Ars Technica spent some time with Defense Distributed’s Cody Wilson examining the latest version of DefDist’s 3D printed gun. Actually the gun is not 3D printed; one key part, the lower receiver, is 3D printed. The rest of the weapon is made of conventional (and less complex) metal and plastic parts.
Previous attempts at making a 3D printed lower receiver have been successful, but limited as the 3D print would eventually fail. Initial firings had failures after only a few shots, but those experiments proved the concept.
Now Ars Technica’s review reveals that the most recent version of the lower receiver was able to withstand more than 660 firings during a single test. Evidently the testing concluded when they ran out of rounds! There’s a video of the experiment, but, as you might imagine, it is a little monotonous after 600 rounds. They say:
The actual count was 660+ on day 1 with the SLA lower. The test ended when we ran out of ammunition, but this lower could easily withstand 1,000 rounds.
We take this to mean that the design has reached the stage where it is a truly functional part. Is DefDist’s mission accomplished?
Via Ars Technica
