Han Solo Blaster: 2025 Studio auctions / Goldin auctions

[Gregatron]

It’s honestly shocking. It’s as shocking and as bad as Luka being traded to the lakers. Highway robbery being done here.

Of course, fakes have sold at auction for many, many years, but we’ve seen a real flood of them, in recent times. As these legacy franchises get older and begin fading into the mists of history, the Old Guard of fans are aging out/dying, as are the people who actually worked on the films and shows. Memories are fading, too, and the gatekeepers are disappearing.

It’s just the right time for scammers and opportunists to come in and wring every last drop of cash out of these franchises while it’s still profitable and feasible to do so.

 

[Alan Solo]

screen-used! Can be matched with the belt-hanger on the deaf star! Later seen in the empire strikes forth when Hans Duo draws on the evil Dark Fader (moments before the climatic life saver battle with Duke Skywaltzer).
Shall we start the bidding at two millions?
(Photographed on a soiled puppy training pad for maximum impactz!)

 

[chubsANDdoggers]

It’s just the right time for scammers and opportunists to come in and wring every last drop of cash out of these franchises while it’s still profitable and feasible to do so.

It happens everywhere unfortunately. Not just the auction houses either. If there is a quick buck to be made people will turn a blind eye sadly.

 

[ID10T]

Hey, I'm all for capitalizationalism-ness and whatnot but were talking millions here, not hundreds. Thats grand theft, no matter the state.

 

[chubsANDdoggers]

It’s crooked for sure. The cream always rises to the top so hopefully we will all know more in the coming days. Someone definitely needs to make that walk of shame.

 

[Dogsbody2]

Damn Im not even remotely an expert but even I can see its not the same Blaster.

 

[Vanitas]

Putting the starting bid at the gift price of 500k!

In all seriousness I'm actually more surprised that they haven't tried counterfeiting the 'other' Han blasters that could conceivably pass as authentic, like the Greedo Killer. MGCs aren't nearly hard to come by as real C96s, and save for the obvious variants with stampings they generally tend to be samey. I could absolutely see something like a fake Greedo Killer as being hard to tell apart from a 'rediscovered' original if they were serious about getting the details right and used original parts, though I suppose at this point that's a bit much to expect from these fraudsters.

 

[Gregatron]

Putting the starting bid at the gift price of 500k!

View attachment 1916974

In all seriousness I'm actually more surprised that they haven't tried counterfeiting the 'other' Han blasters that could conceivably pass as authentic, like the Greedo Killer. MGCs aren't nearly hard to come by as real C96s, and save for the obvious variants with stampings they generally tend to be samey. I could absolutely see something like a fake Greedo Killer as being hard to tell apart from a 'rediscovered' original if they were serious about getting the details right and used original parts, though I suppose at this point that's a bit much to expect from these fraudsters.

Grift price is more like it.



Because the most recognizable props (hero phaser, hero DL-44) would go for the most money.

Pure greed.

And, despite the fact that the honest, hardworking people on forums like this one can easily debunk these forgeries, the perpetrators know that, as with the sale of the “hero” phaser, wealthy fans will STILL buy forgeries just in case they turn out to be authentic. Banking on fans’ fear of missing out on what might be the Real Deal, even if there are obvious red flags.

And, of course, a part of the problem is when even people involved with the original productions actively contribute to the fraud by authenticating forgeries for a good payday, and even sell “original”, “production-made”, and/or “prototype” forgeries of their very own.

Like Roger Christian and Gary Kurtz have.

We all want to believe that our favorite shows and movies were made by people who love what they do, and are passionate like WE are, but that’s just not the truth.

Roger Christian spent a few months working on a low-budget movie everyone thought would fail. Decades later, he saw that a devoted fanbase worshipped him for that job, and so he did some cursory research on the props’ construction, whipped up a few anecdotes to repeat in interviews (and replicas to take to cons), and was apparently more than happy to start autographing replicas, authenticating forgeries, and even trying to sell his own forgeries.

Sad.

