The Mark IX Light Assault-Long is a combination weapon, providing the user with both longer range accuracy and shorter range, faster reaction firepower.  The main armament is of the boosted particle accelerator type, augmented by an end-stage bleed and focus unit to achieve a high degree of bolt cohesion to distances upwards of two thousand yards.  The secondary armament is of the "blossom" or "bell curve" disruptor type with effective ranges from one- to eight yards (hard target) up to 15 yards (soft target).  The top-mounted power booster has an integral laser "sight" or "pointer" that can be adjusted to work with personnel-type targeting enhancement devices, whether worn or implanted. 

The bolt for this rifle had been discarded or lost long before I got my hands on it.  In fact, the first thing I did was fashion a fake bolt for the receiver, but that simply wasn't enough.  So I stared for a time at "googled" images of science fiction weapons (and there are some great designs out there) to get some ideas in my head.  The "sci-fi"  weapon I really liked was the over-under assault rifle, the M41-A Pulse Rifle, carried by the Colonial Marines in Aliens.

I also liked what Greg Broadmore did at WETA Workshops with his Dr. Grordbort line of rayguns, specifically the Unnatural Selector, though I was not looking to build something quite so "steam-

punk-y."    (  http://www.drgrordborts.com/products/the-unnatural-selector-ray-blunderbuss  )

Then, of course, I had to find pieces that could be added to the Remington, hopefully in a manner that would be "hard"  and "look right" - that is: I didn't want them to just be snapped on; they needed to fit, to be mounted with screws, to have the look of something that worked for a particular reason, otherwise, I might as well just get a plastic ray-gun from Toys-R-Us and let it do the work for me.  I have a couple of those, too, and while I like the way my re-working of them has turned out, it's still not quite as satisfying as this.  For instance, the short arms that Vera Packard uses on her covers are toy store buys, with some modification and fresh paint.

Those added pieces are mostly parts for lamp assembly.  I have a collection of sockets, check rings, risers and the like, and they were of a scale that was suitable.  A few other odd parts "from the scrap bin" were added to the construction, after which I painted it all in. 

I crafted this prop blaster  a few years back when I had a little "spare time" in the scene shop.  I had done a couple of "special projects" for the prop department by this point, and had the urge to do something else, something that would call more fully on the skills I had developed over the years, and also test my willingness to finish the damn thing once started. 

Taking a cue from the prop weapon masters that crafted the blasters for the Star Wars movies, I started this with what had been a very real Remington bolt-action .22 .  Looking at the slightly battered rifle, I decided I wanted it to look like something old, but made with technology that is in advance of what we currently hold.

The Mark IX was the result.