Free Republic

Cyberculture icon Stewart Brand’s famous notion that “information wants to be free” has been an almost ubiquitous refrain ever since utopian-minded hackers began populating computer networks in the 1980s. Today, 3D printing has given the phrase a whole new meaning, allowing raw data to become real world weapons with the click of a button. Cody R. Wilson, the antagonistic founder of Defense Distributed, is taking that idea to its logical — and hugely controversial — extreme. Having recently obtained his federal manufacturing license, Wilson hopes to release files for the world’s first fully 3D-printable firearm by the end of this...

Defense Distributed has released a video of a 3D printed AK-47 type magazine. The exact capacity of the magazine is not specified, though it appears to be about 30 rounds. In the video, I did not see more than 10 rounds fired from any particular magazine. The video was released a few hours ago on April 5, 2013. I embeded the video, and it worked fine, but on a retest a few minutes later, the video was labled as "not found". I found the same response at the Defense Distributed site. Update: The video is available again. I checked the...

It’s an oppressive spring afternoon in Austin, Texas. Low clouds threaten to unleash a gullywasher. After a couple of emails and phone calls I’m at an apartment complex off to the west of the University of Texas campus. A pair of young men pull up and pop the lid on the trunk of their car. One pulls a flat metal case from the trunk and I jokingly ask, “Is that a gun or a guitar?” The lead man could blend in with the musicians and hipsters all over Austin who recently dominated the city during SXSW, but he isn’t one...

Unknown details at this time. Defense Distributed website now displays the logos of Department of Justice and Homeland Security Investigations, and the following information: This domain name associated with the website DefenseDistributed.com or Defcad.org has been seized pursuant to an order issued by a U.S. District Court. The webpage goes on to say that several individuals and entities have been indicted and charged with federal crimes including conspiracy to violate the Arms Export Control Act, the Undetectable Firearms Act, and others. At this time, I have no other confirmation of these arrests or actions. There is some doubt about this...

On a hour long interview with Alex Jones, Cody Wilson of Defense Distributed states that they will be releasing files for a functional, completely 3D printed pistol within a month. Cody states "We have found some ways to make printable guns work." Defense Distributed has already shown that they can make workable, usable magazines and lower receivers. This will be the first completely printable firearm. Expectations are not high, but Cody Wilson believes that it will be capable of a few shots before it becomes inoperable. It will be a modern day Liberator pistol, delivered by the internet rather than...

Defense Distributed has now obtained its Federal Firearms License for manufacturing. Cody Wilsons has said in an arstechnica article, that he will wait for the add on license that allows for manufacture of fully auto firearms before selling some of the guns - or at least receivers - that Defense Distributed prints. Link to arstechnica article

At 10:00 AM Eastern Time today, Senator Dianne Feinstein's (D-CA) S. 150, to ban so-called "assault weapons," and "to ensure that the right to keep and bear arms is not unlimited," will be heard by the Senate Judiciary Committee. S. 150 has perhaps an even chance of being passed in committee, and proceeding to the Senate floor. Once there, as St. Louis Gun Rights Examiner has noted before, further progress looks exceedingly unlikely, with the caveat that a Beslan-scale massacre committed with such firearms could energize the gun ban fanatics (and intimidate our congressional "allies") beyond anything we have ever...

DEFCAD is a website for 3D printing of guns. It’s bathed in controversy, but that’s not preventing it from growing. Since launching in December, DEFCAD has become home to nearly 90 components, including bullet casings, pistol suppressors, and even grenades. More significant, however, are the traffic numbers. Visitors to DEFCAD have to date downloaded over 250,000 files from the site, creator Defense Distributed announced via Twitter today. One of the two grenade models hosted by DEFCAD. One of the two grenade models hosted by DEFCAD. DEFCAD gets an average of 3,000 visitors per hour, representing roughly 2TB of traffic since...

3D printed AR15 3rd Generation Ready for Download (600 rds, no wear) Defense distributed announced that their 3rd generation of 3D printed lowers is ready for distribution. No one knows what the expected life of this lower will be, as it has been used to fire 600 rounds in rapid succession without discernible damage. In the video, right and left handed shooters switch places while firing the test rounds in rapid semi-action mode. It is clear that the shooters are starting to suffer from hand fatigue from so much trigger action. The lower receiver design has been reinforced. The upper...

The Cuomo (30 round AR-15 magazine) is said to have operated for 342 rounds, two thirds of them full auto. This is a complete redesign over the last prototype. The video of the test and even the article by wired.com have been reported blocked by various sites. The design is not available at the site that Defense Distributed has set up for "The Island of Misfit Objects" or DEFCAD . The design is expected to be made available to the public in a few days. As reported earlier, the group is also working on a 40 round magazine for...

Major improvements have been made in 3D printed AR15 rifles. The part of the rifle that is defined as a gun by federal law is the only part printed. The rest of the parts are commonly available on the free market. People have made guns at home since guns were invented in the 1500’s or before. However, the ability to print out your own AR15 lower receiver at home, without having to use steel files, a grinder, or other home workshop tools, has caught the attention of the public in this digital age. Defense Distributed is the organization that aims...

Defense Distributed has created a website that is the "island of misfit (firearms) objects" that others have censored from the web. Chief among these are the data to print a complete, functional AR15 magazine, including the spring. The current data is limited to a five round design, but it appears that it could easily be altered to a 10, 20, or 30 round design, especially if the maker is willing to add cheap and reliable steel springs. The necessary springs can be hand made from wire, if desired. Defcad AR-15 Magazine Link Dean Weingarten The link is live at the...

The Wiki Weapon project is an initiative undertaken by Defense Distributed, a non-profit headed by University of Texas law student Cody Wilson aimed at generating a freely-distributed, open source design for a 3-D printed firearm--an idea that has come under serious fire from proponents of increased gun control in the U.S., particularly in light of last week’s tragic shooting of 26 people at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. The idea behind the project--embraced by some, absolutely detested by others--is that technology will soon make regulating firearms virtually impossible. That is a very polarizing idea. But to say the...

Over the weekend, a group of 3-D printing gunsmiths took a partially printed rifle out to test how long its plastic parts survived spewing bullets. The result? Six rounds until it snapped apart....