Greetings and Felicitations!
I have been studying "Star Trek: The Original Series" hand phasers (P1s and P2s) since the television show was first broadcast in 1966 on NBC.
Since there are no longer any prop archives or forums exclusively about Star Trek: TOS phasers available on the Internet - I will take the initiative and start one here.
If you have information and photos that can be shared here on this thread under "fair use" please do.
I will start the conversation with a brief introduction about the Star Trek TOS Phaser pistol.
It all began when Walter M. Jefferies (the future Art Director for Star Trek) was given the assignment to create a new hand held energy weapon that did not look like every other "ray gun" that went before. The first Star Trek "pilot" had "laser" pistols that looked like a western "six shooter".
HISTORY
I. Matt produced two working drawings for the Desilu Prop Department. One covered the "hand phaser" or "Phaser Unit 1" (P1) and the other covered the "Phaser Unit 2" (P2) and the "Phaser Unit 3" (the power pack grip/handle).
Matt Jefferies's Phaser Unit # 2 (P2) drawing:
View attachment 1600003
Source of this drawing: Live Auction Group
The first working Hero P2s the Desilu Prop Department (DPD) made are very close to this drawing. In fact one member of the TPZ overlaid a photo of the Greg Jein (GJ) P2 (as it appears now) on a version of this drawing and the photo and drawing lined up almost exactly.
Matt Jefferies's Phaser Unit # 1 (P1) drawing:
View attachment 1600007
Source of this drawing: Live Auction Group
The DPD did not make the first working Hero P1s exactly to this drawing. For example the rising sight opens in the opposite direction and the sight screen and the "push buttons" and the "snap lock" recess were not illuminated.
These drawing are the foundation of any Star Trek TOS Phaser study.
- - For those of you who cannot visualize what a 3-D object looks like - here are some photo mosaic drawings of what the P2 and P1 would have looked like if the Desilu Props Department (DPD) had made the props exactly to Matt's drawings (Note - the "forward facing louvers" are not
shown on either P1 side view):
Matt Jefferies's Phaser Unit # 2, side view (in Wah Ming Chang colors):
View attachment 1605306
Drawing Source: I drew this representation of what the left side view of Matt's P2 would have looked like based on the "Phaser Unit #2" drawing. (Qi Press is my company)
Note: Drawing error: The control knob on the rear deck of this drawing is too tall. (CM problem - I will find the last version and upload it.)
Matt Jefferies's Phaser Unit # 2, front view:
View attachment 1605307
Drawing Source: I drew this representation of what the front side view of Matt's P2 would have looked like based on the "Phaser Unit #2" drawing.
Note: Drawing error: I forgot to include the sight slider control switch and power push buttons on the P1. (I will update these...)
Matt incorporated several things in his original design (drawing) that were not produced by the Desilu props department (DPD):
Phaser Unit # 2:
· Probe (emitter) on P2 would extend or retract by rotating the “range
adjustment” ring on the nozzle
· P2 Trigger unlocked when power pack (Unit #3) is rotated into position
(1/2 turn, 90 degrees) - - see my drawing reproduction on cover
· Recess on rear bottom of P2 body to receive spring lock of Unit #4
Matt Jefferies's Phaser Unit # 1, side view and top view, with sight screen fully open:
View attachment 1605460
Note: Drawing error: The power push buttons are too far back - the second push button should be closer to the sight
slider control switch in the top view.
Matt incorporated several things in his original design (drawing) that were not produced by the Desilu props department (DPD):
Phaser Unit # 1:
· P1 safety – the trigger button was not operational until the sight was up
· P1 sight screen illuminated when in the [fully] open [up] position
· The power push buttons on the P1 were illuminated
· Clear sight opening on P1 (the rectangle above the nozzle in the front)
· Sight screen was rotated by rack and pinion to slider control (switch)
See Drawings: 2.1 and 2.4.
· Sight screen rotates 195 degrees to full open or full closed*
· A magnet inset into the bottom of the P1 for mounting it on a belt (the
DPD glued a piece of Velcro to the bottom half of the P1 instead.)
* Matt Jefferies's Phaser Unit # 1, right side view, xray-drawing, showing initial sight screen opening process:
View attachment 1605799
The sight screen was designed to move down and then revolve 195 degrees to full open. The DPD sight screen moved up.
II. The second basis for studying TOS Hero Phasers is the Desilu "production memo" that "feek61" researched and compiled. The Desilu production memo entitled: "Inventory", dated 14July1966, provided by "feek61" reflects:
PHASER GUNS
4 Practical Guns - - includes #1 & #2 – Power Packs
4 Practical Power Packs (extra)
4 Power Packs to make Phaser #3
6 Wood Dummy Power Packs
5 Rubber Guns Complete #1 & #2 – Power Pack
4 #1 Guns
"PLASTIC GUNS"
10 Complete Dummy Guns #1 & #2 - Power Packs
9 #1 Dummy Guns
4 #2 Dummy Guns
4 Guns-includes #1 & #2 -- without Power Packs
===========================================
There is no doubt that 4 "practical" (or "working" or Hero) phaser unit 2s were built (P2s and P1s) in 1966.
