Any civilization which utilizes groundbreaking technology is subject to continual advances and new innovations – and the inhabitants of the Star Trek universe are certainly no exception. 

So it should come as no surprise that William Shatner (Captain Kirk), who directed Star Trek V : The Final Frontier, saw fit to update – amongst other things – the hand-held weaponry utilized by the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise for the franchise’s fifth feature film.  In the Star Trek timeline, over 20 years had passed since the original Star Trek television show – The Final Frontier takes place circa 2287 – and Shatner and the film’s crew approached these technological advances with simultaneously realistic and revolutionary tactics.

Gone were the old-school plastic “squirt gun” style phasers made famous in the original  Star Trek, replaced instead with sleeker, larger, black metal “Assault Phasers” that would forever change the look of the Star Trek universe. These more realistic hand-held weapons were reminiscent of – and to some extent were actually inspired by – actual military weapons from the 20^th century.

The new phasers were capable of power adjustment, allowing for intensity, and even speed to be altered depending on the intended function.  These lethal weapons featured numerous settings, including stun, vaporize, and kill – but even stun was potentially lethal at close range. Moreover, the phaser of this era actually functioned like “real” 20^th century weapons.  The addition of removable clips in the phaser’s handle not only added realism, but actually allowed the Starfleet crew to run out of ammunition for the first time!

Of course, the Assault Phaser did not completely abandon the conventions of it’s predecessor.  In fact, one notable holdover from the original  phaser is the inclusion of the Type-I hand-held phaser concealed beneath the barrel housing of the Assault Phaser.

The Assault Phaser made it’s debut in Star Trek V, and appeared again in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, before giving way – once again – to the inevitable forward momentum of technological advances. By the time the Star Trek: The Next Generation era began (circa 2364) – over 70 years later, in the Star Trek timeline – even more advanced technologies were being utilized.

Nonetheless, the Assault Phaser is an integral part of Star Trek history, and is an important stepping-stone for the development of newer, more futuristic weaponry.

Master Replicas is pleased to present an authentically detailed, fully functional replica of this ground-breaking weapon, complete with a removable clip and Type-I phaser, as well as realistic lights and sounds digitally recorded direct from the films.