Don't Freak Out, but the First 3D-Printed Metal Gun Totally Works
It fired 50 rounds and showed no signs of stopping.
Until ... it's not. A company called Solid Concepts, which specializes in direct metal laser sintering, or DMLS, has created a gun, it claims, that is composed entirely of 3D-printed metal. The gun is not only fully metal-made; it is also capable of firing multiple rounds. (Liberator-style guns made of extruded plastic, on the other hand, are at this point able to fire one shot—ever.) The gun Solid Concepts is testing—and, indeed, using as a proof-of-concept—can fire 50 rounds. And be ready for more.

But again: Don't freak out just yet. This doesn't mean that gun enthusiasts and/or renegades will be able to print their own guns anytime soon. "There are barriers to entry that will keep the public away from this technology for years," Scott McGowan, Solid Concepts' VP of marketing, told The Verge. To make your own metal gun, you need expensive equipment. You need people who can operate that equipment. Few outfits beyond Sound Concepts, at this point, have those capabilities.