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New discoveries: pix of Blade Runner Blaster PRE-production condition

Great to see new stuff still showing up about this gun. I actually got to talk to one of the guys that was in charge of looking over all the invoices in the film, and he told me he donated all his paperwork to a film museum in LA. I will have to look at my notes to see which one. There might be a possible clue in there. As far as the rounds I know there are electronically fired bullets now days METALSTORM MACHINEGUN, and there was an older technology that is also very interesting called Gyrojet.
Gyrojet - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gyro Rocket Pistol "GyroJet" - YouTube

Andy
 
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Both the Metalstorm and Gyrojet are caseless essentially, since the case is part of the projectile at least. They could both be loaded directly into the barrel. solving the layout issues with the gun's design. We could also pretend the revolver doesn't exist inside of it, but it is not essential. It could also allow for multiple types of ammunition to be loaded from different sources and entry points (i.e explosive rounds). The protruding tip that retracts from the front of the Steyr receiver has always looked a bit like an electric contact to me too, not to mention the light up Steyr magazine. I honestly like the idea of a refined version of the Gyrojet just because it does have a retro-futurist feel to it already. It opens up the door for a lot of design options with the gun including Phil and Rich's concepts.

As far as the light up grip, there is one scene where Deckard is chasing Zhora in the street and the grip is illuminated. It could just be from the set lighting though. It is still a cool idea, and I know they discussed the idea of a bio-lock on the gun that would only allow Deckard to use the gun, but that would contradict with Rachael using the gun to shoot Leon. Of course that could be a plot point in itself.

Andy
 
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Man, I love this prop. The first time I saw these photos was a few days ago on a FB group. I thought they were faked or photoshopped. Dry transfer letters don't make a lot of sense to me on a prop for a film involving so much rain, or on a weapon that is going to be dragging in and out of a tight holster constantly. The letters will be gone in 5 minutes. But I'm sure whoever applied those never thought of any of that.

Obviously the details changed quite a few times on this prop, and the blaster went through some problems before and after the cameras rolled as ideas changed, failed, whatever. But, like the dry transfer letters, an exposed wire like that, in the rain, is a recipe to give an actor a little electrical jolt. It also strikes me as not being a good idea for a gun going in a tight holster. One catch, it's puling off the screw.

This just makes me wonder how many other changes we haven't seen (not just with the gun), and how many other polaroids or photos might be floating around in secret.

I'd love for someone who knows the blaster inside and out to sit down with Ridley (on camera) and discuss it with him, see if it jogs his memory. You never know. Adam Savage is doing an online interview show now. Maybe we should all email him about it.
 
There are some pictures still showing...sorry gone now.

And if you check my eBay auctions you would know I have been working and building models from these pictures for a couple of years.

They were take when a prop shop in LA cleaned up and rewired the prop before the auction.

Personally I feel they kind of ruined a historical relic, you do not clean a relic, or make repairs..you leave it alone...

I have seen where a well meaning fool sanded and polished a found Colt 45 SAA and lost 80% of its collector value...

You should never do anything to a relic.

They washed off the mud, repaired the broken grip(s) and rewired the green LEDs and they could not match the paired wires...

I wondered if it would have gone for more money if it had been left in "Found condition"

Rich
 
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androidandy said:
The protruding tip that retracts from the front of the Steyr receiver has always looked a bit like an electric contact to me too, not to mention the light up Steyr magazine.
Click to expand...

I'm sure you're aware that the protruding tip is the firing pin, and the surrounding "dish" (what someone termed the "probe" somewhere) is actually the bolt face of the rifle. But considering the design, anything's possible. (Maybe it allows for a grenade attachment.)
 
It is a firing pin from another weapon and does not match the one from the Steyr. Obviously too, a firing pin on the outside of a gun is also quite useless ;). So as far as the conceptual film world reality of the design of the gun, it is not a firing pin. :)

The "dish" is also not from the Steyr from what I have seen. The bolt as well, is a replacement and also likely fabricated for the prop.

Not sure if there was any real intention on the prop maker to create something with any real conceived function other than to just look cool, but part of the fun of the gun is trying to see if we can at least pretend to reverse engineer it into something at least partially believable as it would exist in that universe.

