Throughout the films of the Star Wars saga, creator George Lucas was determined that the universe he envisioned would have a "lived-in" look to it. Thus, the many weapons seen in the saga are in fact visually modified or based upon real-world weapons. Note: This page encompasses all the films of the Star Wars saga.
The following lists the real-world firearms that were visually modified for use in the films of the Star Wars saga:
In the early scenes of A New Hope and in a few scenes in Return of the Jedi, Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) can be seen with a Defender Sporting Blaster, actually a Vostok Margolin .22LR target pistol, with some muzzle attachment fitted. Among other details, the Return of the Jedi version lacks the commercially available compensator that the A New Hope prop had.
Standard issue blaster rifle of the Imperial Stormtroopers. The E-11 blaster rifle props were built from the British-made Sterling L2A3 submachine gun. Numerous main characters, including Princess Leia, Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), and Han Solo (Harrison Ford) use the weapon. Lando Calrissian (Billy Dee Williams) also uses an E-11 blaster in The Empire Strikes Back. Some details differ between the three movies, most notably the method of scope attachment and battery pack beside it (or lack thereof).
A revealing mistake is that spent cartridge cases can be seen ejecting from this "blaster" rifle. It is most noticeable in the bridge swing scene of A New Hope and Lando firing at Stormtroopers in The Empire Strikes Back. In Return of the Jedi the hero props were built from Sterling replicas, explaining why there were no blanks used as in the previous two films.
First seen in A New Hope used by Rebel troops against Stormtroopers on the blockade runner Tantive IV. Later seen carried by guards and officers on the Death Star. These were nonfunctional props with the receiver and pistol grip based on casts from a Sterling SMG and a (back then) distinctive looking Singlepoint OEG attached. Consequently, the muzzle flashes were added in post-production. There is an interesting continuity error where a couple of Imperial guards start off carrying this weapon but then switch to the E-11, firing it one handed like a pistol no less. This is perhaps because they looked similar enough and blanks provided a better reference point for adding blaster effects later.
In The Empire Strike Back, it is the weapon of a few Rebel soldiers on Hoth and a couple of guards on Darth Vader's Super Star Destroyer. In this film they were built from Sterling replicas rather than a cast and have a different, yet similarly shaped scope attached.
Standard issue blaster rifle of the Rebel Alliance ground forces in both The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Both the A280 and A295 blaster rifle props were CAST FROM replicas similar to (built from) both the World War 2-era German Sturmgewehr 44 (A295 - The Empire Strikes Back) and from the M16 series rifles (A280 - Return of the Jedi).
Standard issue heavy blaster of the Imperial Stormtroopers. The DLT-19s were nothing more than World War II German MG34 general purpose machine guns with little to no modifications to its external appearance.
Imperial Sandtroopers can be seen carrying RT-97C heavy blaster rifles while on patrol on Tatooine. The RT-97C heavy blaster rifle prop is in fact a modified German MG15 machine gun.
The DL-44 blaster pistol was the blaster of choice for Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and the Rebel Alliance. The weapon is seen wielded by Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) throughout The Empire Strikes Back. Possibly the best known duplicate of a real gun, the DL-44 blaster pistol prop was built from a Mauser C96 handgun, sometimes with a sniper scope. The modifications are obviously added on to the exterior, though the distinct "broomhandle" grips are still wooden.
Error creating thumbnail: File missingPre-War dated Mauser C96 "Broomhandle" Commercial Version - 7.63x25mm Mauser. Note the rear tangent sight; in something of a display of wishful thinking, the C96's sight is adjustable for ranges up to 1000 metres.Error creating thumbnail: File missingDL-44 Blaster, the Star Wars version of the pistol.Error creating thumbnail: File missingHan Solo with his DL-44 blaster pistol in Return Of The Jedi. In the background is Leia with her Vostok Margolin .22LR target pistol.Error creating thumbnail: File missingLuke gets surprised by Yoda's appearance and draws out his DL-44 blaster on him in The Empire Strikes Back.Error creating thumbnail: File missingHan Solo draws his scoped DL-44 blaster in A New Hope. Note the coiled frame on the pistol.
Jawa Ion Blaster (Cut-down Lee-Enfield No.1 MkIII)
The Ion blaster utilized by the Jawa who shot R2-D2 in A New Hope was built from a cut-down British Lee-Enfield No.1 MkIII* series bolt-action rifle with the grenade launcher cup attached to the shortened barrel.
Boba Fett's EE-3 Blaster Carbine (Webley & Scott Flare Gun)
The prop Boba Fett uses in the films is a modified Webley & Scott No.1 Mark 1 Flare Gun. In The Empire Strikes Back the barrel was rather simple looking. In Return of the Jedi it has a more distinctive barrel and the scope is actually mounted backwards to where it was before!
The SE-14C blaster pistol is carried by Dr. Evazan and, with scope removed, his crime partner Ponda Baba in A New Hope. They draw these weapons after provoking a fight with Luke Skywalker at the Mos Eisley cantina. It was built from a Swiss Rexim-Favor Mk5 submachine gun with the stock, barrel, and magazine removed and has a double sniper scope attached.
An unmodified Mauser Kar98k bolt-action rifle was seen in the hands of the character Orrimaarko a.k.a. "Prune Face" in promotional photos for Return Of The Jedi.
Manufactured by BlasTech Industries, the DC-15-series was a range of plasma weapons used by the Republic clone troopers during the Clone Wars in Episode II Attack of the Clones and Episode III Revenge of the Sith. Although entirely computer-generated (as are all the Clone Troopers, no costumes were manufactured,) its design is based on parts from the German MG34 making up the rear half, as well as much of a scaled-up Sterling L2A3 turned upside-down for the front.
Like the M16 has the M4, the DC-15A has the DC-15S. It is basically a compacted version (a "carbine" if you will) of the DC-15, lacking some of the range but making up for it in ease of use and portability. It is usually seen in the hands of officers, most notably Commander Bacara when he and the Galactic Marines kill Ki-Adi-Mundi, as well as in the hands of many regular clone troopers (the design of the DC-15S carbine would later influence the design and development of the E-11 blaster rifle used by the Imperial Stormtroopers in Episodes IV-VI). As this weapon is computer generated, what it is based upon (if any) is currently unknown; its similarity to the E-11 suggests it was based on the Sterling L2A3 as well.
In The Force Awakens, the new stormtroopers are armed with what appear to be upgraded models of the BlasTech E-11 blaster rifles seen in the original trilogy. Some of the blasters (such as the one carried by Captain Phasma) are fitted with what appears to be ATI Strikeforce stocks mounted on to the back of the receiver tube. Unlike the original trilogy, these weapons do not appear to be made from real Sterling SMGs but are instead mock ups, as indicated most obviously by the fact that the magazine protrudes out of the right side of the receiver rather than the left (most likely a practical consideration to make the weapons easier to hold and holster).
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