Max's Belt, Tools and Gun

[doctor_chops]

I know that the mystery of the belt that is Max's has been solved but no one has found out about Max's sawnoff shotgun. Does anyone know about the make and model of Max's gun?

[Karol]

Wow, doc. You have revived an old post.





About Max's gun, you should note that there was a different shotgun used in each movie. Additionally, there were many, many manufacturers of shotguns. I have heard that the shotgun was just some off-brand shotgun. Watch one of the movies, get some captures, and then find the closest thing you can.





Also, I'd like to respond to the belt discussion. I am not convinced that the belt was Swedish. I have seen Chris' belt and although it is close, there are several issues with its accuracy.


I have studied the film more closely and now believe it to be as XAman said - an Australian or British Sam Browne belt. Although these belts normally come in different shades of brown, they take dye easily and have all of the little brass fittings and stitches that Max's has. The Swedish belts have the wrong stitching pattern among other things.





Karol

[doctor_chops]

Cheers Karol.





If I find out any more specific information about the guns I will post it.

[Madmaxing]

About the shotgun, there were literally hundreds of manufacturers of side-by-side shotguns. The fact that there is no fancy engraving on it (metal) would seem to indicate an off-brand. I have about a dozen or more screen captures of the gun from the DVD and have compared it with many guns in collector's pricing manuals. I have seen probably 3 makes that would do. Don't remember the names as it is not likely that I would run across them due to their obscurity. However I always keep an eye out when I go to gun shows.


The sides are very bland and lack any artistic cues. There is knurling on the stock grip and on the forward wood piece. (Pardon me for not knowing my gun nomenclature) From what I have been able to see it only has a single trigger. But as difficult as it is to tell about this matter of detail you can probably use either a single or double trigger.


The pistols used by all of the MFP were S&W Model 57 revolvers. They were .41 magnums that also fired a smaller round with aluminum inserts placed into the chambers which never was a good idea. This gun was notorious for failing and S&W discontinued it due to the high number of returns for service and customer complaints about unreliability which were justified. It went out of production in the early 70's which would have made them a good deal at the time of filming Mad Max as people didn't care to keep them and I would think you could get them pretty cheap. The grips are maple and in the film they are the factory originals.

[Madmaxing]

Correction!!!!!


I errored on the gun as it had been a little while since I looked at my info. It is a Smith and Wesson Model 53, not the Model 57. Here is the info I found on this gun......


Every experienced shooter I've mentioned these new .22 Hornet revolvers to has immediately asked, "How can they keep the tapered cases from setting back and locking up the cylinder?" So, I'll address this issue right off the mark. The question stems from the well-known fate of the Smith & Wesson Model 53 revolver, manufactured from 1961 to 1974. This double-action revolver was chambered for the .22 Remington Jet, a centerfire .223-caliber cartridge built on a necked-down .357 Magnum case with a tapered shoulder that would generate approximately 1800 fps velocity with a 40-grain softpoint bullet from an 8 3/8-inch revolver barrel. It was a precision shooting tool with several unique features, including a rotating rimfire/centerfire striker in the hammer and aluminum chamber inserts to allow interchangeable use of .22 Long Rifle rimfire ammunition. Unfortunately, the Jet case would frequently back out of the Model 53 chamber at the moment of ignition and "weld" itself over the firing pin hole, stopping the cylinder. Of the chambers were roughened to prevent setback, extraction became difficult, often requiring a mallet to knock the ejector rod. S&W finally got tired of Model 53s coming back to the service department to fix the unfixable and dropped the gun from its catalog. No revolvermaker since has dared try to chamber for a tapered- or shoulder-case, high-velocity cartridge.

[Ottopartz460]

About the shotgun. Any side-by-side, double barrel will work. There are very few differences from make to make on modern double-barrels. I, personally, bought some junky side-by-side for $139. They aren't that hard to find, here in the US. Check local gun stores, chances are there's a side-by-side. I wouldn't saw off a decent firearm, but if it's a $200 or less one, go crazy.


Oh yeah, for the pistol, if you don't need to be EXACT about it, use a Smith & Wesson .357 Magnum, or the cheap Brazilian version, the Taurus model M66 .357. I have the Taurus and if I took the rubber grip off and got a wooden grip (which I plan to), it'll work just the same (at least in looks.) They also shoot ok, but for a shootin' iron, go with a Colt Python .357 or the Smith & Wesson. My Taurus broke after a couple hundred rounds. The .357 also shoots .38 caliber bullets (for anyone who's just getting into shooting). .38 rounds are like shooting a capgun compared to the .357


I noticed that for boots, you can get some cheap black leather motorcycle boots (Durango makes a nice pair with metal loops on the sides) for $100 and it's also a close call.

[Karol]

As far as boots go, I would strongly recommend a pair of Russian officer boots. You can get these on eBay for maybe $30-$70. Once they are customized for about $100, they are a dead ringer. And I know because I have a pair of the original Australian boots like Max wore.


A friend of mine tried this out & they look more like Max's boots than mine! Get in touch with me if you're interested.