3D Printed Guns will soon be available to anyone in the world who has the knowhow, materials, and a 3D printer. According to news reports, the U.S. State Department has settled with the Defense Distributed, the organization setup by Libertarian, Crypto Anarchist and 3D Printed Gun Designer Cody Wilson, that will allow the latter to be able to post 3D Printed Gun Designs at its DEFCAD website.

Cody Wilson hit the headlines in 2013 when he announced that he designed and 3D printed a gun called the “Liberator.” The U.S. government immediately acted to stop it from distributing its designs which it claims violates the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR).

The DEFCAD website was launched in preparation for the 1st of August 2018 when it will be open for business to allow downloads of 3D-Printed Gun Designs after reaching a settlement agreement with the US Department of State, which ended a multi-year federal lawsuit. Defense Distributed also proudly proclaimed that “the age of the downloadable gun formally begins.”

Gun control advocates in the U.S. and worldwide will watch in alarm as any Tom, Dick and Harry (yes, also Louise and Linda) who might be a convicted criminal or a history of domestic abuse will build a 3D Printed Gun for himself or herself. Countries which have strict gun control laws might have to worry that anyone in their country be able to print firearms in their own homes.

Designs from DEFCAD can be turned into firearms with the Ghost Gunner CNC Mill also from Defense Distributed. It is built mainly on open source work, grbl g-code motion control, and popular microcontrollers. It can manufacture mil-spec 80 percent lowers to completion and there is no registration and serialization required. It costs US$1,200 making it an affordable machine for those who want to build their firearms quickly.

Indeed, it is a new area in which every government and civil society will have to watch carefully. 3D printing technology promises from simple crafts, to rapid prototyping, to medical applications, and even to battlefield applications. Will it cause a proliferation of 3D printed guns that can just be used by just anyone around the world? Many will cross their fingers on the 1st of August.

But before one can download the designs out of curiousity, they might want to check their own countries' laws on this. It will be easier for U.S. citizens, but for other countries, they might already have some laws in place that might make it illegal to do so.

Top photo: Defense Distributed Ghost Gunner 9mm AR Platform at SHOT Show 2018 (Source: Ghost Gunner Instagram)