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UK Ballistics Scientists: 3D-Printed Guns Are 'of No Use To Anyone'

Posted by Soulskill on from the might-hurt-if-you-throw-them-at-somebody dept.

New submitter graveyardjohn writes: "The BBC has a short video about why the U.K.'s National Ballistics Intelligence Service thinks 3D-printed guns are 'of no use to anyone.' They show a 3D-printed gun being fired in a test chamber. The barrel explodes and the bullet flops forward a few feet. They say, 'without additional expertise and the right type of ammunition, anyone attempting to fire one would probably maim or even kill themselves.'"

8 of 490 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Good by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    Apparently, Phillipean barrios are full of people with substantial engineering expertise.

    http://www.everydaynodaysoff.com/2013/04/08/backyard-gun-shops-in-the-philippines/

  2. 3D Printing is Not Just Glorified Glue Guns by LuxuryYacht · · Score: 4, Informative

    It's sad that 3D printing had become synonymous with FDM or glorified glue guns (GGG). There are lots of different technologies that fall under the umbrella of 3D printing.

    Here's a gun that was 3D printed using DMLS (Direct Metal Laser Sintering) for the metal parts and SLS for the grips. It's both durable and viable.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...
    http://www.engineering.com/3DP...

    Here's a few other 3D printing processes that are not FDM glorified glue guns:

    SLS
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S...

    DMLS
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D...

    LOM
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L...

    SLA
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S...

    --
    Quidquid latine dictum sit altum viditur
    1. Re:3D Printing is Not Just Glorified Glue Guns by Plazmid · · Score: 3, Informative

      Well technically 3D printing refers to the process of using an inkjet, the very same inkjet from a regular printer, to deposit a binder on a layer of powder. 3D printing is just one Additive Manufacturing process.

      Now DMLS and Laser Sintering(SLS is a trademark of a particular company) aren't quite yet ready for consumers yet.

      Laser sintering of plastic requires inert gas, messy plastic powder, and messes up if temperature varies even a tiny bit(sintering scales with T^4). Messy doesn't even begin to describe how dirty these machines are. You can almost taste the powder in the air near these machines.

      DMLS uses explosive metal powder, requires inert gas, and a pretty dangerous laser. But the real kicker to DMLS that makes it ill suited for the consumer market is the support removal. In order to prevent the printed parts from deforming and to dissipate heat, one has to print supports in. In other words, after printing you have to go in and do a bunch of sanding and dremeling to remove METAL supports from the part!

      LOM is pretty much just for making stuff out of paper, so one probably wouldn't be able to make a very good gun with it.

      SLA can really only do plastics and ceramics. And doing ceramics requires a special kiln.

      However, SLA might be coming to the consumer market due to it's simplicity, speed(there's indications these machines could print very fast), and resolution.

  3. Re:polymer AR lower recievers... by PseudoCoder · · Score: 5, Informative

    what's the difference between a lower and an upper? which part has the barrel? or the trigger and "chamber"?

    Barrel, chamber and bolt assembly go on the upper receiver. The trigger, magazine, stock and serial number on the lower receiver.

    --
    "Now, I doubt any of you would prefer a rolled up newspaper as a weapon against a dictator or a criminal intruder."
  4. Re:Good by Bing+Tsher+E · · Score: 3, Informative

    Not necessarily. Volume 1 of Knuth is over fifty bucks. You can get a cheap inkspray printer for less than that and it's considered a normal printer.

  5. Re:But... by Dan+East · · Score: 2, Informative

    The GP did not say murder rates. He said violent crime rates. Even the most conservative comparisons I can find, which attempt to compare like types of crimes in UK and USA (because they are classified differently), shows at least 200% more violent crime in the UK compared to the USA.

    http://www.politifact.com/trut...
    http://blog.skepticallibertari...
    etc, etc.

    --
    Better known as 318230.
  6. Re:Good by Penguinisto · · Score: 3, Informative

    If, at the beginning, the first general use of the Internet had been porn sites featuring beastiality, rape, etc. then you can be sure it would not be around today.

    You've never ever heard of alt.binaries.*, have you?

    --
    Quo usque tandem abutere, Nimbus, patientia nostra?
  7. Re:Can't the Brits get it right? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

    Cause they want to show them exploding.