 

[BudaFett]

Interesting enough they took down their instagram post with the blaster…

 

[joberg]

It happens everywhere unfortunately. Not just the auction houses either. If there is a quick buck to be made people will turn a blind eye sadly.

A lot of people have named Roger Christian as an expert on the previous gun and also this one...what's his take ($$) and his willingness to put his reputation on line to assess fake props?

 

[Treadwell]

I was already done with RC after he went around allowing people to think his newly built "prototypical" Luke saber was screenused.

 

[RBJ]

The lesson is ..stick to “production made” modern SW and Marvel props if you’re looking to pull something like this off

 

[ID10T]

In all seriousness I'm actually more surprised that they haven't tried counterfeiting the 'other' Han blasters that could conceivably pass as authentic, like the Greedo Killer. MGCs aren't nearly hard to come by as real C96s, and save for the obvious variants with stampings they generally tend to be samey. I could absolutely see something like a fake Greedo Killer as being hard to tell apart from a 'rediscovered' original if they were serious about getting the details right and used original parts, though I suppose at this point that's a bit much to expect from these fraudsters.

Don't give them any ideas...

 

[Aku]

I'm gonna buy it. I'm just waiting for that check to clear from my Nigerian prince first

 

[ID10T]

HEY! He said I was the only one he contacted about that!

 

[chubsANDdoggers]

These are not my photos so I can’t take credit for this. But they were shared with me and was I was given approval to post them here. Just another nail in the coffin..

 

[laellee]

What a weird thing to be 'happy' about, but I am glad that the people doing this aren't taking the time to make the pieces a lot more correct. If the physical evidence wasn't so painfully obvious, we would then be questioning people's reputations over smaller prop discrepancies while a LOT of people involved would be shrugging their shoulders and saying 'well I guess we can never be 100% on anything' (while potentially counting hundred dollar bills). This whole fiasco (like the phaser) just has a lot of people involved looking either incompetent, negligent, or willfully ignorant, but it could be a LOT WORSE.

I also wonder to what degree it's a bare-minimum avoidance of legal liability on the part of the auction houses; You get a recognized name or company (Roger Christian, Bapty, etc) that does have legitimate ties to the production of a piece, just take their word for it for provenance and legitimacy, and then say 'hey that's good enough, "BECAUSE HE SAID SO". What happens then down the road, when as joberg suggested, people like Roger are found to have been paid say 5-6 figures to vouch for it, after the physical prop evidence proves it's complete Bu77$h1t? Despite their percentages and profit, it also sure seems like more due diligence gets done here (for free) than at the action house taking 30%.

 

[Jedifather]

I'm gonna buy it. I'm just waiting for that check to clear from my Nigerian prince first

Noooo…you’ll be waiting forever.
Just start drinking that Miracle Water and your mailbox will be full of checks in no time.

 

[Gregatron]

What a weird thing to be 'happy' about, but I am glad that the people doing this aren't taking the time to make the pieces a lot more correct. If the physical evidence wasn't so painfully obvious, we would then be questioning people's reputations over smaller prop discrepancies while a LOT of people involved would be shrugging their shoulders and saying 'well I guess we can never be 100% on anything' (while potentially counting hundred dollar bills). This whole fiasco (like the phaser) just has a lot of people involved looking either incompetent, negligent, or willfully ignorant, but it could be a LOT WORSE.

I also wonder to what degree it's a bare-minimum avoidance of legal liability on the part of the auction houses; You get a recognized name or company (Roger Christian, Bapty, etc) that does have legitimate ties to the production of a piece, just take their word for it for provenance and legitimacy, and then say 'hey that's good enough, "BECAUSE HE SAID SO". What happens then down the road, when as joberg suggested, people like Roger are found to have been paid say 5-6 figures to vouch for it, after the physical prop evidence proves it's complete Bu77$h1t? Despite their percentages and profit, it also sure seems like more due diligence gets done here (for free) than at the action house taking 30%.

Greed leads to arrogance, which leads to mistakes.

All in good time. Debunking this was much easier that the phaser, after all.

 

[ID10T]

Looks like they did remove the grips, as the screw slot angle has changed; probably swapped sides with them...