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3D-Printed Guns Are Back, and This Time They Are Unstoppable (wired.co.uk) 513

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Wired: A new network of 3D-printed gun advocates is growing in America -- and this time things are different. Unlike previous attempts to popularize 3D-printed guns, this operation is entirely decentralized. There's no headquarters, no trademarks, and no real leader. The people behind it reckon that this means they can't be stopped by governments. Known only by his online moniker, Ivan the Troll is the de facto spokesman of an underground wave of 3D-printing gunsmiths. Ivan says he knows of at least 100 people who are actively developing 3D-printed gun technology, and he claims there are thousands taking part in the network. This loose-knit community spans across the whole world.

They communicate across several digital platforms, including Signal, Twitter, IRC, and Discord. They critique each other's work, exchange 3D gun CAD files, offer advice, talk theory, and collaborate on future blueprints. These 3D-printed gun enthusiasts -- who share similar ideas and political viewpoints on gun control -- mostly found each other online via gun control subreddits and forums. Ivan is just one small part of this network. He says he is from Illinois, and is of "college age," but otherwise he remains mostly anonymous, to lie low. At the same time though, he's launched bombastic PR videos demonstrating the new 3D-printed gun parts he's created in his garage, including a Glock 17 handgun frame.
Ivan's group says the legal challenges around Defence Distributed and the company's founder Cody Wilson are irrelevant. According to the report, the group is uploading their files individually on services such as Spee.ch, a media-hosting site underpinned by the LBRY blockchain, "and they aren't waiting for anyone to give them permission." It adds: "They've made their own 3D-printed gun designs, modified old ones, and are keeping all the Defence Distributed ones available for free too."
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3D-Printed Guns Are Back, and This Time They Are Unstoppable

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  • by Anonymous Coward

    literally and legally.

    • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

      by saloomy ( 2817221 )

      I hope it won't. The second amendment states unequivocally that you (the people) have the right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.

      If you think those words don't mean much, then nether do the rest of the articles in the Constitution. Remember when the Feds banned alcohol? Next will be speech. Mark my words. Then, there won't be anywhere to bitch about not having a gun to defend your rights.

      These gun smithing techniques will only get better and better anyways. These guys aren't stupid. They know m

      • Re: (Score:2, Funny)

        by Anonymous Coward

        "Next will be speech. Mark my words"

        OK. I'm not very good at this though. I think "gun smithing" should be hyphenated.

        9.5/10

      • by Archangel Michael ( 180766 ) on Monday May 20, 2019 @07:42PM (#58626728) Journal

        Next will be speech

        Too late. It is already happening and far too many people are okay with it, because they view they are safe. They might be right now, but eventually, they won't be.

  • Better back door them iPhones!!!
  • Well of course. There is nothing wrong with making 3d-printed guns, and no authority to "stop" the information flow in the USA.

  • ... with a good arrow? Anybody?

    I don't get the fuss about 3D printing guns. You probably can build a viable gun with some scrap metal and a decent toolset - one that is much better than a 3D printed gun. What I don't get is the fuss about flimsy 3D printed guns. Isn't a longbow at least as powerful as most handguns? ... Just curious and hoping some gun/weapon enthusiast can provide some insight.

    • What I don't get is the fuss about flimsy 3D printed guns. Isn't a longbow at least as powerful as most handguns? ... Just curious and hoping some gun/weapon enthusiast can provide some insight.

      Hmm, a longbow has a range comparable to a rifle. Hitting power of a longbow is no better than a decent hunting rifle, and rather more powerful than any "assault weapon" ever made (an "assault weapon" is generally underpowered enough that they're not legal for deer hunting).

