3D Printed Gun fired

[John Allen]

Just saw this on fox.


FYI http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2013/05/06/shots-fired-from-world-first-3d-printed-gun/

[Angus]

The first in a long line of technological advancements to completely circumvent anything but an all-out gun grab. It's only a single shot, but I'm sure a repeater is already in the works.

[ebner glocken]

"The Liberator" I'm pretty certin the name has already been taken by another cheaply made single shot. Be that as it may the name is quite fitting as it's purpose is to wreck havoc on an oppressive government, same as the original. What I find more amusing is that General Motors made the first ones, it seems that their management has had a change in phlosophy since the 1940s. Download as many as you like and **** out as many as possible. These would make wonderful stocking stuffers.

Ebner

[tek4260]

And they are already looking to ban it......

[MtGun44]

Schumer is having a hissy fit.

Bill

[imashooter2]

How long do you think before legislation is introduced to call a data file a firearm?

[Wal']

Don't you just love technology........the faster they keep rewriting the rules, the further technology advances. :bigsmyl2:

[DeanWinchester]

Yeah and it'll only cost you a years wages to make em!

Meanwhile, you can buy a real gun much cheaper and all the machinists of the world laugh as they can make a reasonable copy of simple designs for less than a hund-o.

[Silver Jack Hammer]

There will be a fee for the download and Congress will tax it.

[theperfessor]

DeanW, I understand where you're coming from, the difference is the skill required to make the item. Not everyone has machinists skills; any tech savvy child can use a 3D printer. And the last I checked, 3D printers cost about the same as a low end CNC machine. I know, we've bought numerous examples of both in the last couple of years.

We often use ours to "proof" a design, or to make a solid example we can show to others as a "concept transmitter".

Two of my students just printed out an AR15 lower for a speech they are giving today. They just took their Solidworks file and sent it to the 3D printer and waited overnight for the result. Neither student is a machinist; for this neither needed to be, they still ended up with a lower receiver.

[imashooter2]

There will be a fee for the download and Congress will tax it.

Yeah, that's working out perfectly for the music and movie folks...

[imashooter2]

3D printers are available at Staples for $1,300...

Now that's a low end machine, but the technology is out there and getting cheaper and more mainstream by the day.

[EMC45]

3D printers are available at Staples for $1,300...

Now that's a low end machine, but the technology is out there and getting cheaper and more mainstream by the day.

It always does.

[MtGun44]

perfessor,

The plastics and glued cornstarch that we use in our sterolithography machines is in no
way up to the stresses even for a AR lower for more than a few "stunt shots". In
your opinion is this AR lower really workable beyond 5 rounds or for a .22 LR upper?


Seems like any bozo can use a 3/4 water pipe for 12 ga or car antenna tube (altho
getting rarer now!) for a .22 zip gun. How much diff is this really, meaning the whole
gun rather than the AR lower.

Bill

[W.R.Buchanan]

I first saw this technology at Westec 20 years ago. The machine was making a Monkey skull. It took a while but the skull was done in a red plastic material and was identical in everyway to the original that was digitized to make the file. That machine was over $100K, now they are less than $10K.

Apparently the file for the Liberator is available to all for download,,,, for the moment!

Schummer was defiantely soiling himself over this. Just another thing for our caretakers to keep their finger on, and as we already know they only have so many fingers available.

John Dillinger said it best,,,

" the FBI has to be everywhere all the time, I only have to be one place at one time!"

That statement pretty much covers living in a truely free country.

Point is,,, You can't "stop" anything!

Randy

[wallenba]

It's a simple fix. Congress will ban 3d printers. But those with 3d printers can print more 3d printers.:veryconfu

[Angus]

MtGun44, DD has a working protoype AR lower that lasted through several (500+) rounds, and only failed due to an empty ammo box.

[theperfessor]

The one my students made that I was referring to were made on our Stratisys 3D printer from ABS plastic. I don't think it would last one shot to be honest. It was made solely as a "pass around", to circulate through the audience while my guys gave the oral presentation of their capstone Senior Design project. This project was to design and build a tensile testing fixture to see how much force the front lugs could take before pulling off the magazine well/body. They tested three receivers made from die cast magnesium that a local company makes.

I will post their report in a later thread, don't want to get this one off track too far. Just wanted to answer MTGuns question.

I think a gun designed around the limitations of plastics can be made. I don't think just making a plastic version of a steel or aluminum frame gun is the way to go.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Fess: there is an outfit making AR lowers out of glass filled polymer. They are moulded, and done well, with a minimal amount of machining on the back end of the production cycle.

I have actually held one in my hands and I can assure you it will last. IN fact the work was first rate. When you consider the Glock, this is not a big stretch, since all of the real stress on the gun is isolated in the upper receiver.

Since I now own a Kel-Tec SU16 which even has a polymer upper receiver, I would venture to say that an upper reciever for an AR would not be a bad or otherwise unworkable idea.

These plastic AR receivers are alot easier to make than the corresponding part from pressure cast aluminum. Moulded from glass filled polymer and are nearly net after being ejected from the mould and require very little machining to finish.

I saw them at several Las Vegas gunshops earlier this year, and I almost bought one except it would have cost me more to send it to my FFL here in CA for registration, plus I already have a lower I can't find any parts for. Front Sight was also selling them for the same amount and I could have bought one from them as well

Point of all this is,,, when things go back to normal this outfit will be able to mfg these for a lot less than anyone can make metal ones.

I don't consider more AR's in this society necessarily a bad thing. I know you don't either. Cheaper they are to make the more of them will get out. That is the American Way,,, Right?

Randy

[MtGun44]

I have shot several different brands of carbon or glass filled polymer lower ARs and
examined them very closely afterwards.

It would not be my choice for a rifle to be used for bayonet work, but honestly
how many times has a bayonet been fixed on an AR in combat in the last decade? No
idea, but I bet is isn't much.

IMO, a polymer/glass or polymer carbon lower will be very durable in an AR for semi-auto
work.

I agree that with a design for plastic, you can make at least a .22, but no rifling. Still
the ease of smuggling in guns seems to totally trump the sort of silliness in
reality.

Bill