While my enthusiasm for the project is still high, I've started making a cyberpunk gun. I've decided to make a semi-automatic pistol. Cyberpunk is generally not so far into the future that everybody has lasers and other exotic weaponry, so a pistol feels about right.

A little digging around the interwebs and I found a couple articles at Instructables, one for a cyberpunk shotgun and another for a steampunk rifle, both by the same guy. They are both good references and will be influencing my construction.

The first step is to design the basic gun. I want an over sized and blocky gun, that would fit in a high-tech but dystopian future.


This is my basic layout. A pretty straightforward, pistol shape. The block under the barrel is for mounting sensors, stabilizers, or anything else I think of before I get around to making them. I've not yet designed anything, but I'm envisioning several tubular items down there.


I cut it out of corrugated cardboard. Then I used that piece to trace out three more pieces.


Then I glued the four pieces together using PVA glue. It's taped together right now until the glue dries. I also changed the shape of the outer pieces a little. I did that to break up the shape and give the gun some overall texture. Otherwise it would be too blocky.


The next step will be to fill in cardboard with glue to help really hold it all together. I'll also need to trim and smooth the edges, and cover everything with a thin card stock or metal tape (an idea used in the shotgun above).

I also need to add a trigger and trigger guard, stiffen the beaver tail, and round out the grip some. I will eventually wrap the grip in leather or electrical tape. I'll need to make the under barrel attachments, and add various odds and ends to the gun to give it some texture, so that it's not just flat. And then paint it all.

I will not be able to work on the gun everyday, and some days will be spent scrounging for parts for the next step. Stay tuned for Part 2.