A bit of the future at today’s prices

Trekkies wishing to own a piece of “Star Trek” memorabilia better than plastic Spock ears or a rusty 1960s lunchbox don’t need to use the Vulcan nerve pinch or a toy store clerk to wrest items for their collection.

For $349, they can own an authentic reproduction of an original series Tricorder, a device used to scan alien planets. They can also own a Klingon disruptor -- a weapon used by an alien race -- for $249.

“There’s a very passionate core fan that’s reliving their childhood memories,” said Michael Cookson, chief executive of Master Replicas Inc., the company that produces the collectibles and caters to movie buffs demanding prop reproductions that appear to be lifted from a movie set.

Selling adults a piece of their childhood dreams is becoming a big business, as seen in Master Replicas’ 400% boom since 2001. The company now sells tens of millions of dollars’ worth of prop reproductions and boasts distribution deals for “Star Wars” light sabers with Target, Best Buy and Costco, among others.

Among the other items Master Replicas has designed are reproductions of “Star Trek” “communicators” and a copy of the sword Sting used by Frodo Baggins in “Lord of the Rings” that glows blue.

The growing field includes companies such as Sideshow Collectibles Inc. of Westlake Village and United Cutlery of Sevierville, Tenn.

“We wanted to focus on quality and prestige and the unique things about each item,” said Tom Gilliland, Sideshow’s creative director, a former special-effects artist. Among the company’s most popular items is a precisely reproduced bust of the creature from the “Predator” films.

“These are in every sense exact reproductions,” Gilliland said. “They are not interpretations.”

Typical customers are well-heeled fans in their late 20s and 30s who grew up with the movies but have outgrown toy collecting. The props often decorate home theater rooms.

“The collector now is more mature and of more means,” Gilliland said. “There’s a stigma that comes for displaying toys. But if you have something that’s a prestige item, it registers as an art piece.”

Cookson started Master Replicas with Jordan Schwartz and Stephen Dymszo, a former engineer and lifelong collector. The popularity of items sold by Master Replicas and others has led to a rise in bootlegs and unlicensed props, which are sold for far less money than licensed versions.

The companies said they aren’t concerned about the bootlegs, reasoning that most die-hard fans are willing to pay more money for something as close to the original as possible.

“We’re the Mercedes-Benz of these products,” Cookson said. “Do you want to pay less for something of less quality?

“It’s not something we worry about.”