LAPD SWAT officers including Jack Traven (Keanu Reeves) and Harry Temple (Jeff Daniels) keep M1911A1 pistols with (early made "Laser Products") Surefire 310R (Reeves) and 610R (Daniels) flashlights as their sidearms in the film. Even though the LAPD standard issue sidearm for patrol officers were in 9mm caliber, LAPD SWAT had always used .45 M1911 models as their sidearm. These 1911 models varied differently for each user, many of which where handguns originally confiscated from criminals and tricked out by the department "gun cage jockey" who would turn the guns into tactical weapons. These were also the first guns to be fitted with frame mounted flashlights. After deciding to have the department issue these guns so the officers wouldn't have to buy them, they tested several models until they decided upon the Kimber Custom TLE II as their sidearms. Since this film is before the issue of these guns, the 1911s can be any type of model. According to the armorers who worked on this film, the 1911s in the film were both 1911A1s and 9mm Colt Series 70s.
Jack and Harry are seen using Heckler & Koch HK94A3 collapsing stock civilian guns with 16" barrels chopped and converted to resemble MP5A3s with Surefire light dedicated forends. They can be noted as HK94s instead of MP5A3s because of the lack of barrel lugs, a push-pin set and the lack of a paddle magazine release behind the magazine.
A SWAT officer following Harry into Payne's house is seen using a full-stock Heckler & Koch HK94A2 16" barrel civilian gun chopped and converted to resemble an MP5A2 with a Surefire light dedicated forend.
Jack Traven (Keanu Reeves) keeps the older model Smith & Wesson 6904 chambered in 9mm as his off-duty sidearm in the film. This gun was built as a concealable 12 shot version of the 5904 model, with a 3.5" barrel and a bobbed hammer.
Howard Payne (Dennis Hopper) uses a Mossberg 500 Mariner fitted with a pistol grip with the barrel sawed down to 16" to shoot at Jack and Harry through the roof of the elevator (which would result in temporary hearing damage). When Harry falls through, he continues to fire a Jack, taking the elevator to the top floor to force Jack to jump in. When he does, he sticks the shotgun in his face and pulls the trigger, only to find the gun is empty. In reality, his Mossberg is a six shot (including one in the chamber), not eight like it is portrayed in the film.
A passenger on the bus draws a nickel Smith & Wesson Model 36 with Pachmayr grips on Jack when he first gets on until Ortiz (Carlos Carrasco) tackles the gunman, resulting in a stray shot which hits Sam (Hawthorne James), the bus driver.
Howard Payne (Dennis Hopper) uses a nickel plated Heckler & Koch SP89 made to look like an MP5K by adding the MP5K foregrip and converting it to full-auto. It can be noted as an SP89 instead of an MP5K due to the lack of a paddle magazine release behind the magazine and lack of a push-pin lower receiver. According to the movie armorers, the filmmakers paid in advance for the armorers to send out the gun to be nickel plated. The weapon stayed Satin nickel until after 2001 when it was converted back to live fire.
