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People already create guns and bullets on their own with commonly available equipment.

by mef 14y ago

anamax 14y ago
Guns are low-tech. John Browning, who produced most of the "modern" gun mechanisms, died in 1926, about the time that electric motors were becoming commonplace in factories. Today there are folks making very functional guns with hand tools in very primitive conditions.
- greedo 14y ago
  Yep. Afghan gunsmiths can recreate an AK47 from raw materials.
  - itmag 14y ago
    That's interesting. I would imagine you would need precision to the hundredth of the millimeter when making guns? I hung around some people who reloaded brass once and they were using these measuring gauges with that kind of precision.
    - fotbr 14y ago
      It depends on what you want to do. Long-range or other forms of precision shooting are going to require more precision in the manufacture of the firearm and ammunition. An AK47, on the other hand, well the whole design is based around very loose tolerances for ease of manufacture and for reliability - not as affected by dirt, mud, sand, etc as other designs.
    - anamax 14y ago
      > I would imagine you would need precision to the hundredth of the millimeter when making guns? You do for some types of shooting, but in general no. And, even if you did, what makes you think that 0.01mm requires modern equipment? Moreover, tight assembled tolerances don't require tight part manufacturing accuracy. You can hand-fit parts.
    - greedo 14y ago
      Here's a an older but still accurate article: http://www.armscollectors.com/darra/darra.htm http://www.armscollectors.com/darra/darra.htm and a more recent one: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/5066860.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/5066860.stm
sageikosa 14y ago
John Malkovich's character in "In the Line of Fire" made a wooden gun capable of firing two bullets (before becoming worthless), and the Mythbusters made a duct-tape cannon good for a few shots. I believe mass-produced street guns will be more cost effective and reliable for the foreseeable future. However, the likelihood of this being used as a reason to regulate 3D printing or 3D design files shouldn't be ignored.

People already create guns and bullets on their own with commonly available equipment.

by mef 14y ago

People already create guns and bullets on their own with commonly available equipment.

Guns are low-tech. John Browning, who produced most of the "modern" gun mechanisms, died in 1926, about the time that electric motors were becoming commonplace in factories. Today there are folks making very functional guns with hand tools in very primitive conditions.

greedo 14y ago
Yep. Afghan gunsmiths can recreate an AK47 from raw materials.
- itmag 14y ago
  That's interesting. I would imagine you would need precision to the hundredth of the millimeter when making guns? I hung around some people who reloaded brass once and they were using these measuring gauges with that kind of precision.
  - fotbr 14y ago
    It depends on what you want to do. Long-range or other forms of precision shooting are going to require more precision in the manufacture of the firearm and ammunition. An AK47, on the other hand, well the whole design is based around very loose tolerances for ease of manufacture and for reliability - not as affected by dirt, mud, sand, etc as other designs.
  - anamax 14y ago
    > I would imagine you would need precision to the hundredth of the millimeter when making guns? You do for some types of shooting, but in general no. And, even if you did, what makes you think that 0.01mm requires modern equipment? Moreover, tight assembled tolerances don't require tight part manufacturing accuracy. You can hand-fit parts.
  - greedo 14y ago
    Here's a an older but still accurate article: http://www.armscollectors.com/darra/darra.htm http://www.armscollectors.com/darra/darra.htm and a more recent one: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/5066860.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/5066860.stm

sageikosa 14y ago

John Malkovich's character in "In the Line of Fire" made a wooden gun capable of firing two bullets (before becoming worthless), and the Mythbusters made a duct-tape cannon good for a few shots. I believe mass-produced street guns will be more cost effective and reliable for the foreseeable future. However, the likelihood of this being used as a reason to regulate 3D printing or 3D design files shouldn't be ignored.