There’s fans, then there’s the fanboys (and girls) – the crazily devoted peons of a franchise, an idea, or more often these days – a fictional character. Many things can indicate the difference between the mere fans and the fanatic, and the most scarily convincing show of devotedness can come from the calculated and well thought-out tribute to the original. The object of fanboy-ism this time is Meta Gear Solid, which is by now in its fourth outing and is named “Guns of the Patriots” – fitting, as this tribute is of the gun carried by the hero of the game – Solid Snake – with some smart modifications.

This particular fanboy has the skills and the tools to not only recreate the near-iconic handgun used by the “old-er” Solid Snake, but also to put in modifications that makes the gun shoot rubber bands, and look good while doing it. Made out of stainless steel, the gun was created from cross-drilled steel pieces connected together by cool-looking hexagonal head screws, as well as regular cross – screws laid bare on the surface for all to see. Appearance is remarkably similar to the in-game model, and you’d be forgiven in assuming that this is an actual replica made for sale to the general public.

Unfortunately, this little tribute is strictly a one-off, and in fact is not a simple replica, because as mentioned before this gun shoots rubber bands, similar to another DIY project we covered some months back. The creator even designed the reloading mechanism into the overall look of the piece, creating a “spinning star” design at the rear that can be cocked like on a real gun once the rubber band has been slotted in one by one. Other neat little bits and pieces include the safety lever that disengages the trigger from the shooting mechanism, a stowable front grip that folds forward neatly onto the barrel of the gun, and a laser sight and a flashlight mounted up front.

Reloading is similar to slotting in the bullets into an old-style revolver, in that you put in the bands one-by-one. From the video, the gun is remarkably accurate, although I think I need an actual sample to say just how good it is. Hopefully the Japanese creator can read English and reads my not-so-subtle request. Anyway with production values this good, it would be a waste not to create more like this, if only to appease the other mere “fans” and further propagate the fanboy’s enthusiasm for the MGS franchise. Watch the video after this, it’s a blast!