Disclaimer<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
This article covers information and activities that are legal under U.S. federal law and in the author\u2019s state of residence. It is the reader\u2019s responsibility to know and comply with applicable laws in their jurisdiction. Neither the author, nor SurvivalBlog, have any control over readers of this article. This article is therefore for informational purposes only.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
INTRODUCTION<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhether or not you live in England, the right of Free Speech is a universally treasured right, but sadly, a right that is still denied to millions of people around the world.\u201d \u2013 Philip A. Luty, as quoted in L. Neil Smith\u2019s\u00a0The Libertarian Enterprise<\/em>, April 3, 2005<\/p>\n\n\n\n The title of this article mentions printing firearm components, not complete firearms. This is because all designs we will examine utilize some 3D-printed parts, but no firearm that the author is aware of is 100% 3D-printed. All designs use some metal parts, such as springs, pins, screws, firing pins, barrels, bolts, et cetera.<\/p> The 3D printing technology that this article will focus on is known as Fused Deposition Modeling, or FDM. It consists of using a computer-controlled \u201csquirter\u201d to lay down layers of molten plastic\u2014building up layer after layer to create a three-dimensional object\u2014starting from a three-dimensional image.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I will not be making recommendations on specific printers, as the available models change frequently as the technology evolves. Rather, I will recommend features to look for in a printer suitable for creating precise, durable parts for firearms, as well as tips for successful printing. I know that the array of printers is daunting. So I\u2019ll suggest a very good website that\u00a0does<\/em>\u00a0recommend specific printers for printing firearm parts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One: 3D Printing (of Gun Parts) is Illegal<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The \u201cmainstream\u201d media generally depicts \u201c3D-printed firearms\u201d as something that\u2014if it isn\u2019t already illegal\u2014should be against the law. This ignores the historical tradition in the United States\u2014and elsewhere\u2014of making one\u2019s own firearms. The advent of 3D printing merely made the manufacture of some parts easier. Long before I tried 3D printing, I made a receiver for a pistol caliber, blowback \u201cAK-47\u201d (technically an AKM pistol) from a stainless steel mop rack I found discarded behind an office building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In England, Phillip A. Luty famously built working 9x19mm submachine guns using no firearm parts whatsoever. They looked rather crude and had unrifled barrels, but they worked. More recently, Texas YouTuber Brandon Herrera\u2014who has a federal license to legally build machine guns\u2014successfully built and fired a Luty SMG. He reported that it was a challenge to build, and it had plenty of sharp edges, but it functioned\u2014more or less.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As of the time of this writing, U.S. federal law imposes no restriction on building a firearm that is not restricted by the National Firearms Act (NFA), the 1968 Gun Control Act, the 1986 Hughes Amendment, etc., provided the builder is not a person prohibited from possessing firearms and the firearm is for personal use, not for sale. Federal law also does not require homemade firearms to have a serial number. Don\u2019t forget that, under U.S. law, only the part designated as the firearm is what is being discussed here. In a homemade \u201cGlock,\u201d that would be the plastic frame, as it would be in many semiauto pistols. The SIG P320 and a few other pistols now have a Fire Control Unit (FCU) , which has a serial number and is considered \u201cthe firearm.\u201d The FCU can drop into different frames, which are not serialized and can be mailed to your home. In AR-15s, only the lower receiver is the firearm. A small number of states either forbid making your own firearm or require serialization of the part that is the firearm\u2014and probably some paperwork\u2014at some point during the process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The only other part generally subject to control by law in some states of the U.S. is the magazine of a semiautomatic firearm. Capacity laws vary, but anyone printing magazines should be aware of the laws in their jurisdiction. The part that statists focus on is the magazine body. Some 3D print gun enthusiasts also make their own floorplates and followers and even wind their own springs(!), but these parts are generally easy to purchase without restriction in the U.S.