Banning something that's not real yet

[Coils]

Just seen this article where they want to ban printable firearms, someone made one that fired 6 rounds before something broke, so they want to ban it already


Click, print, shoot: Downloadable guns possible
By JASON DEAREN, AP


SAN FRANCISCO — Downloading a gun's design plans to your computer, building it on a three-dimensional printer and firing it minutes later. No background checks, no questions asked.

Sound far-fetched? It's not. And that is disquieting for gun control advocates.

Rep. Steven Israel, D-NY, said the prospect of such guns becoming reality is reason enough for the renewal of the Undetectable Firearms Act, which makes illegal the building of guns that can't be detected by X-ray or metallic scanners. That law expires at the end of 2013.

At least one group, called Defense Distributed, is claiming to have created downloadable weapon parts that can be built using the increasingly popular new-generation of printer that utilizes plastics and other materials to create 3-D objects with moving parts. University of Texas law student Cody Wilson, the 24-year-old "Wiki Weapons" project leader, says the group last month test fired a semiautomatic AR-15 rifle — one of the weapon types used in the Connecticut elementary school massacre — which was built with some key parts created on a 3-D printer. The gun was fired six times before it broke.

Though no independent observer was there to verify the test, a short video clip showing the gun firing and breaking was posted to YouTube. Federal firearms regulators said they are aware of the technology's gun-making potential, but do not believe an entire weapon has yet been made.

"What's chilling is that last month a group of kids used a 3-D printer to actually manufacture (key parts) of the AR-15 and fire six bullets," Israel said. "When the (act) was last renewed in 2003, a gun made by a 3-D printer was like a Star Trek episode, but now we know it's real."

Even with gun control pushed to the top of the national political conversation, Wilson is steadfast about reaching his goal of making a fully downloadable gun. This weekend, he and his partners plan to print four new lower receivers — the segment of the gun that includes the trigger, magazine and grip. He keeps three of these AR-15 parts — one black, one white and another green — in his tidy student apartment in Austin, TX.

Wilson acknowledged there still are many technical hurdles to creating a complete gun from a 3-D printer and provided no estimate on when his goal might be reached.

Special Agent Helen Dunkel of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, which helps enforce gun laws, said the agency is familiar with Wilson's project. She didn't offer an opinion but noted there is nothing illegal about making many types of guns at home. Exceptions would be high-powered weapons like machine guns and those not detectable by airport scanners.

[j427x]

thats going to be the excuse to ban home builds--most likely.

[TRX]

Let's see you print gunpowder, primers, and heat-treated steel parts first...

"3-D printing" is the "nanotech" of the 21st century; a combination of wishful thinking and bullshit.


Being able to print a plastic AR lower is one thing. I'll be more impressed when they can print precision metal parts like bolts and barrels...

It's like the "plastic guns" flap in the 1980s. No plastic barrels, bolts, or ammunition ever showed up. "It's like deja vu all over again!"

[2ndAmendican]

Originally Posted by TRX

Let's see you print gunpowder, primers, and heat-treated steel parts first...

"3-D printing" is the "nanotech" of the 21st century; a combination of wishful thinking and bullshit.


Being able to print a plastic AR lower is one thing. I'll be more impressed when they can print precision metal parts like bolts and barrels...

It's like the "plastic guns" flap in the 1980s. No plastic barrels, bolts, or ammunition ever showed up. "It's like deja vu all over again!"

Aww come on, you mean you didn't rush right out and buy a "porcelean Glock" when Bruce Willis said that bad guys can get them through airport security in Die Hard 2???? I had visions of some hippie slaving over a kiln making pottery based slides, and frames. LOL.

[Big Don]

The one I saw was a pistol. Fired twice and came apart. Wasn't pretty. Low powered, too; like a .22cal.

[Coils]

I had visions of some hippie slaving over a kiln making pottery based slides, and frames. LOL.

LOL

"3-D printing" is the "nanotech" of the 21st century; a combination of wishful thinking and bullshit.

Yeah I know that printing a gun isn't going to happen for a while, it's just they are trying to point their fingers at anything they can now.

[tanvil]

Originally Posted by j427x

thats going to be the excuse to ban home builds--most likely.

"Manufacturing.''

Sounds like some ones trying to sell the un small arms treaty along with whatever else is getting ready to be unleashed.

[zoom6zoom]

But it was on CSI, it must be true!