[ArrogantBustard]

This is a direct technological assault on the *idea* of gun control.

And with that in mind, I think that sitting right here at this computer, I could design a completely functional firearm, chambered for a relatively low pressure rimmed pistol cartridge (.22LR, .38SPL, .45 Colt), that could easily be built using a 3D printer and some hardware store material. It would not be a replica of a current design, but based on the strengths and weaknesses of the materials in use. If I had to do so, I would stake my life on such a weapon.

And that, as you say, clearly illuminates the risible idiocy of "gun control".

[Ancesthntr]

If I had to do so, I would stake my life on such a weapon.

This is a direct technological assault on the *idea* of gun control.

As the Liberator pistol of WW2 fame demonstrated, all that one needs is a firearm that can fire reliably ONCE, and that can lead to the acquisition of additional (and far higher quality) firearms and ammunition. Once a single firearm can be printed that can function reliably even once, it is effectively game-over for the idea of gun control.

...and magazine control is utterly dead, since there are several designs out there for plastic magazines for ARs (and if you can do that, you can do it for any magazine).

[marktwain]

30 years ago I built a 4 shot muzzle-loading, electrically ignited, .45 caliber pistol out of hardware store materials that cost 12 dollars and took 12 hours to assemble. It would fire the four shots in 5 seconds, in a controlled fashion. Due to the corrosive nature of black powder/ homemade powder, I would not trust it for more than a few reloads, but that would be enough.

The highest tech used in making it was an electric drill.

The 3D printers do not change the reality. They change the perception of the reality in a way that large segments of the population can relate to.