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The long and short is that if it\u2019s legal\u2014in your jurisdiction\u2014to make your own firearm, then it\u2019s for your own use, and you have to make the \u201cfirearm\u201d part yourself. I am not a lawyer, but I will not directly help someone printing a receiver, nor can they \u201cborrow\u201d the time on my printer to do it. Pistol grips, stocks, handguards, sights, even semiauto fire control groups, etc. are no problem, but I will not have any role in the slicing, the printing, nor the final finishing (drilling out holes, removing supports, etc.) of the \u201cfirearm\u201d part for another person. I\u2019m happy to help anyone learn 3D printing, and will help them make other parts, but there are some things a person has to do for themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Two: A Complete Gun Can Easily Be Printed<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n As previously covered, it\u2019s rare to find a gun design that does not contain a large number of metal parts. A 3D printer can produce a frame for some semiauto pistols. It can also be used to make handguards, pistol grips, stocks, braces, and a wide variety of parts, but these are then generally combined with firearm parts, such as the barrel, trigger parts, safety, etc. to create a finished firearm. Some designs\u2014most notably the FGC-9 (\u201cF@&% Gun Control-9\u201d), a 9mm carbine intended for end users in countries that severely limit access to gun parts\u2014use a large number of printed parts, but they still require metal for the high wear or pressure-bearing components.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the case of the FGC-9, the fire control group can consist of parts from an Airsoft gun, and the bolt carrier is made of steel stock from a hardware store. The springs for the FGC-9 can be wound by hand with steel spring wire, many of the metal pins and screws come from a hardware store, and the barrel is a steel tube that can be rifled and chambered for 9x19mm via\u00a0an electrochemical process that can be performed in a well-ventilated apartment bathroom<\/a>. The process uses a bucket, a water pump, a power supply and other components. FGC-9s have famously been used by rebels against the military government of Myanmar (formerly Burma).<\/p>\n\n\n\n About the only \u201cgun\u201d that comes off a 3D printer\u2014complete and ready-to-use\u2014is a \u201cblue gun.\u201d This is a fake\/prop gun used for training in basic, safe gun handling, or in martial arts classes where weapon disarming or weapon retention is taught. \u201cBlue guns\u201d are often made of a solid piece of blue plastic to keep them from being confused with real firearms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Three: \u201c3D Printed Guns\u201d Are Only Good for a Few Shots<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s possible the people peddling this myth Googled a 3D-printed gun image and saw some version of The Liberator (https:\/\/odysee.com\/@TheGatalog-PrimarilyPrintedDesigns:9\/KCAD-Liberator-Suppressors:a<\/a>), a very early example of a 3D-printed gun project. It used a plastic barrel, and wasn\u2019t made to last, but rather as a public statement against government-imposed gun control. In truth, some firearms with 3D-printed receivers have lasted for over 1,000 shots, and there are unconfirmed reports of some 3D-printed frames or receivers lasting much longer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Four: \u201c3D Printed Guns\u201d Are Undetectable Firearms<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Anyone reading this has probably already gathered that firearms with 3D-printed parts still set off metal detectors because of their springs, pins, firing pin, ammunition, etc. A typical project\u2014such as a \u201cGlock\u201d with 3D-printed frame\u2014has a significant number of large, steel parts that make it\u00a0very<\/em>\u00a0detectable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Five: There Is No \u201cRight\u201d to the Files Used in 3D Printing<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The truth is that the STL files, G-code files, and other types of files used in 3D printing are information. The God-given right to read and to share information is protected in the U.S. by the 1st Amendment to the Constitution. This also applies to images and blueprints of firearms and firearm parts. This is yet another line of attack that has been used by statists attempting to take away God-given rights. In some countries, people have been unjustly imprisoned simply for downloading a firearm blueprint or an STL file for printing a firearm part.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026tanks, battleships and bombing planes are inherently tyrannical weapons, while rifles, muskets, long-bows and hand-grenades are inherently democratic weapons. A complex weapon makes the strong stronger, while a simple weapon \u2013 so long as there is no answer to it \u2013 gives claws to the weak.\u201d \u2013 George Orwell, \u201cYou and the Atom Bomb,\u201d 19 October 1945 (H\/T to Karl Dahl)<\/p>\n\n\n\n Most hobbyist 3D printers use Fused Deposition Modeling\u2014what one person described as a \u201ccomputer-controlled hot glue gun.\u201d The whole process generally begins with finding an object or a project that you wish to print. These are usually found in large, online databases, such as\u00a0Thingiverse<\/a>, Printables (https:\/\/www.printables.com\/<\/a>), The Gatalog (https:\/\/thegatalog.com\/<\/a>), etc. These databases offer STL (STereoLithography) files for download, often with instructions for completing the project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![](\"https:\/\/www.activistpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Offgrid-Survival-Toolkit-2.jpg\"\/)
<\/a><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\nMYTHS ABOUT 3D PRINTING<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
THE BASICS OF 3D PRINTING<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
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