Nick Carter uses three main weapons during the course of the series, all of which are named, and have histories. The gun, Wilhelmina, is a stripped-down German
Luger. In the earliest stories, Carter got the gun off a German officer during a harrowing mission during
World War II. Later stories state that he has had a series of Lugers, all named Wilhelmina. The knife, Hugo, is a pearl-handled 400-year-old
stiletto crafted by
Benvenuto Cellini. The blade retracts into the handle, and the knife is worn on a special sheath on the wrist, designed to release it into the user's hand with a simple muscle contraction. The third member of the triad is Pierre, a poison gas bomb, which is a small egg-shaped device, usually carried in a pocket but sometimes as a "third testicle" at his scrotum. Activated with a simple twist, it would, within seconds, kill anyone or anything that breathed its potassium cyanide, an odorless and colorless gas. Carter often takes with him other weapons as the mission demands. These have included: • Cousin of Pierre: a smaller version of Pierre the poison gas bomb that can be concealed even more easily—described in
The China Doll; • Fang: a poison-tipped needle worn on a concealed index finger cap described in
Saigon; • Pepito: a non-lethal stun grenade used in
Checkmate in Rio. • Tiny Tim: a nuclear grenade "containing half a grain of sand of fissionable matter" used in
Istanbul and
The Red Guard • 10,000-watt laser pistol used in
Hanoi • Cigarette lighter that fires drugged darts used in
Hanoi • Exploding cigars used in
Hanoi Carter has used a variety of equipment in the novels, most of which have nicknames. These have included: • Antonio Moreno: a lifelike facemask made of a latex substance called Lastotex (apparently named after
Antonio Moreno, the 1920s silent movie star); • Gladstone: a rhino hide suitcase with multiple concealed compartments; • Oscar Johnson: a small radio transmitter (unclear if it is named after
Oscar Johnson, a baseball player active in the 1920s and 1930s, or
Oscar G. Johnson, the
World War II Medal of Honor recipient); • Quantity K: a powerful acid strong enough to destroy evidence/documents; • Laser torch: for burning through door locks used in
The Weapon of Night; • Singing Sam: a radio receiver concealed in electric razor/electric toothbrush used in
Istanbul; • Wristwatch with
UHF transmitter used in
Hanoi; • Triple X tablet: a universal
poison antidote and
pep pill used in
Hanoi; • Talkalot: a scopolamine-like
truth drug used in
Danger Key; • Unnamed injectable knockout drug requiring subsequent injection of antidote to regain consciousness used in
The Weapon of Night; • Store: an injectable drug that induces a week-long state of
suspended animation used in
Peking & The Tulip Affair ==AXE==