Blade Runner Blaster - Where to start?

Okay, so like countless others before me I have felt the insatiable urge to chase the Blade Runner blaster dragon. It’s not even that I’m super into Blade Runner, first and foremost it’s that the blaster is aesthetically exceptionally appealing to me.

So my question is, starting out, what’s a good place to start? I’ve never worked with garage kits before and my replication skills come more in the form of minute toy mods (a bit of painting here and there, some light modding to make function more accurate or using various materials to add weight, and I’m learning how to create wear and such w/ my Gundam kits AKA very little)

However I’m dying to have a good looking blaster on my shelf and I would love some tips on maybe a good place to “dip my toe in” before I debate on spending large amounts of money on a garage kit.

Any help would be greatly appreciated, and I fully acknowledge that I’m just starting out so if there’s an inexpensive other prop I could work on to sorta work up to and get comfy with the process or something please feel free to share! Any advice or input is greatly appreciated!

Have a good one!

The Blade Runner blaster was my second prop, after a Han Solo DL-44 (TFA).

I have a Coyle kit, it was definitely very involved to build it; you have to do everything from sanding the parts, painting, soldering components, threading holes etc. On the one hand, it's a bit of a challenge. But on the other, you'll learn a whole lot of new skills building this kit in particular. I'll post a picture of my completed kit when I get home tonight.

Here they be!

Hey, I recommend the tomenosuke kit but it's a bit hard to find. It's a very very clean kit that still requires you to build everything but all the cast are just perfect from the get go.
you can also find sidkit kit on ebay, there are an inbetween I guess.
good luck, it's a great adventure

As Eethan said:

http://tomenosuke.bandec-japan.com/en/detail/Tomenosuke-Blaster-2049-Stunt-Model-Assembly-Kit-ver-3

I third Eethan on this one. The easiest kit to work on is the Tomenosuke. Their casting is Pristine as is with very little work to make it look very nice.



You could also always go all out and get the real parts


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What's your budget?

As I have posted before, its all VERY subjective and as others have pointed out above there are many options available and even though you have "done your research" it ultimately comes down to more than simply picking a best - IMO. I have owned or still own almost all of them (aside from a Harford) and I have also had the opportunity to spend a lot of time with the original blaster so let me give you my 3 cents worth on a few of them:

Rick Ross PKD: Possibly the most aesthetically pleasing blaster and one of those that I will always relish owning. Its not accurate but it embodies the original spirit of the first movie in a way that none of the others do. Sadly the chance of getting one of his original PKD's is unlikely

Rich Coyle Blaster: Rich and Phil set the bar regarding almost of the early research into the blaster and generally his (later models) are regarded as the most accurate. The secret is to acquire either one of his already built blasters (which are fantastic) or one of his slightly earlier models because the build quality in most of those is second to none. Of late it seems his offerings have been rather hit and miss with often not the best quality castings. That said, it is possible to get a new build that is wonderful but care needs to be taken with your selection.

SidKit: The Sidkit worldcon model (his last) is another epic pice and if you ignore the hysterical utterances around this offering you will be very satisfied indeed. The Sidkit castings are in my experience streets above even Rich's best and while its not quite as accurate as Coyle's, the Sidkit like the Coyle embody the character of the original blaster in that its made up of various bits and pieces which gives you the impression of something that was formed rather than manufactured as a complete piece from the word go. These are also hard to come by and its important you acquire the Worldcon version because not only is it the best Sid produced but its also - mostly - retooled from scratch.

Tomenosuke - This is the Rolls Royce of blasters and you will be hard pressed to find anything better. It might be too clean and too perfect for some and it might lack the more subjective characteristics I mentioned earlier (which might be important to you as they are for me) but its an incredible blaster and one that deserves its place at the top of the pile. The downside is deciding on which model because some are better than others but if you spend the time you will find what you're looking for.

Good luck, I hope your quest is successful.
M

Props to you for the info KramStaar

Yeah, if you don't have a grand to spend, you might want to start with one of the squirt guns on ebay. They're pricey for what they are, but what they can be is something very special if you want to put the work into one. And they are available for a lot less than most kits.

All depends on how much you want to spend.