Help on getting blank rounds.

[Lone Wolf]

Does anyone know how to go about getting firearms that fire blanks, or if they are even legal to own?

[Yojimbo]

Does anyone know how to go about getting firearms that fire blanks, or if they are even legal to own? Depending on the jurisdiction you live in the requirements to own a blank gun might be as heavy as those that regulate a regular firearm. One thing though, even a blank gun can be very dangerous. There have been incidents in the past where folks have been seriously injured by horsing around with a blank gun. In one case an actor was fooling around and played Russian roulette with a blank firing prop and ended up killing himself. These are not toys and should be treated like a regular firearm. I once met a guy who worked on movie sets as an arms master and he was the most serious, strictly rule adherent dude you would ever meet. He would be in charge if firearm safety, and he would be the only guy on the set allowed to touch, load or unload the prop. The props would constantly be in his possession and he would personally hand it to the actor when the scene called for it, and then he would keep his eyes trained on the prop. He told me that if the prop left his eyesight for even a moment, or if he saw someone other than the actor touch the prop, or if the actor was a tool and started to mess with the prop, that he would immediately confiscate the prop and unload it and then reload it with a fresh set of blanks. He did these things, he explained, because accidents can happen when people are careless or clueless, and as the arms master he could be held personally responsible should anyone get injured by the prop. He further told me that the industry had gotten a lot stricter after the accidental death of Lee on the set of THE CROW. So dude, sorry for the lecture. You probably already knew about these things (for all I know you might have grown up in an NRA household and had gun safety training as a tot) but I just want to make sure that you and everyone else who might read this post knows that a blank gun is not a toy and if improperly used can cause serious injury or death.

[Skippy911sc]

Try Sportsman Guide or Cheaper than Dirt...Just remember that you need to modify the firearm to fire blanks.

[Lone Wolf]

Yeah, I thought about going to a local gun store and see if the could help, but the owners are a bunch of pricks. I did hear about the actor killing himself with one, and never intended to have the gun aimed at anyone (for those shots, it would be wide angles and I'd just use an unloaded CO2 gun for effect), but for a few close up shots where said actor would be firing at nothing, I'd want something that would actually blowback and release and empty shell while not having to go through all the problems of buying a handgun. Thanks for the information.

[PJoseph]

If I may offer up a suggestion - after having used blanks for many projects in past years - I would seriously recommend checking into sites that sell license free keyable flares - this way you could just get plastic gun kits or metal replicas. Then the benefits of digital effects are... A.) move MUCH quicker on set or location - nothing to rig - much more creative control in post B.) not worry about drawing attention to your show - you can run wildly anywhere with your actors mock firing the rounds and no on will care C.) safer - you can have guns aimed at anyone from any distance D.) cheaper E.) Will ALWAYS get a great shot on camera - blanks without the right amount of flash paper will NEVER, EVER give you muzzle flare - just smoke which looks cheap. F.) Not have to worry about getting someone on set with a firearms license or renting correct prop guns with half moon barrels $$$ (so you can't fire a real bullet) Now, I know many people are against using digital effects - but honestly, and this is from years of doing this, just THINK about using digital muzzle flares. I can direct you to a few options where you can download them online for a fee. They even have keyable shells that can pop out. Something to think about. pJ

[chukrok]

I went with airsoft guns and digital muzzle flash from VisionLab Studio.

[Publius]

There's a company named Collector's Armoury that I used to get catalogs from that used to sell the coolest cap guns. They were full-size replicas of weapons from handguns to submachine guns to assault rifles that used special caps that you'd put inside reusable metal cartridges. They weren't as powerful as a real blank, but the moving parts of the gun were only a fraction of the weight of the real thing so you'd still get automatic operation, ejecting cartridges, etc. They were imported from Japan, where replica firearms are popular because the real thing is almost impossible to get. But I think they stopped being able to import them when various U.S. government entities started cracking down on realistic-looking toy guns several years ago.

[Eyebiter]

Sounds like you want one of those 8mm blank pistols. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=167OAcofZPw

[FoodFight]

Try this appropriately-named site. http://www.gunblanks.com/

[EvilNed]

If I may offer up a suggestion - after having used blanks for many projects in past years - I would seriously recommend checking into sites that sell license free keyable flares - this way you could just get plastic gun kits or metal replicas. Then the benefits of digital effects are... A.) move MUCH quicker on set or location - nothing to rig - much more creative control in post B.) not worry about drawing attention to your show - you can run wildly anywhere with your actors mock firing the rounds and no on will care C.) safer - you can have guns aimed at anyone from any distance D.) cheaper E.) Will ALWAYS get a great shot on camera - blanks without the right amount of flash paper will NEVER, EVER give you muzzle flare - just smoke which looks cheap. F.) Not have to worry about getting someone on set with a firearms license or renting correct prop guns with half moon barrels $$$ (so you can't fire a real bullet) Now, I know many people are against using digital effects - but honestly, and this is from years of doing this, just THINK about using digital muzzle flares. I can direct you to a few options where you can download them online for a fee. They even have keyable shells that can pop out. Something to think about. pJ I disagree on pretty much all points, except for the logistical and practical ones. And my main gripe is that you seem to think that guns give off huge amounts of muzzle-flashes? They don't! They basicly give off some smoke, and you see the shockwave from the bullet through that smoke. And that, looks much cooler and more realistic, than just a big fire-cone. Sorry, but I definetly think smoke and shockwaves are prefereably to digital muzzle flashes. Besides, digital hasn't been perfected yet. It doesn't look all that real. It can easily break immersion for me. Go for blinds, and find a gun that can only fine blinds as well!

[PJoseph]

Hey man, if it works for you go for it. Just offering up an alternative. pJ