THANK YOU FEEK61 !
III. The black and white (B&W) "practical" ("working" or "hero") Phaser Unit # 2 (P2).
The four B&W Hero P2s were filmed in episodes: 5, 6, 7 and 8. (Note: I use the production episode numbers - not the air date episode numbers or the "remastered" episode numbers.) I also nick named each B&W P2 to help me track them not only through the first 4 key first season episodes - but also after Wah Ming Chang "reworked" them into the iconic phaser pistols that every "baby boomer" recognizes.
The following B&W "practical" P2 is the
Kirk P2:
View attachment 1605311
Drawing Source: I drew this representation of what the right side view of the B&W Hero P2 that Captain Kirk fires (at Dr. Crater) in episode 6, "The Man Trap".
Captain Kirk holds this B&W P2 with sight closed in episode 5, "The Enemy Within" (standing by Spock in Engineering - while searching for the "evil Kirk".
The following B&W "practical" P2 is the
Spock P2:
View attachment 1605313
Drawing Source: I drew this representation of what the right side view of the B&W Hero P2 that Spock holds in both episode 5, "The Enemy Within" and
episode 6, "The Man Trap".
The following B&W "practical" P2 is the
Sulu P2:
View attachment 1605314
Drawing Source: I drew this representation of what the right side view of the B&W Hero P2 that Sulu holds and fires in episode 5, "The Enemy Within" (he
uses this P2 to heat the rocks).
The following B&W "practical" P2 is the
Scot P2:
View attachment 1605316
Drawing Source: I drew this representation of what the right side view of the B&W Hero P2 that Kirk wears on his gold pistol belt in episode 6, "The Man Trap"
(I think he initially wore the Sulu P2 until it fell off of his belt.) And Scotty wears this B&W Hero P2 on his gold pistol belt in episode 7, "The Naked Time".
Drawing notes: (1) The rounded push buttons instead of the flat top push buttons Matt's drawings specified.
(2) The control knob on the rear deck is taller than was specified in Matt's P2 drawing.
(3) The power pack grip was longer than the grip specified in Matt's P2 drawing.
(4) The power pack grip cross section was not exactly the same as the cross-section in the drawing.
(5) The power pack grip was not as wide.
The Spock P2 was in episodes: 5, 6 and 7. (The Enemy Within, The Man Trap and The Naked Time.)
The Kirk P2 was in episodes: 5 and 6 (The Enemy Within and The Man Trap)
The Sulu P2 was in episodes: 5 and 8 (The Enemy Within and Charlie X) - - I think the forehead on this P2 was broken in episode 6 (The Man Trap)
The Scot P2 was in episodes: 6 and 7 (The Man Trap and The Naked Time.) - - This B&W Hero P2 was worn on Kirk's gold pistol belt and then Scotty
wore it on his gold pistol belt while trying to figure out where to cut the Engineering room bulkhead.
The following B&W "practical" P1 was the
Kirk P1:
View attachment 1605765
Note: How the power push buttons were rounded and the sight screen slider switch control was implemented as a thumb wheel.
You can clearly see the rounded push buttons on the B&W P1 in the
Kirk P2 in the Engineering scene of episode 5, The Enemy Within. And note how the shell cover is only on the bottom of the P1. Compare this drawing to the Matt Jefferies's Phaser Unit # 1, side view and top view drawing.
- - B&W drawing notes - I originally had problems with loss of definition when I made the P2 and P1 bodies black. The complex curves and corners were being lost. So as in the previous case I set the drawing to a lighter shade of gray. Matt Jefferies's Phaser Unit # 1, side view and top view drawing in the previous section is more correct. It was a photo mosaic rather than a "rendering".
The following
Kirk P2 drawing is an example of the black body problem:
View attachment 1605767
This drawing reflects one of the main reasons Gene Roddenberry did not like the B&W Hero P2s - the all black body causes a loss of detail.
I found no evidence in TMOST or in Herb Solow's books that Gene ever sent a memo regarding the color of the "phaser gun" to Matt during
the design stage. My guess - Matt chose black - because black or dark blue has always been the color of firearms.
IV. Wah Ming Chang (WMC) "reworked" the 4 black and white (B&W) "practical" ("working" or "hero") Phaser Unit # 2s (P2s). (Reference Desilu Invoice # 43977)
<insert photo mosaic drawing of "reworked" Kirk P2>
<insert photo mosaic drawing of "reworked" Kirk P1>
AutoCad drawings of the "Practical" P2 and P1 ("reworked" by Wah Ming Chang) were made by Nelson Au in 2007. He presented his work on the TPZ as "sunking69". In my opinion the drawings he posted in July 2007 were "spot on". Other members at the time disagreed and gave him their preferences.
The following AutoCad drawings were posted by "sunking69" on or around 10July 2007:
P2 layout:
View attachment 1605773
P1 layout:
View attachment 1605774
P2 sections:
View attachment 1605775
P2 detail:
View attachment 1605776
And the reason I preferred his original P1 drawing was because Nelson's P1 top view looks like the TMOST P1 top view :
View attachment 1605794
