PROP GUN VS REGULAR GUN - DIFFERENCES?

[chief38]

I am not sure I fully understand what the difference between a standard gun and a "prop-gun" is. Prior to this weeks event with Baldwin, I was under the impression a prop gun was not capable of firing live ammunition. So does anyone here REALLY know what the actual difference is?

I have read versions that the gun was loaded with real live ammo, and some with a "bad" blank, so does anyone know the truth?

 

[glenwolde]

There's no set definition.

Form the InterWebs:

"Prop firearms can take several forms, including nonfunctional weapons that don’t discharge and so-called airsoft guns, gas-powered replicas that can mimic the movement of real guns. Props also include real firearms that film crews load with blank cartridges for maximum authenticity in the way they look and sound on camera."

 

[Golddollar]

There's no set definition.

Form the InterWebs:

"Prop firearms can take several forms, including nonfunctional weapons that don’t discharge and so-called airsoft guns, gas-powered replicas that can mimic the movement of real guns. Props also include real firearms that film crews load with blank cartridges for maximum authenticity in the way they look and sound on camera."

I've been in 3 movies and a lot of community theater productions. In general, a prop is an inanimate physical object (probably not including vehicles) required to be in a particular scene. The description above is a very accurate summation.

 

[djohns6]

I think it's more about the USE rather than the construction . Anything can be used as a " prop " to help tell a story .

 

[DWalt]

If there is no actual shooting required in a scene, it's common to use a non-gun, i.e., it looks like a real gun but won't fire.

 

[Jon651]

Too many folks are getting hung up on the term "prop" as it applies to firearms. The truth is, anything can be used as a "prop" - including an actual firearm loaded with live ammunition. Using the term "prop" doesn't imbue whatever it is with any special properties other than it is being used in a theatrical production of some sort.

I watched a segment on one of the news channels last night where they listed the rules for the use of "prop guns". Unsurprisingly, the rules were exactly the same as those I've seen posted at every shooting range and listed in every firearms safety class I've ever been to.

Personally, my own First Rule of Firearms is "Respect every firearm for what it is - a weapon designed to kill." Over the years I have found that people who don't respect firearms were much more likely to have an accident with one. It is my belief that if you first and foremost consider a firearm to be a tool, or a "prop", or a collectible item, or a piece of art, or even a piece of junk then you are not respecting a firearm for what it actually is - and what it can do. That's just my personal belief - everyone is entitled to their own.

 

[Absalom]

In the early years of Hollywood, “prop” guns in movies weren’t just real, they were historic.

In the first half of the 20th century, film studios bought surplus guns from Bannerman by the truck load.

If you ever watch “Ft. Apache” or “Rio Grande”, those Springfield trapdoor carbines carried and fired by the screen troopers probably rode with the real US Cavalry. I once passed up an opportunity to acquire one from a batch of carbines that had not just all the correct US markings from the 1870s/80s, but also property marks from MGM. No other modifications.

 

[Buford57]

When our sons were young we took one of their buddies, from a rabidly anti-gun family, to a FNRA banquet. One of our tickets won a door prize - a non-gun prop Garand used in Saving Private Ryan. From 10 feet it was hard to tell from the real thing. After much convincing that it was a piece of solid rubber that could not be made to fire, his folks let him keep it.

 

[johngalt]

Quite a few years ago (>10?) I read that the gun laws in California changed such that the movie studios had to get rid of guns that were capable of firing live ammo. It may have just been the class 3 stuff, I don't remember the exact details.

 

[Onomea]

When I was a kid, we had a "dummy" Springfield 1903 rifle we were allowed to play with. Looked real. You could work the bolt and pull the trigger, but the barrel was solid metal. I suspect it was for a drill team at some point.

 

[Chubbo]

Any guns

When our sons were 4 & 5yrsof age, I observed them playing, Cops & Robbers, and Cowboys & Native Americans. I felt that the time had come to instruct them about the dangers of pointing guns, of any type, at anybody, without exception.
For a ‘prop’, I chose an antique, 7shot, .22 short, black powder Ethan Allen revolver. That little revolver was loaded with the only ammo, available at the time, .22 short, smokeless powder, cartridges.
Standing on our open-ended breezeway, I let each of our sons to fire a few rounds into the backyard. There was nothing but a woods, and farmland behind our yard.
The resulting sound, and flashes, produced by that little revolver, left a lifelong impression on my sons.
At the same time, they were taught to immediately open and check any gun that was handed to them, to see if it was loaded.
These lessons worked well with my sons, with no accidents ever resulting.
I believe that like instructions, would benefit anybody that would be handling guns.

 

[cowboy4evr]

When I was in 2nd grade , a buddy of mine brought a real german luger to school , " But " the barrel had been filled with lead . The teacher , principal ---- no one took the time to even look at it . We played with it during recess . When you're 6 yrs old , it looked and felt gigantic in our small hands . Couldn't get away with that now . Regards Paul

 

[meaneyedcatz]

I remember several years ago someone was killed on a movie set when a paper wad in a blank had penetrated into a persons chest.
It was something like that but I remember it was blanks and not live cartridges.

 

[Jon42]

When I was in grade school my neighbors dad had a Russian rifle with a drum magazine. He was a NASCAR mechanic and had mini bikes and a backhoe he would let us drive with him. They were Rock Stars. It was demilitarized with the action cut. Even as a kid all our parents taught us every gun is always to be checked and respected.

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

Years ago a fellow GI (yes, I know,real knowledgeable source) told me movie guns were sleeved to prevent firing of live ammo, on another board someone mentioned an insert that could be easily installed and removed.