What does /k/ think about 3D printed guns? Is it a meme or something

It is a meme to take seriously in the future.

Meme for the most part. 3d printing is all good and well (read:shit) for non stress bearing components like AR lowers, but for actual functioning components you need something more. You could make a functional single shot zipgun with 3d printing, but at that point you may as well make a metal piperifle that'll actually last a few shots. Its mostly just a political thing, a proof of concept rather than an actual practical avenue.

>>35017979

It's alright but I would look forward to consumer grade CNC machines more if I were you.

3d printing is a meme for the following reasons:
-the equipment and process is orders of magnitude more expensive and time consuming than traditional machining
-it is often more wasteful than traditional manufacturing techniques
-it produces product of lesser structural quality than traditional manufacturing techniques

It is ONLY useful for rapid prototyping and for unique geometries that cannot be machined or cast.

>>35017979
Right now all it' good for is zip guns, but in the future we might have better polymers in the toy machines that are affordable to the public.
Whatever is already safe to make plastic you can consider 3d printing, but I honestly wouldn't trust the weak ass plastic you get in most
3d printers over whatever gun manufacturers use in their plastic. As we perfect crystaline carbon structures we might be able to "micro print"
something strong enough to make a whole gun out of, but as it stands that is a far flung fantasy and the technology might never develop
as public interest in this overpriced meme is waning because there are maybe four people that have a practical use for a 3d printer in their
home. To everyone else it's just a toy. The manufacturing sector will definitley jump on it and in the future we might see scanner proof guns,
and there may even be a push to chip and register all plastic/carbon guns so they can't be snuck into public spaces.

3d printed guns are good for two things
-scaring anti gunners who don't know how pipe works
-fun engineering challenges

they won't be remotely practical until metal printers are commonplace. Even at that point, CNC mills are still cheaper.

>>35018172
>-scaring anti gunners who don't know how pipe works

What about fucking magnets, how do THEY work?

File: 3d-printing-shape-torus.jpg (351KB, 800x600px)

351KB, 800x600px

>>35018078
>-the equipment and process is orders of magnitude more expensive and time consuming than traditional machining
Laughably wrong.
>-it is often more wasteful than traditional manufacturing techniques
Additive manufacturing is pretty much always less wasteful than subtractive manufacturing, especially when you get into cutting fluids and the like
>-it produces product of lesser structural quality than traditional manufacturing techniques
Depends, but I'll say mostly true. You can create geometries that are otherwise impossible to manufacture which, themselves, could be stronger for the same amount of mass/volume occupied/cost of production. It's why you're seeing it a lot more in aviation and the like.

File: 3D Printed AR-10.gif (3MB, 416x233px)

3MB, 416x233px

>>35018090
3D printed AR-10 lower being test-fired.

>>35018431
This was printed on a normal hobbyist 3D printer, btw.

>>35018424
Actually, I'll correct myself. The cost of equipment is far lower, but the production speed of components that can be machined will be slower in most cases, unless it requires many setups and tool changes.

>>35018172
metal printers are old tech and they suck. 3d printers are neat but plastic will never not suck, even the good shit. Off the shelf hardware store parts & tools will get you more better guns faster.

>>35018424
nigga you retarded?
it takes hours to print stupid little shit.

>>35018737
They don't print huge aircraft parts, nigga.
And if they do medium sized parts (for turbines, for example), the cost of the part is magnitudes higher than the "time" cost.

File: 3D-Printed-Jaw-Bone.jpg (122KB, 1280x851px)

122KB, 1280x851px

>>35018737
Like I said here: >>35018457
It depends on the geometry. Do you have any idea how long it'd take to make something like this on a CNC mill?

>>35018850
Though, to be fair, that specific material would require a very expensive printer.

whats stopping them from banning good materials?

>>35019039
People actually need those materials for other things? There's no legal justification?

>>35019066
do you think people who are spooked that any idiot can download a ar 15 and build it in his moms basement give a shit over peoples 3d printing hobby

>>35019157
I mean plastic is recycleable and it's used in literally all things. You can't ban plastic.

>>35019179
you also cant just put plastic in a 3d printer and not all plastics will be banned you just wouldnt be able to sell the good shit to any one and we're talking about people who fuck with your constitutional right

>>35019207
You can literally put plastic into an extruder and then into a 3d printer.

>>35019227
only some plastics can do that and im not talking about your empty bottles of water ffs

File: 1500708312303.jpg (16KB, 351x329px)

16KB, 351x329px

>>35018007
>non stress bearing components
>like AR lowers

They should be made out of metal for a reason, faggot

>>35019262
ABS plastic recycler/extruders are plentiful.

>>35019292
cool but i was talking about materials in general so stop side tracking me about shit tier plastics because 3d printers can do more then that

>>35017979
It's easy to make a 1 shooter. Shit, you don't even gotta lube your gun well. 1 strike on the primer and a barrel.

Now, will it cycle a second round, or not blow the barrel out? I dunno, I buy real guns.

>>35019324
ABS is good enough for a lower and used everywhere and recycleable. What's the point of banning materials when other materials which completely cover that use are available?

That's also completely ignoring the better random pipe/metal hardware store stuff.

>>35019365
because people have actual use for that crap thats more important then little billys 3d printing hobby because most people use 3d printing for proto typing and hobbys so once people start really 3d printing guns whats going to get fuck 3d printing or hardware?

>>35019390
...Neither? It can't be done.

File: getfuckedfeinsten.jpg (250KB, 900x1200px)

250KB, 900x1200px

>>35019157

Here is a hint anon: if they are to the point of banning plastics and metals from being purchased, we are long past the point of the happening.

Grind up soda bottles and force the melt through an opening (BTW, people do this shit. It's a bit like reloading.) to make your filament. It's actually relatively strong. Nylon fishing line can also be used to print shit if you really need to, assuming your printer can print nylon at all.

