US rushes to ban plastic guns

[Atter]

From The Daily Telegraph yesterday...

THE US Congress is racing toward renewing a 25-year-old prohibition against firearms that can evade metal detectors and X-ray machines.

The ban expires next Monday night.

With 3-D printers increasingly able to produce plastic weapons, many Democrats and gun control advocates say the restrictions must be tightened.

The Republican-led House is expected to approve a 10-year extension of the ban on Tuesday. Figuring it's the best they can get, Democrats are expected to back it strongly, though they would rather also require permanent metal components that would make plastic firearms more detectable.

The Democratic-run Senate returns from a two-week Thanksgiving break next Monday.

Democrats say they will seek a quick vote on renewing the ban and tightening the restrictions. But many think they will eventually settle for the House's 10-year extension.

"With 3-D printers increasingly able to produce plastic weapons, many Democrats and gun control advocates say the restrictions must be tightened."

Er, really?

Like that 1 someone got to fire which exploded?

I must have missed all the examples of operational assault rifles being printed off in uni students basements...

[meek]

I must have missed all the examples of operational assault rifles being printed off in uni students basements...

Me too, but it's happening left, right and centre if you believe half the US media.

[Supporter]

Can't say I'm real worried about criminals printing rifles...

[Supporter]

Forgot to link, more videos on it here - http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2013/11/feds- ... eir-faces/

[Kaine]

It is not just the printing of full guns that is the issue, but more so the printing of firearm parts.
The thing that is currently happening is that people are working on making functional lowers for the ar-15, as the uppers are availible with no regulation. In some of the US states, full auto is tightly controlled, but semi-auto is allowed, so people are printing full auto lowers and mating them to metal uppers and having full auto ar-15s.
Added to that the 3D printing tech is going to start evolving in to metal, I believe that there are currently top tier models that do already print in metal. It is estimated in 10-15 years that the technology will exist for the average consumer to be able to print full working firearms, that don't go boom when you use them. Exciting thought.
It is at this point that gun control will no longer be valid.

[Bourt]

Added to that the 3D printing tech is going to start evolving in to metal, I believe that there are currently top tier models that do already print in metal. It is estimated in 10-15 years that the technology will exist for the average consumer to be able to print full working firearms, that don't go boom when you use them. Exciting thought.

That's fair enough, but you don't think all these people are getting in a frenzy over nothing at the moment (as the tech is now)?

[Kaine]

That's fair enough, but you don't think all these people are getting in a frenzy over nothing at the moment (as the tech is now)?

Oh I personally don't care what happens at this point. Are they jumping the gun early? Yeah most likely. Will it work? Not at all.
It will just be like pirating movies/tv shows, you can't stop people downloading things off the internet. You can make it illegal and police it as best you can, but you will just end up with private servers in a number of different countries hosting the files, just like Piratebay does now.
Who knows, maybe PB will get a new '3D Blueprint' section.

[Carter]

The thing that is currently happening is that people are working on making functional lowers for the ar-15, as the uppers are availible with no regulation. In some of the US states, full auto is tightly controlled, but semi-auto is allowed, so people are printing full auto lowers and mating them to metal uppers and having full auto ar-15s.

Yeah, I've seen them making all the 'bits'

Still yet to see anyone make anything that even resembles a working firearm though.

Even just doing magazines and stuff for AR's they wore out or shook apart after one use on the videos I've seen.

[Kaine]

The thing that is currently happening is that people are working on making functional lowers for the ar-15, as the uppers are availible with no regulation. In some of the US states, full auto is tightly controlled, but semi-auto is allowed, so people are printing full auto lowers and mating them to metal uppers and having full auto ar-15s.

Yeah, I've seen them making all the 'bits'

Still yet to see anyone make anything that even resembles a working firearm though.

Even just doing magazines and stuff for AR's they wore out or shook apart after one use on the videos I've seen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-ihbzNFoM0

Not sure where the original vid is, but this has part of it.
Lowers that work for 600 rounds. The only reason they fail is because of resonance and recoil breaking the stock, which causes a catastrophic failure. Not explosive though.

