My "The Cage" Laser Pistol Build - FINISHED!

[mgoob]

Re: My "The Cage" Laser Pistol Build WIP

Nice job so far.

If you're worried about the paint on the trigger scratching off, don't.
There's enough room on either side of the trigger- it's not supertight fit.

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I'll post when I start on mine. I would like to add the guts from the playmates laser if possible.

It really is small in there.

If you did it, you'd have more room with the barrel fixed in the extended position.

OR

You could try removing some of the resin where the brass barrel fits, but there is a fair amount of stress in that area from holding the brass & aluminum bits on. Not saying it won't work, and if you do it, :thumbsup

 

[tim]

Re: My "The Cage" Laser Pistol Build WIP

Nice job so far.

If you're worried about the paint on the trigger scratching off, don't.
There's enough room on either side of the trigger- it's not supertight fit.

Mine must have been a bit irregular, as there was little clearance. A bit of paint on the resin trigger well actually rubbed off. I had to rework the trigger a bit to make it fit.

You could try removing some of the resin where the brass barrel fits, but there is a fair amount of stress in that area from holding the brass & aluminum bits on. Not saying it won't work, and if you do it, :thumbsup

I notice that Steve added a second screw to hold the aluminum bit on, so that there are a total of two screws that go about 1/2" into the resin. I drilled holes in the resin and just drove the screws in tightly. I think the new design is plenty stable without any epoxy.

 

[tim]

Re: My "The Cage" Laser Pistol Build WIP

There is no definitive shot of the sight. It was missing on Greg's when I got to it. Those screen-grabs are the best we have.

I made the build-ups with a square-U-shaped, bent brass rod soldered to a brass cross-bar. For the kits, I supplied the plastic bar and two pieces of brass rod.

In some shots, the cross-bar appears to be thick. In others, it looks much thinner. I am just not sure. So, I decided to supply the plastic bar for the kits and the brass soldered bar for the buildups.

That, and I only had a very small length of the brass bar and I wanted to use it for the completed buildups. I have looked in three local hobby shops and nobody stocks the correct-size bar. I must have gotten it in a bag of "odds 'n ends" that I bought years ago. So, I had to ration out what I had.

Hope that helps...

Steve, have you also checked the McMaster-Carr catalog online? They stock all sorts of bar stock. To me, a piece of copper-coated circuit board without perforations would be about the right thickness, and when spray painted, would look no different than the brass bar used on the build-ups.

 

[phase pistol]

Re: My "The Cage" Laser Pistol Build WIP

Some laser props have no sight (Hunter drops these two to the floor seconds later, in one continuous camera shot, so we know these are "stunt" props...)

Of the prop(s) that DO have sights, it's not completely clear what's going on there.

 

[tim]

Re: My "The Cage" Laser Pistol Build WIP

^ Interesting. I wonder if all the stunt props were without sights, as they could easily be broken off?

Well, using the shot of Majel overloading the laser as my guide, I built my own sight by soldering the two pieces of brass wire in the kit to a piece of circuit board, reinforcing the joint with a layer of cyanoacrylate, and sanding everything smooth (left image). On the right is the result after spray-painting.

I'll need to add two holes to the sight well on the laser's body. I'll then mount the sight and this baby will be done!

 

[tim]

Re: My "The Cage" Laser Pistol Build WIP

Here's a photo of the sight installed on the laser. I had to add two holes to the sight well on the body, and unfortunately, whenever taking a Dremel to a painted part, one always seems to notice marring after the fact. The paint on the sight therefore needed a bit of touch-up by hand that was then smoothed out by gentle application of 600-grit sandpaper.

Here is the whole laser pistol with sight in place; the little divot (now repainted) to the right of the sight well in the first photo is also an unexpected new addition. :unsure

I go into full OCD mode when it comes to projects like this, in case you couldn't tell. Once again, Steve's done a great job with this replica. I now have a totally new appreciation for this classic Trek prop.

 

[tim]

Gratuitous additional picture.

This thing will look great on a jhusel stand.

 

[phase pistol]

Looks like you've gone from "intractable" to "incredible" in record time! :cool

 

[tim]

With a bit of help from the RPF. :cool

 

[stapleton13]

That turned out really good. I really like how you did the sight.

Myron

 

[tim]

^ Thanks!

I just received one of jhusel's excellent stands, and so here's the final presentation.

EDIT: More on the stands.

 

[terryhimself]

That is a genuine work of art!! Thanks for the heads up on the build.

 

[jhusel]

Man, that stand makes that phaser!!

Seriously, nice build. It looks good on the stand.

Jhusel

 

[tim]

^ Thanks, guys!

I've been having an awful week, so your kind words make me feel better.

 

[rad1701]

Beautiful job on a great item. I need one of those sometime!

 

[thegreatgalling]

Gorgeous!!!

 

[Harada357]

SWEEEEEET Build !!! :love

Awesome job man !! :love

Gordon

 

[Tremas]

A thing of beauty, that laser is!

A question, for those who may know....are the details on the left side, just greeblies, or are they magnets, to hold the laser onto the belt?

 

[tim]

A question, for those who may know....are the details on the left side, just greeblies, or are they magnets, to hold the laser onto the belt?

If memory serves, there was originally an embedded horseshoe magnet for attaching the pistol to a belt.

Thanks for the continued interest!

 

[Tremas]

If memory serves, there was originally an embedded horseshoe magnet for attaching the pistol to a belt.

Thanks for the continued interest!

No trouble. This is one of my favourite sci fi weapons.