Working Gun Made With 3D Printer

[Gahars]

I've gushed about 3D printing so much that I think I've made most people here sick of the subject, but nuts to you all! I'm going to keep on writing about it anyway.

If you've been spared so far, let me get you up to speed. 3D printing is like a primitive version of a Star Trek replicator; give it a design, provide it with the base materials, and it'll print it out in no time. From producing simple tools and parts to even houses, the potential for the technology is almost limitless... as this article no doubt demonstrates.

The world's first gun made with 3D printer technology has been successfully fired in the US.

The controversial group which created the firearm, Defense Distributed, plans to make the blueprints available online.

The group has spent a year trying to create the firearm, which was successfully tested on Saturday at a firing range south of Austin, Texas.

BBC News

I guess our chances for comprehensive gun control are truly... shot.

This project comes at an interesting time in American culture. After recent tragedies, the topic of gun control has once again taken center stage. Some suggest sweeping changes to existing laws - banning certain weapon types outright, introducing universal background checks, etc. But what do you do when just about anyone can print out a gun for themselves in the comfort of their own home? How can you hope to stop that? Do you ban 3D printers outright despite their massive potential? Do you try to outlaw and restrict certain designs? Or do we just give up on the prospect altogether?

As technology only continues to advance and change the world around us, these are the sorts of issues we as a society will have to confront. I hope for the best, but really, there's no telling what these changes might trigger.

Alright, alright, I'm done. That's the last gun one.

 

[Rizsparky]

This is actually pretty cool, 3D printing has always fascinated me.

 

[The Catboy]

Spends 8000$ on a 3D printer, to make guns with it...

 

[pyromaniac123]

Alright, alright, I'm done. That's the last gun one.

I'm sure you could fire another one off.

 

[Devin]

I'm sure you could fire another one off.

He could give it a shot.

 

[mechadylan]

I'm sure you could fire another one off.

Agreed. Stating in the op that you're all punned out is jumping the gun a bit.

 

[Veho]

Technically working gun.

 

[Densetsu]

Alright, alright, I'm done. That's the last gun one.

I'm sure you could fire another one off.

He could give it a shot.

Agreed. Stating in the op that you're all punned out is jumping the gun a bit.

Gahars, don't relent your punny ways so easily. You need to come out with guns blazing.

*ON TOPIC*

It was assembled from separate printed components made from ABS plastic - only the firing pin was made from metal.

This has serious implications that can compromise security in a lot of areas. It's much easier to get one of these things past a metal detector than a box cutter.

 

[mechadylan]

Technically working gun.

Yeah. I would have liked to see the guy hit a target; I suspect it's horribly inaccurate. The milestone here is that it was made with a 3D printer; homemade, single shot .22s are not a rarity.

Gahars, don't relent your punny ways so easily. You need to come out with guns blazing.

*ON TOPIC*
This has serious implications that can compromise security in a lot of areas. It's much easier to get one of these things past a metal detector than a box cutter.

Oh the implications are even greater than that. Assuming that it has proper rifling in the barrel, it can probably be shot with reasonable accuracy within a certain range. If the rifling can be created by a 3D printer, what would stop someone from creating a barrel that would recreate ballistic fingerprints of another?

 

[duffmmann]

If I had some good money I'd invest in 3D printing, there is no doubt that 3D printers are the future, and the possibilities seem limitless.

 

[BrightNeko]

Just makes me think we are one step closer to downloading a car.

 

[duffmmann]

Just makes me think we are one step closer to downloading a car.

haha, it undoubtedly will happen. I definitely think we'll see Bikes and Scooters in the near future.

 

[Veho]

haha, it undoubtedly will happen. I definitely think we'll see Bikes and Scooters in the near future.

 

[broitsak]

My English teacher brought this up the other day and said it reminded her of Victor Frankenstien's story.

Anyway, this whole 3D printing is pretty awesome. Of course, you would need some kind of material to print stuff..?

 

[Walker D]

at least its not a problem for places that have metal sensors (like airports ), since it can't work without the the metal pin that fires the bullet and the bullet itself (...metal parts).

 

[Maxternal]

at least its not a problem for places that have metal sensors (like airports ), since it can't work without the the metal pin that fires the bullet and the bullet itself (...metal parts).

The bullet itself doesn't have to be made entirely out of metal either. It could be a shotgun cardboard shotgun shell full of little rocks, gunpowder and have only the cap be metal ... but then again, maybe they could somehow use those little red plastic caps from a cap gun

 

[Walker D]

The bullet itself doesn't have to be made entirely out of metal either. It could be a shotgun cardboard shotgun shell full of little rocks, gunpowder and have only the cap be metal ... but then again, maybe they could somehow use those little red plastic caps from a cap gun

Actually... I was thinking.. would this material be able to replace the metal parts that are needed for the gun? (maybe even be used to do the entire gun..)
it really seems to be strong enough ...and, if I understood correctly, by it being conductive, it could be somehow used to do a working bullet..

 

[Veho]

Actually... I was thinking.. would this material be able to replace the metal parts that are needed for the gun? (maybe even be used to do the entire gun..)
it really seems to be strong enough ...and, if I understood correctly, by it being conductive, it could be somehow used to do a working bullet..

No. It's still soft plastic. "Conductive" here means it conducts electricity, and there's no use for that in conventional guns. In theory, you could make custom bullets with electric ignition (instead of percussion caps) and replace the firing mechanism with a battery and a switch.

EDIT: But you still couldn't do it in plastic, it's too soft for that.

 

[Slimmmmmm]

If you make the shell of the bullet yourself you would need no metal, this would take a lot of maths and practice but can be done.

A gun tbh is not THAT big a problem with a 3d printer because we know what they are (guns), but things can be made that we don't even know what they are and so in seeing them would cause no alarm or paranoia.

 

[Rise]

Here is a VICE doc about the company and its founder.


Ps. VICE have made some very cool docs if you dont know them.