>>35018078
You forgot the part where it's a lot easier to hide and transport production capability.

>>35018007
I'd say pic related is a pretty functional part, get rekt.

>>35018078
>>35019446
Yeah, there are bits and pieces which are great for 3d printing AND you can 3d print like 90% of the parts used in those 3d printers.

>>35018431
plastic lowers we're already a thing. you could even just buy a raw hunk of plastic, mill it, and still have money left over compared to a 3d printer.
if you get a good polymer it would be sronger than the crap they put in domestic printers.
i'm not saying it wasn't possible, im saying its not practical (right now).

>>35018007
>never heard of 3d printing with metal.

>>35018016
Ghostgunner exists now, turns an 80% aluminium lower into a firearm.

>>35019543
Metal printers are tens of thousands of dollars, even looking into the next 5-10 year future. We're talking about home shop stuff

>>35019573
>>35019543
Metal 3d printing is older than plastic printing but it's really a shit process for most stuff and worse than a CNC for gun stuff.

>>35019518
How the fuck much stronger do you want? Sub-1000 dollar hobby machines exist now that can happily do up to fucking polycarbonate, and there are now resin machines in the sub-1k bracket now too. The fuck kind of shitty mill are you going to be using for equivalent money, exactly?

>>35019613
but in the future, with powdered metal...

>>35020016
That's in the past/present though, uses lasers and shit. Been around since probly the late 80s? It's shit.

The guys that made that 1911 are producers of scalpel blades, one of the few niche things where 3d printing metal is a pretty decent idea cause you can get that sharp edge out of the box without machining.

>>35017979

Definitely the future, we just need better materials to work with. When we can print out composite ceramics for under $500 we get into a whole new ballgame as pressure-bearing parts can now be easily created.

>>35017994
this.

Honestly, I think even hobby-grade 3d printing has a lot more /k/ potential than people give it credit for. Of course it has considerable, crippling limitations But through clever usage of the occasional metal piece here and there, I bet you could make an extremely cheap, yet still functional design.

What /3dpgk/ needs is some actual professional grade engineering talent thrown at it, but I can certainly see why one wouldn't want to have their name associated with it.

File: 20170528_171753.jpg (1MB, 4128x2322px)

1MB, 4128x2322px

>>35018078

>not printing a positive blank for a resin cast

If you think 3D printing is only about making a finished product you're wrong.

>>35018737

>takes hours

I can print stuff like that while I'm at work. Oh wait, you probably don't have one of those job things do you?

>>35019518

>mill it

Oh, mills are free now? Where do I get one of those?

Is 3D printing the future?

>>35023034
Yes. It's also the present, but the future too.

>>35017979
No, it seems to have waned. I think an economy of scale on machine tools would be a bigger threat.
That being said, guns that combine 3d printing and off the shelf parts might have viability. A shame fosscad isn't looking into giving up "completely 3dprinted!1!" and start using glock, 1911, and AR barrels and common household metal bits

File: Simplify3D-Troubleshooting-Guide.jpg (338KB, 1208x674px)

338KB, 1208x674px

>>35017979
Most are meme tier, with the all plastic everything. A plastic barrel is going to fuck up no matter what. Sometimes just wears out extremely fast or it explodes on the first shot. Some designs like the Shuty require real steel parts like a glock barrel, which would definitely work as long as plastics other than PLA and some of the more brittle types are not used and all the settings are correct, which is much more in depth than most people seem to think. No matter what I would not expect the plastic parts to last long or be very strong. I'll probably try making some single shot .22 or .25 since barrels for those are cheap and the challenge shouldn't be too hard.

>>35023123
Except they do.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAvLdAXHZ-I

>>35018737
>it takes hours to print stupid little shit.
As oppose to days manufacturing them by hand, not to mention that you have to focus on it. 3D printing? Press start and preoccupy yourself with work, reading, vidya, shitposting on 4chan, etc etc.

3D printers could be interesting for home gun builds if people only used them as part of the manufacturing process rather than including weak shitty plastic in their final design. For example, they could use lost PLA casting to make a more complex receiver design out of aluminum or a bolt out of zamak.

friendly reminder that plastic molded AR lowers are much cheaper and easier than 3D printer lowers and with a little metal reinforcement, will last for over 1000 rounds
https://www.ar15.com/forums/t_3_4/676733_Fruity-Ghost---DIY-100s-of-ARs-cheaper--faster--gentler-.html

>>35025289
But you need a lower to make a lower, so if you can't get a lower, you need a 3D printer to print one.

Checkmate.

Lot of people here that don't understand the strength of 3D printed plastic parts. It is possible to make a .22 blowback machine pistol with almost no metal parts, somebody just needs to design it.

>>35017979
Useful for some things, you can make your own 10/22 receivers and mags which is pretty sweet.

>>35017979

It's a huge fuck you to people who want to ban guns and I like it.

>>35019543
It lacks the crystalline structure that gives metal strength. Baking that into the fabrication process via forging and finish machining, or some other as of yet uninvented method, goes a bit beyond what one machine can do.

>>35025742
>It lacks the crystalline structure that gives metal strength
That hasn't prevented MIM and casting from being used effectively.

>>35025441
Just buy the molds dummy

File: you're an idiot.jpg (18KB, 320x394px)

18KB, 320x394px

>>35025762

3D printing is more of a philosophical vehicle to display the impotence of anti-gun legislation to the dumb fucking public than it is a practical way of making firearms.

Obviously you could always make firearms at home, but operating a lathe or mill is a lot more intimidating to the average person. "Printing" a gun like a photo or piece of text hits people more directly.

>>35026260
even more useful for firearms is being able to print up jigs and shit to facilitate the garage machinist types.