Of the tens of thousands of toy ray guns made between the 1930s and today, a few stand out. Some are remarkable for their beauty and others for their rarity. The toys presented here fall into both categories. Wonderfuly designed, they are also very rare. For, at this time, no more than a very few examples of each of the ray guns shown below is known to exist. If you know of any more of these toys, or if you know of another gun that should be pictured here, please let me know. Flash Blast Ray The Flash Blast Ray was made in 1937 by Warren Paper Products Inc. Part of a Buck Rogers Combat Game which included a launching platform and a laboratory for Dr. Huer, this rubber-band-shooting cardboard gun was used to attack rockets which were launched for Mars, Saturn, and Jupiter. The Flash Blast Ray is an Art Deco design masteriece. It is one of the earliest space guns and, because it was made of paper, very few have survived. Dan Dare Aqua Jet MIB Made in the late 1950s, the Aqua Jet is a plastic water pistol. The toy was manufactured by Lone Star, a company which produced a number of other toy ray guns associated with the English space hero Dan Dare. Of the Dan Dare guns, this is among the most beautiful. Featuring a telescoping barrel, back-swept hand grip, and oversized sites, the toy has a smooth, aerodynamic appearance. Despite the fact that the Aqua Jet must have been produced in some quantity, and a number of loose guns are known to exist, only one of these toys has been found in its original box. Spinray Blast Pistol MIB There are few toy ray guns that are more off-beat or bizzare-looking than the Spinray Blast Pistol. Made by Brewer and Armstrong of Kalamazoo, Michigan, probably in the late 1940s, this cast aluminum toy gun looks rather like a bee hive. It features nine vertical fins on the front of the barrel which is tipped with a whimsical red propeller that spins each time the trigger pulled. Since it was discovered by ray gun collectors some time ago, only a handful of the guns have ever been found. Of these two boxed versions are known to exist. So little is known about the Spinray that the name of its maker was only discovered a few years ago, engraved on the inside of the gun's casing. Pyrotomic Disintegrator Pistol The Pyrotomic Disintegrator Pistol was produced by Pyro Plastics Corp. in the 1950s. Beginnng in the late 1940s with the manufacture of plastic clicker type pistols, Pyro turned, in the early 1950s, to the manufacture of militry toys, becoming the leading maker of toy military hardware during the Korean War. Shortly afterward, with the development of interest in space, Pyro turned to making space toys, creating what many collectors consider to be the best designed spaceships of the period as well as some remarkable ray guns. The Pyrotomic Disintergrator Pistol is one of these. Breathtakingly beautiful with its bulging, ringed barrel and fluid, sculptural; body, this toy is thought by many to be one of the most exceptional plastic rayguns ever produced. Only a few examples are known to exist. Pyrotomic Disintegrator Rifle The Pyrotomic Disintegrator Rifle was produced by Pyro shortly after the Disintegrator Pistol. As stunning as its smaller cousin, this rifle shows a strong family resemblance. In addition to being perhaps the rarest of all space rifles, the Pyrotomic Disintegrator Rifle is also the most beautiful. Powerfully sculpted with a fluted barrel and an undulating stock, this wonderfully designed toy exudes a sense of delicacy and techno-scientific power. Only 20 inches long, the toy is "fired" by turning a rotating crank on the side of the stock which causes the barrel to undulate in and out Voyageur Interplanetaire The Voyageur Interplanetaire was made in France, probably in the 1950s or 1960s. I am not sure how many of these guns survive, although I have only seen a handful. This is a flashlite gun which is connected via a cord to a battery worn on waist in a leather pouch. In addition to being a remarkable looking thing in itself, the Voyageur comes in a box with whimsically beautiful box art. Star Globe Water Gun The Star Globe Water Gun is an unusual toy. Made in Japan, probably in the 1950s, it is a tin water pistol. When the trigger is pulled, not only does water squirt out of the barrel, but the globe of the world in the center of the gun spins around. Festooned with stars, planets and an unlikely parachute, this gun is seen very rarely, if at all. Reputedly five of these guns were brought to the US a numer of years ago by a traveler from Japan.
Toy Ray Guns In the World! 
