As every gun nerd knows, the “BlasTech DL-44 heavy blaster pistol” used by Harrison Ford’s Han Solo in George Lucas’s cinematic epic Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope is a real firearm– a C96 “Broomhandle” Mauser with a bunch of stuff added to it to make it look more sci-fi.
Well, the actual gun that was screen-used by Solo/Ford in the film is up on auction through Rock Island.
While that isn’t super big news as the gun has floated around at auctions in the past, the smart thing that RIAC did with it was to appear last week at San Diego’s Comic-Con International with the blaster.
The company’s first time exhibiting at Comic-Con, an event seen as ground zero for nerddom, you have to understand such a move is brilliant for getting thousands of new eyeballs on the house’s catalogs that ordinarily never would have picked one up.
Speaking of which, Rock Island even put the gun on the back of its August Premier Auction catalog.
Slow clap to Rock Island. The estimated price is in the $300K-$500K range and remember, “Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side, kid.”
