Star Wars Prop Weapons

The weapons used in the Star Wars films are as iconic as the characters that weild them, and often leave us intrigued about their design and origin.

Today I am going to share some of the real world weapons that have served as the basis for many of the props used throughout the Star Wars saga.

The Original Trilogy

Beginning in 1976 with filming of A New Hope, the prop armorers at Pinewood had to develop realistic blasters that reflected an in universe feel to them.

George wanted weapons that appeared real in their form and function, while also being rugged and well worn. For this the armorers turned to surplus weapons stores.

Most of the weapons they selected were from World War One and World War Two, AB’s were British and German in origin.

One of the most prominent was the Stormtrooper blaster, which was designed around a British Sterling L2A3 Mark 4 submachine gun. This post- WW2 era weapon was used by the British Military from 1953 until 1994.

It featured a collapsible and folding stock, as well as a side mounted magazine well to accept a thirty round curved, box magazine.

To make the Imperial Blastech E-11D used by the Stormtroopers, the props department added linear shrouds over the barrel.

They left the stock as is, while adding greeblies to the side of the weapon, and they used WW2 tank scopes for the sights. The thirty round magazines were replaced with short, straight mags For screen use.

For the Rebel Fleet Troopers the armorers made their Blastech DH-17 blasters by utilizing the same Sterling machine gun.

They removed the barrel shroud and replaced it with a shop made prop barrel, and they also removed the folding stock and magazine well.

An extra rod was attracted to the top of the receiver, and a single point scope was added to most versions of the weapon.

Princess Leia’s Drearian Arms Defender sporting blaster was built around a Russian .22 target pistol with a modified barrel.

Han Solo’s iconic DL-44 Blaster was based on a WW2 C96 Mauser. It too, featured heavy modifications with a muzzle device, a heat sink in front of the mag well, and a side mounted targeting scope.

This particular prop had three different versions used by Solo in each of the three films. All had slightly different barrels and muzzle devices, and different scopes.

Ponda Baba’s blaster was an SE-14c ( Also used as a sidearm by the Death Troopers in Rogue One ) which was made from a Swiss Rexam Favor Mark 5 submachine gun.

The barrel and stock were removed, while an extension was added to the rear of the receiver, as was a scope.

The Stormtroopers patrolling Mos Eisley were all armed with modified MG34s, MG42s, and at least one trooper with a modified Lewis Machine gun.

In The Empire Strikes Back we see the Rebel ground forces carrying Blastech A295 carbines, which are modified versions of the German MP44 machine gun.

Later in Return of the Jedi, the Rebel soldiers are seen carrying the A280, which was made from a cast of the M-16 rifle.

Boba Fett is seen carrying a unique blaster, which actually began as a Webley & Scott No.1 Mark 1 37mm flare gun. The end of the barrel was plugged, and greeblies were added as well as a scope.

Rogue One

In Rogue One, the Rebels primary weapons are again based on the M-16. This includes Cassian Andor’s Blastech A280-CFE, as well as the larger A310 rifles and A300 carbines used by the Rebel Pathfinders.

Jyn Erso’s iconic Blastech A180 blaster is actually a modified Luger 9mm Airsoft pistol. A larger diameter ported barrel has been added, along with greeblies on the bottom and sides of the weapon. Interestingly, Jyn’s blaster is modular, however we never see it configured as a rifle on screen.

Functionality

During production of A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back, most of the weapons fired blanks to assist with visual cues for the actors, as well as aiding the visual effects artists during post-production.

This was not continued during filming of Return of the Jedi. It is however, used again during Rogue One, in the form of airsoft guns.

The image below captured during filming shows Jyn Erso firing her A180 blaster pistol at a Stormtrooper.

You can clearly see the gases being vented around the charging handle as the action cycles during firing.

Conclusion

These are just a few examples of the real world firearms that have been used by the props department of both Lucasfilm and Pinewood Studios to create the weapons of the Star Wars films.

The armorers took inspiration from the tragedies of warfare, and designed an array of space age blasters that would go down in cinematic history.