By now, my readers should be more than aware of the fact that I am a proud Browncoat – I missed Firefly when it first aired on Fox, but on my parents’ urgings, I found the DVDs, and I am pretty sure I watched the entire series all the way through once I started. And then found time to watch it again. And have since watched it more times than I probably care to count. Then the movie came out, and all bets were off.
Now, as all Browncoats know, Captain Malcolm Reynolds carried a pistol, but not just any pistol – a Moses Brothers Self-Defense Engine Frontier Model B. This second model differentiated itself by augmenting the conventional chemical propulsion system with an integral gauss coil system installed in the barrel, and allowed both standard firing pin ammunition and straight gauss rounds to be fired. Those rounds were fed by way of the magazine installed forward of the trigger guard, and the “cocking” noise was actually the gauss system activating.
Of course, that is just the story. In actuality, Mal’s pistol was a brass housing over a massively modified Taurus Model 85 revolver, engineered to fire blanks. Bit underwhelming, that.
So what is one to do? Well, I understand that some folks may have once talked to some other folks, and the discussion revolved around taking this concept and making it into a real, live, functioning, magazine-fed, semi-automatic, bullet-firing firearm.
Which would just be awesome.
So the question is, who actually would be interested in such a thing? And, more to the point, and more importantly, what would you be willing to pay for such a thing? Even if we were able to bastardize it together on the basis of some other firearm (which I cannot personally see, but I am not a gunsmith… the original conversation relegated it to “probably possible but doubtful”, apparently), the price tag would not be… hell, it would not even be reasonable, much less “small”. I do not even want to consider the legalities involved, and the prices necessary to license the design from Fox / Universal Pictures.
What is it worth to you, in real-world dollars-and-cents, to hold – and fire – a copy of Mal’s pistol? And how many are there who would be seriously interested in such a thing?
I want a Bergmann Simplex or Astra 900 simply because it’s as close as I can get, presently.
I’d trade half my current collection for a shootable replica of Mal’s gun in a fair-sized caliber (> .22) that wasn’t just plastic covers stuck to a conventional frame. Granted, half my collection would only be worth about a hundred bucks.
More seriously, I’d be willing to pony up $700-$800 for such a thing.
I’d pay an extra $50 if people would quit talking about gauss guns (coilguns, magnetic accelerators, linacs, or whatever else they call them) though. Every two-bit skiffy writer who needs a two-bit skiffy weapon goes for that technology, and it gets a little old. Now a railgun on the other hand…
@ Vaarok: Seems those, a Bergmann Bayard, or a Mauser C96 would at least be a good basis…
At the very least, they indicate the idea has at least been successfully implemented before. The trick will be updating it.
@ Dave H: Unfortunately, given that this will be a custom build for an unproven and untested design, something tells me we will have to pump the figures up a bit from that…
Railguns are real now, so not much science fiction in that
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I wouldn’t be able to afford such thing for a while, but for a functional pistol in a decent sized caliber with a magazine holding at least 5 rounds, for that, I’d be willing to pay up to $3000.
$789.99
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After writing a check for $15,000 to my Realtor I’d be lucky to find the change in my purse to buy the ammo for that. But boy would I want it. I’d bet you could pay about $1200 for it.
@ jetaz: Yeah, I fear that is more the range we are thinking…
And I was planning on the exact same requirements myself, though I am afraid that the only decent-calibered pistol rounds of the appropriate length are all rimmed.
@ USCitizen: Not. Helpful.
@ Brigid: Zouchie… I am not looking forward to selling our current home, but thankfully that day is still a little while off. Thanks for the input
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Spread the word, folks, if you are really interested… something tells me this will require a not-insignificant buy-in for it to even get off the ground.
I’d every handgun I own, apart from my carry piece, to finance that.
Would .30 carbine work? Or a thicker gun with a rotary mag?
sell. I’d sell every handgun I own, and so on. I blame the beer.
I think a bolt over kit replacing the plastic shell on the Olympic Whitney Wolverine would be do-able:
http://www.olyarms.com/index.php?page=shop.browse&category_id=10&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=37
Due to the magazine, the grip angle would be slightly less obtuse than the original. But if you wound someone good with injection molding, you could make a $200 shell for a $300 gun.
That could be affordable and cool… and would go quite well with my Mares Leg.
@ Chris in Texas: Well that is a pretty solid vote of interest
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And that caliber does have promise, though it runs a bit hot on the “pressure” scale…
@ That Guy: I think the bigger hitch is that massive beavertail – the Moses was definitely not so encumbered. Worth thinking about, though, especially given the price difference.
Just in case y’all didn’t know — A Firefly fan-film, available on DVD and Blue-Ray: http://browncoatsmovie.com/
Thanks for the pointer – just snagged copies for myself and my parents
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@Linoge- That’s why God made Bench grinders and Dremel tools. 2 minutes, and I could make that beavertail disappear.
Yeah, but how much of that is functional? I know the slide needs to reciprocate, which already breaks with the overall design of the Moses…
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