Adam Savage Tests Weta Workshop’s Machine Gun Props
While at Weta Workshop, Adam spends the day with Peter Lyon, Weta’s armorist, and gets a close look at fabricated machine gun props used for Avatar and learns how Weta is inventing new mechanisms that give actors more realistic recoil.
Shot and edited by Joey Fameli
42 thoughts on “Adam Savage Tests Weta Workshop’s Machine Gun Props”
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Another video that makes me want to go Weta!…and then get behind the scenes access…it’s not going to happen is it?! sadface
Makes me think though if this style of “fake gun” would be acceptable in cosplay? The action look pretty realistic, but more and more cons are saying that you must have orange muzzle tips, if they allow prop guns at all.
Indy action films could be about to get cheaper to produce though
This is incredible. I recently used a jigsaw and the recoil was intense for long term use – such a great concept!
I want one, I want one, no wait I want two
BEST ENDING TO A PREMIUM VIDEO… EVER.
Though Norm- You looked a little bit … well… scary..
So cool, such great ideas
Maaaaan this was awesome! Incredible engineering for the cost.
This is great. The gold standard for realistic scifi guns in my opinion is Star Wars and Empire, where they used real modified WWII Sterling machine guns for the Stormtrooper blasters, shooting real blanks, with real recoil, and real muzzle flash. I always thought that added a level of realism, especially when the actors would wince and blink every time they fired the gun. They also had real heft (look at how Princess Leia has difficulty with the weight of the Stormtrooper gun when she and Luke are about to swing across the chasm in Star Wars). The lack of this realism is a real problem in the prequels (and other movies), I think.
So cool and innovative.
Amazing stuff!
AWESOME Video Guys .
Cool use of a common mechanism, and what a basic way to add further realism to a VR gun.
Great Video, and dramatic ending.
I would make one of these in a flash .. if there was a recipe 😉
lack of heft is what i always worry about when i see props from some leightweight material like foam, fibreglass, etc. sure you can paint it to look the part, but how are you going to get it to move right?
archery is a hobby of mine. so i have that in the back of my head whenever i see bows and arrows in films. and they all look bad. they all draw too easily, and look like flimsy toys. a while ago, someone on a forum showed a clip where the actor also was a warbow archer and used an (iirc) 90–100 lbs bow in his shots. even though he was able to draw that weight with authority, you could still see the difference compared to lotr’s orlando bloom gymnastics.
as for the props: i dig everything about this solution. and once you got fabrication of the mechanism down, there could be weta-level merch guns that are both good-looking and absolutely safe.
Scaling up a taptic engine that you get in the newer iPhones might be a good idea also!?
Cooool!
Brilliant, just brilliant.
12:27 the exact time where Adam’s brain went “I could work this problem out. I want to work this problem out but I’m going to be so far far away. Why cruel world? whyyyyyyyyyyyy?”
Great concept. This could be a wonderful idea for DIY sci fi guns too, if you want that extra realism. Recip-saws already look like sci fi guns, so what a great idea to convert the mechanism into a useful prop.
Small quibble: at the end, the slow-mo looked like the “kick” was going forward. I don’t watch a lot of slow motion shots of people firing real guns, but I don’t think that’s realistic. Maybe some kind of spring compression on the front end of the weight would decelerate it slowly, while the reciprocating motor would still pound it back for realistic gun kick.
Awesome.
THIS IS AMAZING!
I need to speak to a manager i bought a tested premium account and it will not let me watch videos
Depends on the mechanisms inside the real gun. Some guns have heavier bolt carriers and you get somewhat of a slap forward. Or in one specific case – Pancor Jackhammer, a 12 Gauge automatic shotgun – the whole barrel was forced forward by the gas system to allow the rotary magazine to rotate. There is a reason they called it the jackhammer.
There is definitely a forward impulse as the next round chambers, though not as severe as with the props:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xeeeFxA_9nA
But it could be solved with the airsoft gun method but in reverse – use a sprung weight and a sector gear. Motor drives the weight forward, weight drive rod gets to the end of the sector gear and springs back towards the stock, where the sector gear pics it up again and drives it back forwards.
Perfect example of an elegant solution.
What a great design. A while back I thought I could’ve used a solenoid as an recoil actuator, but I found it a little slow. And I didn’t have enough power running through the system. Such an amazing idea having the shells fly out like they do.
Brilliant concept. Weta did the same thing on Elysium. A prop collectors dream!
Whoa! That is so cool! Looking forward to seeing an update on what they manage to do with the smaller motors.
Really cool video, but Peter in track/sweat pants was kid of distracting
damn…thats cool.
this is exactly what I thought too! I am eyeing up a nerf blaster as I type this 🙂
This video really made me smile. The concept is quite awesome. I wonder how hard it would be to give this a try in the home shop 🙂
– The kick back in VR would be amazing. With the video and audio filled in by the game engine this would bring it to a whole new level.
Really amazing to see that, I’m sure that is the future. Just those off the cuff shots for fun by Adam really looked amazing.
This is what i wanna do for work as a mechatronic student.
Where does one apply for an internship 🙂
jealous
As a gun nut, I have to say that I absolutely love these. All of the safety aspects are incredible, but they add a level of fake realism (and also expandability for futuristic platforms) that is wonderful.
why use a motor when you could use a solenoid? the system they are using is converting electro-magnets into a rotary motion and then into a linear motion. you could go directly into a linear motion with a solenoid, and with a hall-effect sensor you could quite easily make them single fire or rapid fire, and be much more compact,
Peter seems to be a genuine wonder. All of the Weta content is brilliant! It really stands apart and sets a new bar for Tested! I can’t wait to see what’s next!
These are really interesting, I’ve been wondering for a while if something similar to that recoil system could be incorporated into a VR controller at some point down the line.
Though, as someone interested in firearms I can’t help but cast my mind back to things like the shootout in Heat, using the real on set sound and whatnot. Safety > coolness but there’s a reason its so iconic.
Good guys doing good work– nice that WETA allows for discretionary R&D. AND for my money, the whole damn video could have been Joey, Norm and Adam firing everything! (Okay, with a couple of educational insert shots of the workings, natch.)
This is awesome! As a filmmaker I wish I had access to this tech. I’d love to see you build one of these on a one day build ep. 🙂
This gun had a dust ocver when not in use… does anyone know how the dust cover opens? or is it removable,? this is the same gun with the dust cover seen in this video:
is the outside shell and accessory rail metal or plastic?
THATS AMAZING
but also amazing that movie makers didnt think ot get this advanced with the props. they rely too much on cg nowadays. (not that cg isnt also great and also challenging)