      Note that most States have a bow season,

      • by atrex ( 4811433 )
        Certainly bows/crossbows are still effective at murdering people. Not that we needed a reminder but there was this incident in Germany quite recently: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/0... [nytimes.com]
      • by clovis ( 4684 )

        Hmm, a longbow has a range comparable to a rifle. Hitting power of a longbow is no better than a decent hunting rifle, and rather more powerful than any "assault weapon" ever made (an "assault weapon" is generally underpowered enough that they're not legal for deer hunting).

        Note that most States have a bow season, and that there are archers who have killed moose, bison, and brown bears.

        Mostly true, except that the range of a longbow is a fraction of the range of a rifle. The biggest difference is that if you are looking at someone holding a longbow and see them fire an arrow at you from 200yds, you can duck it. That's not going to happen with a bullet.

    • by phantomfive ( 622387 ) on Monday May 20, 2019 @07:52PM (#58626790) Journal
      If you ever look at the weapons caches that are confiscated with drug busts, a lot of times you'll see crossbows in the mix. Crossbows are as ~powerful as longbows. Here's one example [qns.com]. The reason is that an arrow can pierce the bullet-proof-vests used by police.
      • by atrex ( 4811433 )
        I wager they're also a lot quieter than most guns, possibly even ones with a suppressor.
      • Sorry for the ignorance. What's the attraction of bowed weapons? Are they silent? I thought that, outside of a lucky fatal head or heart shot, arrows were designed to bleed the target. I would think that someone with a gun who's been shot with an arrow could do a lot of damage while they're bleeding to death.
        • What's the attraction of bowed weapons?

          Arrows go through bullet proof vests, so they are anti-police weapons. Practically, I don't think guns or arrows are particularly useful for drug dealers when fighting against the police, because if you fight against the police, you lose. They can bring far more firepower than you can hope to ever cache anywhere. So a crossbow is probably just a psychological weapon, it makes the drug dealer feel more confident, and the police a little more cautious.

    • by iggymanz ( 596061 ) on Monday May 20, 2019 @07:58PM (#58626828)

      I'm a firearms hobbyist but until such time as printers can make a high tolerance chamber and rifled barrel that can take at least 18,000 PSI for thousands of firings... I've zero interest in them.

    • by jythie ( 914043 )
      The fuss is mostly idealogical. On the left (sorta) there were some media reports hyping up the 'every criminal will be able to get untraceable guns!' image, which was silly but sold ads.. and on the right (sorta) there is a current of 'if we show how futile stopping us completely is, they will have to abandon all gun laws!', kinda like how a certain segment of the crypto community hopes that if BTC makes tax evasion easier than the IRS and states will just give up trying to tax income or sales. But also,
    • Anyone with some basic skills and a halfway decent workshop can make a durable, functioning gun faster than they could print one. And it's not illegal to make a gun in your home workshop, as long as you don't sell it.

      Some steel pipe, wood, and a few metal bit are all that you need to make a perfectly functional, if somewhat crude firearm.

      • Anyone with some basic skills and a halfway decent workshop can make a durable, functioning gun faster than they could print one....

        Some steel pipe, wood, and a few metal bit are all that you need to make a perfectly functional, if somewhat crude firearm.

        One of my favorites from the Phillipenes' resistance movement of WW II: The trombone shotgun. Iron plumbing pipe and fittings, friction tape, wood disk, nail.

        Barrel/chamber: Pipe with inside diameter that matches the outside diameter of a shotgun shell.

    • by clovis ( 4684 )

      ... with a good arrow? Anybody?

      I don't get the fuss about 3D printing guns. You probably can build a viable gun with some scrap metal and a decent toolset - one that is much better than a 3D printed gun. What I don't get is the fuss about flimsy 3D printed guns. Isn't a longbow at least as powerful as most handguns? ... Just curious and hoping some gun/weapon enthusiast can provide some insight.

      Try standing a crowd waiting for the president to go by while you're holding a longbow, and you'll quickly see the advantage of having a gun that fits in your pocket.

    • Longbows take years to become accurate. Crossbows are about as easy to use as a gun, but reload time is significant. You can empty a semi-automatic gun before you fire a 2nd bolt.

