14 DAY TRIAL // Anyone who knows anything about 3D printing, or just anyone with a bit of common sense really, knows that 3D printed guns are in no way a threat and won't be for at least a few more years.
3D printing is hard, it requires patience and expertise. What's more, the end result isn't always as impressive as the general public would imagine.
Finally, plastics don't really make for great gun material, which is why there haven't actually been any full plastic guns, 3D printed or not, made in the century or so we've had the capability to make plastic.
3D printed plastic guns are as much of a danger as wooden pistols. Both materials can be worked on by the average Joe, with the tools and expertise necessary, and both can pass through a metal gun detector.
Yet, no one has actually made a wooden gun for the same reason no one is not going to make and use a plastic 3D printed gun, it's cheaper and easier to get the real thing.
But that's not going to stop the media and politicians getting all worked up about it, especially since getting people riled up is the fastest way to get their attention.
Of course, 3D printed guns are a reality and, in time, it should be possible and relatively easy to print a reliable gun in your home. But that doesn't mean most people will start building one and for the few that do we already have the laws to stop them.
Hopefully, the hype around 3D printed guns will die down eventually. But judging by the fact that ridiculous claims are still being made about the "dangers" of video games or even the internet, it may take a while. In the meantime, the best thing to do is to maintain a level head about all of this.