Japanese Land Mine
From the TV series ARROW
This design is loosely based upon Japanese & German anti-tank land mines used during WW II. Licence was taken with the housing profile (and other details) since only the top of the mine would be seen unburied.
The detonating mechanism. The knurled ring is threaded inside. Turning it counterclockwise unscrews it from a mated threaded collar attached to the main housing.
With the detonating mechanism removed, the explosive charge is revealed. An additional explosive charge was made to accommodate scripted action where it is used to make an improvised bomb. This was necessary, since the version inside the land mine was just large enough to completely fill the visible opening on the main housing (it had also been permanently sealed inside).
The final form of the explosive charge was largely dictated by scripted action in a subsequent scene. In it, explosive had to be evenly divided into several pouches of a bandoleer.To accommodate this, the charge consisted of a compressed TNT puck with a hole in the middle to accommodate the detonator. It also featured evenly divided radial grooves, which would make it east to break the puck into small sections.
Photo depicts aggregated major components.
Large 4-pin military electrical connector. Similar to the one actually used.
Completed prop (primed, but not yet painted in the correct color).
FYI: The cylindrical feature of the detonating mechanism is actually a electrical capacitor with the plastic cover removed.
The slotted screws were added to provide the option to have the character appear to begin the process of disassembly by turning them loose. Fasteners of this type weren't used in actual land mines we referenced to.
Beautifully finished by the ARROW Paint Department with the appropriate color, Japanese markings, and aging treatment!
Project Breakdown
ARROW is essentially, a comic book brought to life. A common consequence of this type of story telling, is that interesting situations & characters take precedent over technical or scientific accuracy.
Typically, our assignments with this production usually focus on providing visually interesting props that serve a specific story requirement, but do not necessarily represent an accurate representation of a real-world item.
This assignment was no exception. Although evocative of an actual Japanese land mine, considerable licence was taken in the design to better serve the story and scripted action.
Moreover, a land mine of this kind, if found buried in a tropical environment since WW II (as the story depicts), would probably appear to be not much more than a heavily pitted mass of rust. Oh well… that's show-biz folks!
Typically, our assignments with this production usually focus on providing visually interesting props that serve a specific story requirement, but do not necessarily represent an accurate representation of a real-world item.
This assignment was no exception. Although evocative of an actual Japanese land mine, considerable licence was taken in the design to better serve the story and scripted action.
Moreover, a land mine of this kind, if found buried in a tropical environment since WW II (as the story depicts), would probably appear to be not much more than a heavily pitted mass of rust. Oh well… that's show-biz folks!