on the grip is the same.
While some may argue that two people producing the same prop will arrive at a similar results, they will not arrive at identical results. Especially damning in this case, is the fact that the Allan Lavigne from the Bronze Armory purchased a kit from me in Sept, 2005. I have contacted this person, and found his explanations to be seriously lacking. He also claims, that at about the same time, he had access to, and cast parts from original, studio owned pieces. If this were true, then none of the "tells" that are on my piece, should be on his.
And most likely, the two pieces would differ in size, since I was guesstimating dimensions from photos.
He has modified the inner barrel (chopped 1/2" off) to accept a spring on the inside. The silver allen screws also appear different sizes. That is due to the fact that the one I produced had the cast in place screws replaced with real metal ones, while the recast retains the cast in place screws.
I know recasting can be a touchy subject around the RPF, but I feel justified in bringing this information forward. From what I can gather, Bronze Armory has had a good reputation up to this point, but I cannot stand by while they copy my work, and claim that they have had access to "original" pieces.
The following are two pictures taken by a member of that forum, who owns both guns. I then marked up the photo to illustrate the "tells" that give it away as a recast. The top one being the recast and the bottom being my original.
1. Between the slide and the main body, there is a .193" gap which does not appear on the screen versions.
2. My company name is engraved around the allen screw on the upper disc. There is no text on screen versions.
3. Dial indicators are in exactly the same place on both. This was a movable dial on the screen versions and available pictures have them in many different locations. If this was a new sculpt, he just happened to pick the exact same configuration I did.
4. On the upper slide you can see where I stacked plex to create the shape, but did not sand enough in the groove. The lines between the layers are clearly visible.
5. In the first picture you can see a ridge on the grip that was an artifact from how I sculpted them. While not visible on my original in the same picture (because of photograph angle), you can clearly see it in this picture of an unpainted grip. Also, if you look closely, you can see that the random texture, on the grip is the same.
While some may argue that two people producing the same prop will arrive at a similar results, they will not arrive at identical results. Especially damning in this case, is the fact that the Allan Lavigne from the Bronze Armory purchased a kit from me in Sept, 2005. I have contacted this person, and found his explanations to be seriously lacking. He also claims, that at about the same time, he had access to, and cast parts from original, studio owned pieces. If this were true, then none of the "tells" that are on my piece, should be on his.
And most likely, the two pieces would differ in size, since I was guesstimating dimensions from photos.
He has modified the inner barrel (chopped 1/2" off) to accept a spring on the inside. The silver allen screws also appear different sizes. That is due to the fact that the one I produced had the cast in place screws replaced with real metal ones, while the recast retains the cast in place screws.
I know recasting can be a touchy subject around the RPF, but I feel justified in bringing this information forward. From what I can gather, Bronze Armory has had a good reputation up to this point, but I cannot stand by while they copy my work, and claim that they have had access to "original" pieces.
