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Comment by ARandomerDude | Hacker News Reader

> The weapons typically are made of polymer parts created with 3D printing technology and can be assembled using kits at home.

Technically true (though only some parts can be polymer, obviously) but generally it's a pain, often requiring special tools and machining experience.

This article is fairly sensational in its description of the process, honestly.

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> but generally it's a pain, often requiring special tools and machining experience

False. If you can use basic hand tools like a drill and file, it takes about half an hour. 3D printing makes it even simpler.

Edit: for downvoters, this is useful information that I'm providing to someone who apparently didn't know. I know a good bit about this topic, and I'd be happy to answer any questions you might have.

You can finish an 80% Glock kit with a pair of snips, file, and something sturdy to hammer the 3 pins in. After you have your 80% lower done, the rest of the parts are unregulated, and can be freely purchased either online or locally.

3D print a base plate for which designs are easily found online, file down a piece of thin sheet metal to the correct dimensions, and you have a fully automatic glock.

Everything up until the custom baseplate is legal to do, turning your 80% Glock in to a fully auto firearm is the only step that's against the law. (Assuming you don't have any felonies or domestic violence charges that bar you from owning a firearm in the first place)

An AR-15 80% is a little more involved, but with a jig and a router/drill you can do one in a hour and a half in your garage, the hardest part is cleaning up the absolute metric crap ton of aluminum shavings/chips the process produces.

Are gun barrels unregulated in most US states? E.g. in Slovakia a barrel is considered a main weapon part, and case of short arms the slide is considered another main weapon part. So a Glock has serial numbers on the barrel, slide and also the body. You can buy the rest without any license or manufacture it if you want, but no one will sell you a barrel or slide unless you have a purchase permit. You can't sell it to someone else, you need to transfer the ownership. And making a good and safe barrel and slide is the most complicated part, you can't just easily print this at home. So no one is printing guns in Slovakia yet (AFAIK :-)). And just for comparison - we have less strict rules than California (concealed carry is possible for regular citizen. Not limits on calibers or magazine capacity yet).

> Are gun barrels unregulated in most US states?

I’ve very familiar with US firearms law, and to my knowledge no US state regulates barrels.

> So no one is printing guns in Slovakia yet (AFAIK :-))

Check out the FGC-9. The plans include instructions for creating a rifled barrel using electrochemical machining (ECM), using 3D printed tools.

You do generally need a Dremel or hand drill, as well

You're right, I forgot about the 3 holes you need to drill. Thanks for the correction.

Two holes if you're doing the PF9SS :)

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