IMFDB talk:Blog Post/MoviePropMaster2008: IMFDB's Own Armorer

Guns in films

Hello, On your page http://www.imfdb.org/index.php/MoviePropMaster2008:_IMFDB%27s_Own_Armorer it states most guns used in movies are real and have been modified to fire blanks. I supply guns to the motion picture industry in Canada, and can state this is not so.

Consider the facts, the cost of a modified real gun is very expensive (more so than buying the real gun as it still has to be modified.) Second, the amount of guns used in the industry or any one screen shot. Third the quality of actor handling the gun Fourth the use of the weapon.

80% of guns seen on screen are rubber or resin cast weapons or Airsoft type guns. If a gun does not need to fire, then it is manditory to use a non firing weapon (can not be accidentaly loaded) for insurance purposes.

Real guns, blank firing or not are very dangerous. To have extras running around with a weapon that may be loaded with a blank is not heard of.

If an actor has to run with lets say an M16, then he may trip or fall. The actors guild insists A) the gun be soft or sponge rubber to prevent actor injury, and B) prevent damage to the weapon.

Actors are hit with weapons, these are high quility extra soft rubber weapons.

Also any extra with a weapon drawn or in the shot will have an Airsoft style, resin, or rubber gun.

One to one training is manditory for any person discharging a blank, real, or replica blank weapon. This alone would be time prohibitive. Each shot that has a discharged weapon, there must be a gun handler (plus security, and ETF (emergency task force or law enforcement officers)).

If a gun has to be tossed or can possibly get dammaged, then for sure it is rubber or resin.

My company collection is over 6000 pieces ranging from blank firing, resin, rubber, and soft sponge rubber. I have worked on ACTRA productions in Canada, as well as movies made in Mexico, Jamaica, and the USA (as an apprentice). Any Live firing weapons are leased through a larger company. My company stays very busy shooting 10 to 20 films per year in the Greater Toronto Area.

82% of all Canadian films are shot in the GTA.

Just some industry insight. I can not speak for Hollywood as I have never worked there, but I have worked in LA and NY, and I know in the last 5 years NY has become more restictive and requires special permits be held for both handlers and each actor using live firing amunition (blank or otherwise). In fact it is harder to shoot a seen in NY city than anywhere in Canada, and we have tough laws to abide by.

Hello, anonymous user who didn't bother to identify himself. Welcome to IMFDB. Well I did not make this page, MT2008 did, but it was assumed that we were not bothering to mention stunt guns (i.e. resin/rubber guns). Though I did not write that passage you quoted, It should have been obvious that the wording referred to hero or firing weapons. We don't bother counting rubber guns. It is assumed that most armories have both live firing and rubber guns. Congratulations on your busy schedule, but you should not be using Canada or NYC as a model for weapons usage (and it's legalities) in the rest of the U.S. I did not know that Toronto made way more films than Vancouver BC, which seems counterintuitive since all the sets I've visited in Canada were in Vancouver BC. But that was a lot of TV shows. The knowledge that Toronto films so much more than Vancouver is good to know. I suppose your proximity to NYC helps in filming a lot of projects that are based on the Eastern side of the U.S. NYC is a cesspool of antigun BS and I won't work on any film that shoots there. But you do realize that most of what you typed, we already knew. Many folks here are (a) adults and (b) work in the industry. I hope you offer more input to this site, especially regarding any insider knowledge on films you've worked on. It is always nice to get confirmation from the on set armorers. MoviePropMaster2008 03:20, 30 December 2009 (UTC) BTW, I will be working a lot more in 2010 than 2009. 2009 was a crap year. So I won't be here as much.

You should probably post this in MPM's talk page, Canuck.-Oliveira 17:03, 24 July 2009 (UTC)

Kin 93's frankengun

[moved from main page] --AdAstra2009 20:41, 29 December 2009 (UTC)

He also provided us with a custom-assembled M16 rifle identical to that used in the film:

Custom Hybrid gun made to resemble the firearm used by Emil Matasareanu in the North Hollywood Shootout - 5.56mm

Putting Kin93's frankengun image on here totally kills the point. MPM's picture looks irregularly small though, so I didn't put it back. - Gunmaster45

Not only that, but Kin93's image is not an accurate representation of the one in the movie. The one in the movie clearly has a 20" barrel. In real life, the M16 used by Matasareanu had a chopped barrel like the gun image that Kin93 made, but obviously, that's not within the scope of this site. -MT2008

Lifelong Question

What is the Golden Gun chambered in, do you know? -Camden

(James Bond 007) - Colibri Lighters Golden Gun there's a page for the golden gun.--Predator20 23:35, 12 April 2010 (UTC)

Some help needed

MPM2008, I need some help identifying some guns on my Aliens vs. Predator 2 page. If you could spare a few moments to look over the remaining unknown guns I'd be grateful. Feel free to delete this section of your talk page when you're finished. --Mazryonh 05:00, 26 January 2011 (UTC)

DRD Paratus-18 image request

Hawaii Five-0's newest episode just used this gun. Do you happen to have one of these in you armory? Excalibur01 (talk) 14:50, 5 February 2013 (EST)