Andy
 
its been a good period of time but I may know who has the paperwork from the gun house/build. Due to various instances ive not been able to make the trip to see him but do have a work project he is involved in. If anyone has info to add onto this, the more the merrier about the films production, as the files he has are all original paperwork in masses of bankers boxes from thousands of films. Its a matter of hunting box per box, file per file to track anything down.

Blade Runner 1981

Tandem Productions INC.
1901 Avenue of the Stars
Suite 666
LA CA 90067
213-553-3600
TWX: Tandem - TAT - LSA

Director: Ridley Scott
Production Designer: Lawrence G Paul
Prop Master: Terry Lewis
Art Director: David L. Snyder


The Burbank Studios
4000 Warner Blvd
Burbank CA 91522
213-954-2342
 
I really do not think it is any kind of firing pin from any weapon, pins are always small straight steel pins, (I have seen a lot of firing pins...) this is more like some kind of pointer...

And the dish which I call a receiver front end was hand made to fit the Steyr Receiver and the pin, the reason for the pin was so the bolt had something to pivot on and to keep it alined within the receiver. It turned on the rear screw that goes though the rear cap.

I totaly agree with it was done to look cool and to fulfill Ridley's order to build a practical firing prop out ot the found Steyr receiver assembly with no real thought on how such a mass up could/would really work..

My 2 cents worth.

Rich

Here is what we understand was found in a gun shop and then made into the prp:

steyr assambly.jpg


androidandy said:
It is a firing pin from another weapon and does not match the one from the Steyr. Obviously too, a firing pin on the outside of a gun is also quite useless ;). So as far as the conceptual film world reality of the design of the gun, it is not a firing pin. :)

The "dish" is also not from the Steyr from what I have seen. The bolt as well, is a replacement and also likely fabricated for the prop.

Not sure if there was any real intention on the prop maker to create something with any real conceived function other than to just look cool, but part of the fun of the gun is trying to see if we can at least pretend to reverse engineer it into something at least partially believable as it would exist in that universe.

Andy
Click to expand...
 
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A bolt face would show a flat face with only a recess for the back of the round, a small firing pin in the center (thus the term of center fired ammo) and the arm of the brass extractor, NOTHING like the front end cap and you would also see the walls of the receiver as the bolt is 3/4 inch wide, not the size of the end cap which is filling in where the Barrel was threaded in.

Rich


MFP 2020 said:
I'm sure you're aware that the protruding tip is the firing pin, and the surrounding "dish" (what someone termed the "probe" somewhere) is actually the bolt face of the rifle. But considering the design, anything's possible. (Maybe it allows for a grenade attachment.)
Click to expand...

- - - Updated - - -

A needle in a LARGE haystack...I fear. And there may not be a paper trail to a sub-sub outside jobber/prop maker.

Rich


robstyle said:
its been a good period of time but I may know who has the paperwork from the gun house/build. Due to various instances ive not been able to make the trip to see him but do have a work project he is involved in. If anyone has info to add onto this, the more the merrier about the films production, as the files he has are all original paperwork in masses of bankers boxes from thousands of films. Its a matter of hunting box per box, file per file to track anything down.

Blade Runner 1981

Tandem Productions INC.
1901 Avenue of the Stars
Suite 666
LA CA 90067
213-553-3600
TWX: Tandem - TAT - LSA

Director: Ridley Scott
Production Designer: Lawrence G Paul
Prop Master: Terry Lewis
Art Director: David L. Snyder


The Burbank Studios
4000 Warner Blvd
Burbank CA 91522
213-954-2342
Click to expand...
 
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racprops said:
A bolt face would show a flat face with only a recess for the back of the round, a small firing pin in the center (thus the term of center fired ammo) and the arm of the brass extractor, NOTHING like the front end cap and you would also see the walls of the receiver as the bolt is 3/4 inch wide, not the size of the end cap which is filling in where the Barrel was threaded in.

Rich
Click to expand...

Watch this...

Yeah, but still.

;)
 
Rich has taken apart and helped with several Steyr conversions to real replica shooters, so I will take his word on this.

I know as far as other information goes, we had a lead on prop summit to a gunsmith that worked for a large prop house, but the information is unaccessible at the moment. I do remember seeing a label on the inside of the gun case though that had the name Bob (somebody?) at Jade International. The only info on the company I could come up with is an international shipping company on the east coast.

Andy
 
I stand corrected. I should have known better than to open my keyboard without checking first. I certainly wouldn't argue with the foremost experts. Carry on.
 
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