Want a gun? Just print it out

[TurnToStone]

Published: Wednesday June 19, 2013 MYT 2:09:00 PM
Updated: Wednesday June 19, 2013 MYT 4:30:56 PM

Want a gun? Just print it out

By JOHAN HULAIMI

A screengrab from a YouTube video of Cody Wilson firing the 3D-printed gun.

PETALING JAYA: You don't need to visit an arms dealer to buy a gun anymore - using the latest digital technology, you can simply 'print out' one.

With 3D printing technology, you can print out almost any conceivable object.

All you need is a 3D printer, the design plans (schematics), and the 'ink', which is essentially a composite plastic resin.

A check in the Internet revealed that there are Malaysian companies that sell 3D printers for between RM4,000 and RM7,500.

The 'ink' or material used to build the printed objects is made up of ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) plastic the same material used to make Lego bricks.

"It is possible to build a gun," confirmed a representative of a Malaysian company selling 3D printers when asked if it was possible to print out a fully functional firearm.

Blueprints for an AR 15, an assault rifle commonly used by the military, including the Malaysian Armed Forces, can be easily found on the Internet.

The blueprints contain the schematics to direct the 3D printer to print an assault rifle and bullets.

But Daniel Mark, founder of Designex 3D, said that you can print out a gun but it could fall apart when fired.

"The ABS is not durable enough for the weapon to work. It will break easily upon firing," said the managing director of the Malaysian company on Wednesday.

Mark added that 3D printers in the market are accurate to 100 microns.

"Just imagine one strand of hair is between 70 and 80 microns - that's how accurate 3D printers are," he said.

In May, Cody Wilson, an American gunsmith, fired the first entirely 3D-printed handgun, the Liberator, and posted its blueprints online.

He posted the blueprints to give anyone with an Internet connection, a computer, and a 3D printer the chance to do the same.

All necessary parts were printed from a 3D printer except for the metal firing pin, which was made from a single nail.

 

[TurnToStone]

Published on Mar 25, 2013

Cody R Wilson has figured out how to print a semi-automatic rifle from the comfort of his own home. Now he's putting all the information online so that others will join him.

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This is a story about the rapid evolution of a technology that has forced the American legal system to play catch up. Cody Wilson, a 25 year old University of Texas Law student, is an advocate for the open source production of firearms using 3D printing technology. This makes him a highly controversial figure on both sides of the gun control issue. MOTHERBOARD sat down with Cody in Austin, Texas to talk about the constitution, the legal system, and to watch him make and test-fire a 3D-printed gun.


<iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/DconsfGsXyA?rel=0" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="560"></iframe>

 

[Lizzert]

wonder if can print Angelina Jolie's head with those lips slightly open...
let you figure out what its for..hehehehe