I can't seem to find any large clear pictures of the phasers that were seen in TOS pilot episode "The Cage", can anyone direct me to a website with clear large pictures to make out details?
James
James
Phasers
- Thread starter James Wright
- Start date
You've probably tried Ex Astris, already, right?
Well, those weren't "phasers" at all. They were clearly (in dialog) identified as "hand lasers." That's probably why you can't find them.
Do a search for "trek cage hand laser" and see what comes up.
here's a starting point:
http://memory-alpha.org/en/wiki/Hand_laser
http://memory-alpha.org/en/wiki/File:Laser_pistol,_The_cage.jpg
There are tons of references on the net of the last known hand laser... unfortunately it was modified for WNMHGB.
I'm currently building a replica based on the unmodified original form factor. My current progress is in the bottom image, though this is more of an exercise than a rigorous reproduction.
I'm currently building a replica based on the unmodified original form factor. My current progress is in the bottom image, though this is more of an exercise than a rigorous reproduction.
...Considering that the weapons in "The Cage" behave much like lasers should (beams drill holes in target), but essentially the same weapons in "Where No Man", "Man Trap" and "What Are Little Girls Made Of" behave much like phasers should (beams stun people, cause explosions, or make people disappear), one might speculate that they are both. That is, the rotating of the barrel would bring out both laser and phaser functionalities - the former of which would be considered superior whenever trying to drill through obstacles.
The two references to lasers in "The Cage" are both specifically to their penetrating function, to be sure: first, Tyler laments that the lasers didn't breach the elevator door, and later, Pike bets that his laser blasted a hole in the cell window despite appearances, and isn't really empty of charge.
The barrel part remains unchanged between "The Cage" and the other three episodes, to be sure.
Timo Saloniemi
The two references to lasers in "The Cage" are both specifically to their penetrating function, to be sure: first, Tyler laments that the lasers didn't breach the elevator door, and later, Pike bets that his laser blasted a hole in the cell window despite appearances, and isn't really empty of charge.
The barrel part remains unchanged between "The Cage" and the other three episodes, to be sure.
Timo Saloniemi
I think those hand lasers would make pretty good hand phasers, wasn't one of them actually used as a phaser in a later episode of TOS?
James
James
Yup: in "Where No Man Has Gone Before", Spock stunned Gary Mitchell with a gun that had been modified from the "The Cage" sidearm by adding a large "hammer cocking lever" or whatnot. In "Man Trap", archaeologist Crater blasted some rocks around our heroes with the same gun. And in "What Are Little Girls Made Of", the same gun performed a vaporizing function.
To be sure, in none of those episodes was this gun actually referred to as "phaser". It just behaved like one.
Timo Saloniemi
To be sure, in none of those episodes was this gun actually referred to as "phaser". It just behaved like one.
Timo Saloniemi
Which set of phasers are your favorite, those from TOS & TOS Movies. TNG and its' follow up series or the phasers from Enterprise?
As for me, I hated TNG and follow up series hand phasers, they look too much like hand held vacs.
I prefer the phaser seen in Star Trek VI.
James
As for me, I hated TNG and follow up series hand phasers, they look too much like hand held vacs.
I prefer the phaser seen in Star Trek VI.
James
TNG phasers were, indeed, lame.
I'm with you on the ST6 phasers.
The shaver phasers were okay, too, but as more of a concealed-carry item.
I'm with you on the ST6 phasers.
The shaver phasers were okay, too, but as more of a concealed-carry item.
Shaver phaser!? Hadn'r considered that.
James
James
I like the late FC/DS9/VGR phasers that had bent handles so they seemed more pistol-grippish. But I miss the "phaser one in phaser two" aspect. I believe both Andrew Probert and Rick Sternbach both did some cool concepts for more traditional phasers that retained this feature early in the TNG production process.
Of course, my all-time favorite Star Trek firearm was the chemically-driven Pb-204 neutral particle beam, as seen in A Piece of the Action, Patterns of Force, Star Trek IV, and Storm Front, just to name a few. Its numerous variants have a number of features superior to the phaser, including reduced travel time to target, cheaper assembly, easier maintenance, a potentially better targeting system, and, best of all, far greater lethality.
I wonder why Starfleet never adopted it.
I wonder why Starfleet never adopted it.
High lethality has got to be a downside for a peacekeeping force. I imagine phasers are used to stun much more often than they are used to do anything else. But they did develop a chemically-driven firearm, just not to series production. (The fact that it was chemically driven was a bit of a surprise to me; I'd have expected a coilgun or something.)
Aw, I was kidding. 
And I forgot about the FoF rifle. TR-116? Developed for use within energy dampening fields, iirc.
Energy dampening fields don't make much sense to me. What does that mean? If it dampens a phaser, why doesn't it dampen the energy contained in the bonds of a chemical propellant too?
For that matter, why doesn't it dampen the electrical processes of the brain?
And I forgot about the FoF rifle. TR-116? Developed for use within energy dampening fields, iirc.
Energy dampening fields don't make much sense to me. What does that mean? If it dampens a phaser, why doesn't it dampen the energy contained in the bonds of a chemical propellant too?
For that matter, why doesn't it dampen the electrical processes of the brain?
Aw, I was kidding.
And I forgot about the FoF rifle. TR-116? Developed for use within energy dampening fields, iirc.
Energy dampening fields don't make much sense to me. What does that mean? If it dampens a phaser, why doesn't it dampen the energy contained in the bonds of a chemical propellant too?
One example of such a field we have seen has involved tetryon particles that cause malfunctions in some man-portable beamed weapons. Presumably, for this to cause, say, a phaser malfunction, the fictional tetryon particles are interfering with the action of fictional nadions upon fictional fushigi-no-umi crystals. With all that fiction in the mixin', it shouldn't be too hard to think of a way that this could happen without screwing up the other things you mentioned. Tetryons have something to do with subspace, so there's another layer of tasty fiction fixins.
Can you still cast a magic missile in an energy dampening field?
Actually the phasers seen in ST VI were originally created and used in ST V: TFF. So I guess Shat got at that part right at least.
And yes, they were my favorites, closely followed by the original TOS phasers, and the EM-33 from ENT.
And yes, they were my favorites, closely followed by the original TOS phasers, and the EM-33 from ENT.
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