3D printed gun, has technology gone too far?

It’s a technology that has yet to find its limits, but has it gone too far this time? 3D printing a car is one thing, but a gun is a deadly weapon.

Guns don’t mean violence to everyone. For some, it’s a hobby — although a dangerous one — building and experimenting with firearms. But when someone takes a new technology like 3D printing and implements it into weaponry, controversy will follow close behind.

The first 3D printed gun was created by a user named HaveBlue on firearm forum AR-15.com. He didn’t print the entire gun, but only the lower receiver from an AR-15 assault rifle, which is similar to an M16. He attached it to a .22 caliber pistol and fired 200 rounds without incident.

He used a Stratasys 3D printer and a US$30 batch of plastic resin. And while he only printed one part, it was the part with the trigger, magazine housing — so most of what makes the gun a gun.

It brings up many questions, like, if this guy can print a gun, then what’s stopping any random from doing the same and side-stepping gun regulations? Technology has just gotten very dangerous.