Plastic guns

[HWS]

I am getting a 3D printer to make assault plastic straws. I am going to bind several together to make a high capacity magazine and then add a vertical grip so it can be held more efficiently --even after an adjustable stock is made so people can get the assault straw into their mouths.

And no, I am not going to register this thing--it will be an assault ghost straw.

 

[HiBC]

You could put your eye out with that thing.

 

[TXAZ]

The anti gun folks hate to think citizens can make something that they can't control. But I think the genie is out of the bottle and they won't be able to get it back in.

Apparently no one has figured out how to weave Spectra-fiber into a printed barrel. When that happens, I expect the design files for virtually every weapon will be on line.

 

[MTT TL]

Where to begin....

Scanners - Scanners regardless of type are only as good as the operator, although the ones that provide software assistance are a bit better. Conventional guns and ammo get missed when going through scanners so there is no reason that one printed 3D will be always be seen and "never" get through the scanner without being detected by the machine or the human operator.

It is quite possible that a 3D printed firearm could easily be designed to appear to be something else, such as a hair dryer for example that would much more easily be missed or make it through a scanner without alarming a human or software program.



Printed guns - Technology is it's infant stage. Working, poor quality guns can be made today but there is no reason to think that printers and materials will not improve until we somewhere near or even exceed some currently firearm commercial production models. All it takes is time and development. With the way we share technology today these timelines will not be nearly as long as they would have been even a few decades ago. A denial of this is a denial of the last 40 years of technology development and how humans work.


AR15s - Lowers can be made out of all kinds of things from plastic to a block of wood. One can be printed. An AR upper that was chambered in 22lr might easily be fabricated as well. You do need a very large printer though. Again these are low quality but no reason to think that the technology and materials won't improve. Just because it can't be done today does not mean it won't be done tomorrow.

The old AR15 is the boogie man that the anti-gun mafia uses to scare up donations and media angst. Since mostly the media just looks at a gun and makes a determination about the gun and it's relative evilness based on a picture of it. So really just making something that even looks like an AR15 is enough to get the pot simmering.

Mass Production - For gangs and terrorists this is simply a fantasy with current technology. It is far too easy to buy a gun in the US today. Were I a terrorist and wanted to buy a gun I would simply look at an on line ad for a PPS, call the owner, meet him and pay him cash. I can pretty much get whatever kind of gun I want. I can do this multiple times to get lots of guns if I have the money. It would be much cheaper than buying all the associated technology and making them myself. Criminals mostly steal guns or trade them back and forth with each other. Again, current tech is too cumbersome compared with finding an unlocked car with a pistol under the seat or trading meth for a pistol.

 

[DaleA]

SO, if you have people who are actually LOOKING at the x-ray machine screen, they can see even a plastic gun.

Yeah, TSA efficiency...

Here's a couple items. My own town's airport let 95% of prohibited items thru. Let's repeat, they missed 95%.

Overall across the country I guess their rate is about 80% FAIL.

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/jul/6/tsa-failed-detect-95-percent-prohibited-items-minn/

https://abcnews.go.com/US/tsa-fails-tests-latest-undercover-operation-us-airports/story?id=51022188

(On the other hand they DID detect about 4,000 (four thousand) guns in carry on bags last year.)

https://www.tsa.gov/blog/2018/01/29/tsa-year-review-record-amount-firearms-discovered-2017

 

[TXAZ]

In talking to a couple of our vendors at work, the not-to-distant future will entail 3D printed ‘self repair’ systems. When a part breaks in a product, that product will determine if the part can be printed locally. If so your product is back up and running faster than a FedEx delivery.

Bottom line: 3D printing is going to be ubiquitous in a decade. Unless legislation catches up “anything” including guns will be producible locally

 

[turkeestalker]

What doesn't make much sense in my mind is that it is really not (yet) a viable option for those intent on committing a crime with a firearm, not to mention that it is grossly cost prohibitive.
Sort of makes it a non-issue.

My understanding is that the actual legal issue didn't have anything to do with the 2nd amendment, but the 1st.

So it's all the current administration's fault that the court's upheld the 1st amendment.
That makes sense, right?

 

[MTT TL]

I know of no crime that has ever been committed with a 3D printed gun. Certainly in the future such a thing will happen, it just hasn't been reported as happening yet.

 

[44 AMP]

I know of no crime that has ever been committed with a 3D printed gun. Certainly in the future such a thing will happen,

It may already have happened. If someone makes, then later sells a 3d printed gun, without a serial number on it (and the maker's name and address), then a crime has been committed.

it doesn't HAVE to be a robbery or a murder to be a crime...

 

[L2R]

This is almost funny to me. It seems to be the answer to the unconstitutional laws that are being made just so time and money is spent to change them.

Maybe if they keep this kind of low quality crap in the news cycle, it will buy some time and keep them busy for a while.

When this dies down, can someone show them a video of 500 sparklers packed together and see what happens when it goes off?

 

[kenny53]

If I remember ancient history the antis were saying a lot of the same thing when Glocks first hit the market. They were screaming how the guns would be undetectable. You have to figure Liberals work off emotions not facts. Given time this will go away, all we have to do is wait for the president tweet something.

 

[44 AMP]

The future is a moving target, but now, I'm wondering if you have to get permission from Star Fleet in order to use the replicator to make a phaser????

Or maybe only if you sell the phaser you replicated???

on the other hand, they don't use money, so why would you sell anything, even if you could??

ok, Starfleet permission before bartering said phaser???

or do they just have the replicators set so they can't make phasers? (or other weapons???)

Captain! we've been boarded!! they already taken the armory, what do we fight back with???"

"Tea, Earl Grey, .. hot..."


You can hand whittle an AR lower out of wood, and it will work (I suggest a hard wood) so, why worry about plastic???

 

[DaleA]

You can hand whittle an AR lower out of wood, and it will work (I suggest a hard wood) so, why worry about plastic???

I was going to make a joke about "Nobody NEEDS 'hard wood'!" but then the double entendre hit me and I decided not to.

And aren't you all glad I did.

 

[44 AMP]

And aren't you all glad I did

Probably for the best.