I was thinking the other day:

The argument against trying to ban these bumpfire stocks is that anybody with a $300 3D printer can print as many as they want for very little money and with almost zero experience. I know, because I 3D printed a bunch of the bumpfire devices from the thread in GD, and some will be given to the libs in my family .

Has anybody ever tried to 3D print a can? I'm willing to bet that regular plastic would hold up to .22lr, maybe pistol rounds as well. Even if it holds up to 10-20 rounds, that is enough to prove the point.

IF it holds, the argument could then be used that keeping suppressors on the NFA list is pointless, as anybody can simply make their own easily anyway, and criminals give zero shits about waiting for the paperwork.

I need to get my stuff together to get a Form 1 out to try it myself, but that will take a while. Is the wait on a Form 1 just as long as buying a ready-made can?

Somebody must have tried this already...

Attached File

Since the tube of a can is the registered component I'm guessing you'd have to get an aluminum tube to measure/register on the Form 1 & then 3D print the baffle stack/piece.

I've Form 1'd a couple SBRs & a SBS & they all took about 8 months (LLC). I don't see a can going any faster as those were all pre-July '16 when the rules changed which slowed things down. Last I heard the small group (~8 people) in the NFA branch are working 7 days/week trying to catch back up to their old 5-7 month turnaround on submissions.

You mean like this?

https://www.ar15.com/forums/armory/My-3D-printed-22-silencer/55-474529/

If its a matter of measurements and/or "engraving", that can easily be measured and then print the SN right on the can.

Yeah, that.

Single piece, less the brass insert for barrel adapter. He stamped the can, but it could easily be incorporated into the print.

Daniel Defense Wave is 3D Printed.

So how has this fact not been brought up as a point to the pointlessness of cans being on the NFA?

While plastics can have some limitations, the end is no where in sight.
Yes, several suppressor models are 3d printed, albeit by metal sintering.
Aside from the satisfaction of completion, I wouldn't recommend it. Cans should be able to withstand not only thousands of rounds, but regular handling and the occasional abuse. It doesn't matter where or what part you engrave, you won't be printing new cores or baffles, legally. Now, if you were to get an 07/02, for R&D purposes, print to your heart's content

Cool fact
The SpaceX's rocket engine chamber is 3d printed from Inconel.

For me, it's part of a political point that keeping them on as an nfa item makes no sense. There is no actual boundary that prevents a criminal from hitting print.

Since it's been done and patented, I will use that information to present to my legislators to bring back the hpa.

In before "BAN 3D PRINTERS, FOR THE CHILDREN!!!"
I'm not sure what good could come of bringing to light, for the uninformed, the fact that suppressors are easy to make.

Extreme example of how it would probably not go over:
"Hey, meth is easy to make, why do we bother enforcing it?  Let's just take it off the list of controlled substances"

The SHARE act is still on the shelf, give it a little time so they can finish sweeping all the inconvenient truths under the rug from the last rash of crazy democrat shootings and it will be back.

Why I think we should end the "war on drugs". Costs us (taxpayers) a LOT of money, literally created the drug cartels, hasn't stopped drugs in 30 years of enforcement anyway.
But I'm Libertarian like that.

I'm glad you have faith for the HPA to come back, but I trust Repubs only slightly more than Dems. Repubs as a whole are weak on gun rights. Most of the RINOs are as anti-rights as any other Dem.

Duncan is my Rep, he filed the HPA and the SHARE act.

He recently made an NRA-like statement on bump stocks but other than that he's been on board.
If losing bump stocks lets the SHARE act get passed in full, then so be it, it's not the hill to die on.
No, it's not ideal, shall not be infringed and all that...
"The art of the deal" is the best we can really hope for, unfortunately, as long as democrats keep shooting up concerts and churches...

Ideally, GCA and NFA go away entirely, but we all know that will never happen, even with repub majority in both houses.

No, NFA won't go away.

Suppressors are very low hanging fruit though.

Would LOVE to get the MG registry opened back up (even though MN requires a MG to be C&R to be legally owned), but unfortunately, that isn't likely anytime soon.

ETA: I'd be happy to send you a bumpfire device that was 3D printed to give your Rep to show the futility of trying to ban them.

A hack saw will make any shotgun a SBS in about 30 seconds, that doesn't make it any more likely that they will be removed from the NFA.

We agree on principle, but I don't think the old codgers in Washington with their own security details care for your logic...

While I haven't printed them yet (you know Laws and all that), I have drawn up a few to print if they ever get removed from title2 status.

I don't care if the plastic doesn't hold up to 10,000 rounds when I can print off another anytime I want.

But I'm also not wasting $200 to print one out either.

I have.

It works fairly well... For a plastic cored 22lr suppressor.

Pictures can be found in the fosscad project.

I met someone once while I was stationed in NC who had printed himself a .22lr suppressor fairly thick with a lot of infill.  Had (past tense) worked extremely well.  After informing him he was looking at a felony, he threw it into a bonfire that evening.  Don't remember the guy's name but I think I put the fear of God into him that day.