      Arrows and bolts don't have barrel markings, but generally you say "guy killed by arrow/bolt and suspect had longbow/crossbow" and that gets a conviction.

      The 3d printed guns are mainly a problem because they can't be tracked and the barrels can easily be melted down, preventing ballistic identification.

      Of course, it won't take lo

    • There should be no fuss about 3D printed guns. They are worried about all plastic, no metal detection. Can't happen given you need a metal barrel. And poly bodies are common as it reduces weight.

      Regarding bow type weapons.

      You want an Air Bow, an arrow rifle. 3,000 PSI, 8 shots on an air charge, 450 Feet per Second.

      https://www.amazon.com/Crosman... [amazon.com]

      Far more powerful than bows or cross bows, and air powered, in a rifle format. Accurate to 100 yard range (try that with a stringed bow/crossbow).

      Yep, it's on

  • by PopeRatzo ( 965947 ) on Monday May 20, 2019 @07:43PM (#58626740) Journal

    Known only by his online moniker, Ivan the Troll is the de facto spokesman of an underground wave of 3D-printing gunsmiths.

    For a group without a leader, they sure are on-brand with their naming conventions.

  • Gun control cost an estimated 50-60 million lives from genocide in the 20th century.

    https://www.firearmsandliberty... [firearmsandliberty.com]
    http://jpfo.org/filegen-a-m/de... [jpfo.org]
    https://mises.org/wire/brief-h... [mises.org]
    https://www.dailyherald.com/ar... [dailyherald.com]

    Too many times countries like Venezuela have banned guns only to follow these bans with suppression of the masses. Gun rights are about checking the power of the government.

  • Why would they do this in america? Can't you buy any gun you want, pistols, assault rifles, etc... cheaply and legally?

    I think hes probably just a college person wanting to be famous and stir shit up. After reading the article, it seems he has no real reason for doing this besides wanting to do it. Some kind of insane "everyone should have a gun for safety" philosophy is the best he could come up with.

    • Re:don't get it (Score:5, Informative)

      by Ungrounded Lightning ( 62228 ) on Monday May 20, 2019 @10:53PM (#58627774) Journal

      Why would they do this in america? Can't you buy any gun you want, pistols, assault rifles, etc... cheaply and legally?

      No.

      The Second Amendment says you can. The legislatures and lower courts mostly ignore it, while the Supreme Court mostly sidesteps the issue. (That HAS been changing a LITTLE bit lately. Big subject.)

      US v. Miller (1939), upholding the gun control act of 1938: Supreme court said the 2nd only protected MILLITARY weapons, and nobody had showed them that a short-barreled shotgun was used by the military. (In fact it was: It's called a "trench gun" and was quite popular in WW I for clearing out the opposing army when they got into your trench. But Miller didn't show up to point this out, being dead at the time, so it didn't come to "judicial notice".)

      This precedent was then used for a bunch of laws and rules banning civilians from having military, or "military style",

      Assault rifles: Assault "rifle" or assault "weapon"?

      Assault rifle: Short military select-fire (throw the switch and it's a burst-fire or full automatic {machine gun}) rifle, suitable for use in close quarters (especially: Popping up through a tank's hatch to spray the surroundings). Machine guns of all kinds (more than one bang per trigger pull) require paying a $200 tax per transfer, giving up a bunch of other rights, and are banned in many states. Also supply is limited to those that were built and registered before May of 1986, but the "Firearms Owner's Protection Act". aka trojan horse.

      Assault weapon: Gun banner defined legal term. Amounts to "military looking ugly gun": a gun having any one or two (depending on the law) of a number of arbitrary, generally cosmetic, features that some legislature decided to ban with that iteration. (Examples: Bayonet lug, grenade launcher (you can't have the grenades, which are banned by other laws), pistol grips on a rifle, etc etc etc.