[Guliver]

World's First 3D Printed Metal Gun http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7ZYKMBDm4M

3D Printed Metal Gun 500 Round Endurance Test http://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation ... 2L3QP5qVgo

Google https://www.google.com.au/search?q=yout ... rQfyu4GQAg

[The Brass]

Look at the maker and the equipment they're using though. Not exactly a kids home printer.

If you had all that gear you'd be a license manufacturer anyway.

[Kaine]

Look at the maker and the equipment they're using though. Not exactly a kids home printer.

If you had all that gear you'd be a license manufacturer anyway.

That is only a matter of time though, the same could have been said about inkjet printers or computers in the past.
Hell most of the gear in my shed would have been high end industrial equipment at one time. But as time goes on these things always trickle down to the average consumers, they will get smaller and cheaper.

[Guliver]

Look at the maker and the equipment they're using though. Not exactly a kids home printer.

If you had all that gear you'd be a license manufacturer anyway.

That is only a matter of time though, the same could have been said about inkjet printers or computers in the past.
Hell most of the gear in my shed would have been high end industrial equipment at one time. But as time goes on these things always trickle down to the average consumers, they will get smaller and cheaper.

So true I can remember 25 years ago selling top quality Fujitsu dot matrix printers for $2,500.

[Boatman]

So true I can remember 25 years ago selling top quality Fujitsu dot matrix printers for $2,500.

I remember my first CD burner was about $1200.

Now a DVD burner is $35

[Carter]

That is only a matter of time though, the same could have been said about inkjet printers or computers in the past.

I'll worry about it in a matter of time then

[Kaine]

I'll worry about it in a matter of time then

Why worry, I'm bloody looking forward to it.

[Guliver]

I'll worry about it in a matter of time then

Why worry, I'm bloody looking forward to it.

I wouldn't get too excited it is already illegal for you to make any sort of firearm no matter how it's produced in Australia.

[salate]

I wouldn't get too excited it is already illegal for you to make any sort of firearm no matter how it's produced in Australia.

We'll have to live vicariously through YouTube and shooters in the USA with all their goodies.

[pajamatime]

That's fair enough, but you don't think all these people are getting in a frenzy over nothing at the moment (as the tech is now)?

Oh I personally don't care what happens at this point. Are they jumping the gun early? Yeah most likely. Will it work? Not at all.
It will just be like pirating movies/tv shows, you can't stop people downloading things off the internet. You can make it illegal and police it as best you can, but you will just end up with private servers in a number of different countries hosting the files, just like Piratebay does now.
Who knows, maybe PB will get a new '3D Blueprint' section.

we all know regulations don't work right, just go ask your friendly neighborhood pharmaceutical company on average they kill 100,000 thousand people a year in America alone minimum just through there dodgy over hyped petro chemical drugs based historically on chemical weaponry "blueprints" . we have lost touch with what is really important...we don't need a gun to kill ourselves we just need to eat GMO'S and take pharmaceutical drugs end of story lol

with that said the world is entering further and further into mayhem and World war 3 is on the horizon in its more aggressive form(guns and explosions)...I'm curious though of the true agenda afoot hear, hmmmmm. hiding things they are....hrhrhrhre

[upup]

Funny the Gov getting all uppity over this when their own ATF have shown it doesn't work.

If someone criminal wants to make a plastic gun and blow their own finger off, let them have at it

[sha]

I reckon they can just leave Darwinism to sort this one out

[AlanK]

I reckon we could do that for half our laws and a lot of problems would be solved within a few months

[Rakk]

On the subject of those ATF videos too, I'm pretty sure that's no the only one.

I believe they did a series with a range of replicated plastic firearms and they all exploded.

[Ken]

I think you can stop testing once you see a .22 blows itself to pieces

[pajamatime]

I think you can stop testing once you see a .22 blows itself to pieces

i personally think its more of a problem for the gun industry, see you can make most of the gun out of that plastic stuff, and then the rest "high pressures high energy parts" out of something tougher?

whats that mean ? cheaper guns! and less profits for Gun manufacturers lol

[RDobber]

It's clearly not a problem at all for the community at large.

If some would-be stick-up man pulls the trigger on one of those things he'll only be lightening his arm, not someone else's wallet.