3D printing may spell the beginning of the end for gun control

RockyMtnScotsman said:

note the words "engages in the business of" preceding "manufacture" in your link.

If one keeps the firearm for personal use and it's not an NFA firearm, there's no law prohibiting the manufacture of firearms ....yet ...... until/unless one decides to sell it - then you need to be licensed

Click to expand...

You are correct. I stand corrected.

Forget firearms I wanna print drones.:monkey

twoskinsonemanns said:

Also their are already very reliable polymer AR lowers available right now.

Click to expand...

Yup, my .223 AR15 has a polymer upper and lower. It's totally reliable and accurate, weighs just 4.5 pounds empty, and I can bumpfire a 30 rounder through it with no problem (not that bumpfiring is accurate but the weapons cycles flawlessly).

This is no big deal, especially when one considers the number of CAD milling machines "out there" that, by bolting in a block of material and loading the right data, can produce the necessary parts for a semi or full-auto firearm with ease.

rscottie said:

I can barely afford the ink cartridges in my normal printer...can't imagine what the refills cost for one of those machines.:shocker:

Click to expand...

Current price is $260US per 56.3 cubic inch cartridge, either ABS or the support material, which is discarded after the build, either broken away (breakaway support) or dissolved in sodium hydroxide (soluble support, go figure). I work on these printers as a service tech. The larger Fortus printers from Stratasys can print in much stronger materials as well, things like polycarbonate and Ultem. I can see a full power lower being designed around those materials, the only weak point would be the buffer tube threads. With the Fortus machines you can design for an insert which gets built into the plastic so you could put a metal threaded insert where necessary.

We-the-People said:

Yup, my .223 AR15 has a polymer upper and lower. It's totally reliable and accurate, weighs just 4.5 pounds empty, and I can bumpfire a 30 rounder through it with no problem (not that bumpfiring is accurate but the weapons cycles flawlessly).

This is no big deal, especially when one considers the number of CAD milling machines "out there" that, by bolting in a block of material and loading the right data, can produce the necessary parts for a semi or full-auto firearm with ease.

Click to expand...

Wow never heard of an ar upper in polymer. Who makes it?

Forget 3D printers. A couple of lengths of tubing, a washer, a hex nut, and a rubber band are all you need. And if you can't get all that together a few lengths of surgical tubing will do.

It's not the mechanism that we need to be worried about. IMHO it is the ammo we need to be concerned about - both ammo as a complete cartridge and as components. Gunpowder is not that hard to make or to mill - just remember not to smoke! There is a good deal of brass available, and if folks would start realizing that there will come a day when it is not so plentiful they might start saving braas now as opposed to later. Lead (or a few other metals) for casting into bullets is still available and there are lots of sources for scrounging should it come to that.

It's the primers we need to worry about. Anybody know how to make them? Anybody have the machinery needed to make them?

Anybody know how to convert a 1911/Glock to flintlock?

stay safe.

twoskinsonemanns said:

Wow never heard of an ar upper in polymer. Who makes it?

Click to expand...

Bushmaster "Carbon 15". The only drawback is that it is designed to ultra light weight and so the barrel is thin and will overheat if you shoot a lot of rounds fast. But it will take a 30 rounder in bumpfire, just let it cool afterwards.

The below manufacturers links says 5.5 pounds put I could have sworn I weighed mine in at 4.5 pounds with no mag, accessories, sights or optics, sling, etc.

http://www.bushmaster.com/catalog_carbon15_AZ-C15M4PRE.asp

Black powder.....worked 200 years or so ago. Ain't fast but it works.

OC for ME said:

Black powder.....worked 200 years or so ago. Ain't fast but it works.

Click to expand...

Most of the blackpowder weapons available today require a primer of some sort. Some use a #11 nipple (I think), mine uses a 209 shotgun primer. While I can make or find the black powder and mold the bullets or balls, those primers are necessary to fire the weapon.

A flintlock would be nice but the prices are rediculously high. So, I stock 209 primers and figure that I'll have something with which to obtain something better.

PVC pipe, a little glue, and a BBQ igniter will make a dandy weapon without any powder, primers, or bullets. I once made one that would fire a raquetball and of course there is the traditional potato. Of course there is always the bow and arrow, crossbows, slingshots.... there will always be some weapon available that will fire a projectile.

We-the-People said:

Most of the blackpowder weapons available today require a primer of some sort. Some use a #11 nipple (I think), mine uses a 209 shotgun primer. While I can make or find the black powder and mold the bullets or balls, those primers are necessary to fire the weapon.

A flintlock would be nice but the prices are rediculously high. So, I stock 209 primers and figure that I'll have something with which to obtain something better.

PVC pipe, a little glue, and a BBQ igniter will make a dandy weapon without any powder, primers, or bullets. I once made one that would fire a raquetball and of course there is the traditional potato. Of course there is always the bow and arrow, crossbows, slingshots.... there will always be some weapon available that will fire a projectile.

Click to expand...

Primer caps can be made out of tin or copper with cap gun caps. It should be possible to make the paper with the proper ingredients, cap gun caps are not available.

skidmark said:

....snip....

It's not the mechanism that we need to be worried about. IMHO it is the ammo we need to be concerned about - both ammo as a complete cartridge and as components. Gunpowder is not that hard to make or to mill - just remember not to smoke! There is a good deal of brass available, and if folks would start realizing that there will come a day when it is not so plentiful they might start saving braas now as opposed to later. Lead (or a few other metals) for casting into bullets is still available and there are lots of sources for scrounging should it come to that.

It's the primers we need to worry about. Anybody know how to make them? Anybody have the machinery needed to make them?

Anybody know how to convert a 1911/Glock to flintlock?

stay safe.

Click to expand...

Spot On! This has been a discussion that I have had with several over the course of about a year or so; and when they break it down and really think about it....this is prolly the quickest and easiest way to have some control. When you see headlines like the Aurora shooting "6,000 rounds of ammunition", everyday, unedjucated people will have knee jerk reactions...thus giving the libtard bureaucrats traction! :banghead: I agree with you about the primers, they are a more difficult piece of the puzzle to construct effectively.

Not an alarmist, but definitely a high concern....IIRC, one legislator is already proposing limits/notification on the purchase of ammo...Lutenburg (sp?).

Give it a few years and someone may come up with the tech to print the cartridge, primer and all.

After all they are working on this: http://news.cnet.com/8301-11386_3-57493377-76/3d-printed-meat-its-whats-for-dinner/

so who knows whats coming mext.