      Pistols: Lots more controls than rifles or shotguns. Has to have a long barrel to be imported. If it has a detachable shoulder stock it becomes a "short barreled rifle" - a felony.

      Shotguns: Heaven help you if it's too short. Or has a drum magazine. Or ...

      Takes ammo over .50 cal.

      Muffler? ("Silencer" is marketing hype: It's like a through-muffler for a hot rod: You need a hole through it so you can only reduce the sound somewhat, and it still sounds like a gun - except in silly movies,) Sorry, that's a felony, too, without that B.S. mostly-can't-get-it $200 tax stamp and stack of red tape. Use your big earmuffs or accept going deaf.

      I could go on for pages.

      • by Cederic ( 9623 )

        Takes ammo over .50 cal.

        I find this highly amusing, as it's legal in the UK for me to buy or make a firearm with up to a 2 inch bore.

        So much for the second amendment.

  • I'm 3D printing bulletproof vests. Any investors?

  • by Gim Tom ( 716904 ) on Monday May 20, 2019 @09:47PM (#58627454)
    The controversy of the possibility of 3D printed guns is not the real issue. What nobody seems to have understood is that in a few years it will be possible for anyone to make anything by some sort of process either 3D printing or something else that hasn't even been invented yet. The Santa Claus Machine is coming and it is a lot closer than most people think.

    Don't think that 3D printing will be forever limited to plastics either. Industrial 3D printing is making metal parts that could not be made any other way for aircraft and rockets now and this technology, like virtually all technology, will become widely available in the future.

    What was yesterday's magic, and today's advanced technology will be tomorrows normal.
  • Anybody with some basic metalworking skill and a machine shop can build a real gun. They aren't that hard to make; relatively modern designs like the 1911A1 have been around for a CENTURY. And you don't need a machine shop; criminals in PRISONS can make guns.

    And nobody can 3D print a barrel that will last for more than a few shots. There are not currently any plastics that can withstand the stress of a bullet passing through. The entire hysteria of "3D printed gunz!!!1" is a smokescreen. It isn't a p

  • It's all about power (Score:5, Informative)

    by xenobyte ( 446878 ) on Tuesday May 21, 2019 @02:03AM (#58628260)

    If you want freedom you'll need to define it, create it, grab it and hold on to it.

    Unfortunately, the world is full of people abusing this, creating their freedom at the cost of others freedom, or just denying freedom on some political or religious basis.

    So in order to hold on to your freedom you'll need power, and as groups like government and criminals have all the the guns they want, you'll need your own or be literately outgunned. As government often use gun control laws to make sure they have a monopoly on guns, people needs new ways to get hold of guns in order to keep the balance.

    Oh, and the usual comments about how peaceful countries with tough gun control laws are, it's a mirage. Yes, a lot fewer people are killed by guns but that is simply due to a lot fewer guns. If you instead calculate the number of gun death per gun, you'll get a very different picture.

    In my country Denmark we have extremely restrictive gun laws and there are very few legal guns outside the police and military, and yet we have more than 100 gun deaths every year. There are less than a handful shot by legal guns (usually the police) and the rest are due to gangs shooting each other. The criminal world is full of guns, usually smuggled into the country. The really big factor here is that regular people don't have guns so when a criminal shows up with a gun, the criminal gets what he wants. Nobody shoots back and the criminals have a free-for-all. That is exactly why so few gets killed by guns - most of the time the gun doesn't even need to be loaded.

  • by cascadingstylesheet ( 140919 ) on Tuesday May 21, 2019 @07:41AM (#58629208) Journal

    Designs are speech. You can check plans for making nuclear weapons out from the library, for pete's sake.

    Now, manufacturing the weapons themselves? Yeah, governments can regulate that (modulo second amendment interpretations and practical limitations).

Economists state their GNP growth projections to the nearest tenth of a percentage point to prove they have a sense of humor. -- Edgar R. Fiedler

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