Seburo Gong Pistol:

Not for sale, this piece is a part of my own personal collection.

Construction Notes:

If you want a hard to find weapon crafted for a convention or party email me the details and we can work out a price: mike@fantasyprops.com

I became an instant fan of Shirow as soon as I saw his illustration of the Gong. I've been a fan of the cyberpunk genre for a long time and Masamune's designs epitomise what I think are the best part: TEH GUNS! :) I made the prototype of this handgun from extruded polystyrene foam.... in lay mans terms thats the pink insulation foam you can buy at Home Depot. It's great for carving and sculpting (a very close relative is also used to make surfboards). It can also be sanded and smoothed, making it ideal for making medium detail models.

After finishing the foam model I coat it in several layers of foamboard adhesive to smooth it out. Next the model can be primed and painted or it can be plaster cast to make a composite (resin, etc) model. Check the "how to" section for more notes on plaster casting and resin techniques. There's a lot to know and I'll add more stuff from time to time.

Painting: I prime my foamboard & fiberglass resin models with white Krylon Fusion spray paint. Reason is, it bonds very strongly to plastics. Next comes airbrushed acrylics and Luma ink shadows. I'll post a more in depth tutorial on this if I get enough requests. To finish the paint job I seal it with Rustoleum Painters Touch flat (clear). I typically paint all my models to look somewhat 'battle worn'. This is a personal preference of mine. A new gun is like a new soldier, untried. I like to imagine a weapon as a grizzled veteran :)

Tools: 1"extruded polystyrene foam (pink insulation from Home Depot), 6" retractable utility knife, several grits of sandpaper, fiberglass resin, fiberglass cloth or filaments, palm sander, silicone rubber/dispenser gun, dremel tool, acrylic paints, Krylon Fusion spraypaint, clear spray sealer, Luma inks, airbrush, paintbrushes, modeling clay, heavy-duty marine glue.