I certainly had heard of the first 3D printed gun – which the State Department applied ITAR type regulations upon the uploaded plans to prevent their downloading. Oops – 100,000 copies of that had already escaped into the wild. Now, “next version” of that single shot, going to semi-automatic has come out (yes, new materials and manufacturing techniques, but semi-automatic technology is well over 100 years old). This came out in May but I missed it back then. As The Truth About Guns points out:
Cody Wilson’s first 3D printed firearm (The Liberator) was a dead simple design. A single shot device with crude parts and even cruder looks it nevertheless did its job: it proved the concept. The idea that a 3D printed gun could actually function was proven. Now, with the addition of a couple new metal parts, people are starting to 3D print their own firearm creations and the latest is a fully functioning semi-auto 9mm handgun. How cool is that!?
Some of the more astute readers might recognize that this is basically an AR-15 lower with a new plastic upper. You’re more or less right, but that still doesn’t change the fact that a 3D printed gun is handling the recoil forces without flinching. More info here.
