Apr. 8, 2015 | By Alec
Over the last few years the quality and availability of metal 3D printing has been progressing with leaps and bounds, so it’s hardly surprising to see it reach all corners of 3D printing society. It has even, we learned as far back as November 2013, been picked up by the most controversial branch of the community: the 3D printed gun manufacturers. While that initial gun – dubbed ‘the 1911 metal pistol' by manufacturers Solid Concepts– was already capable of firing, the world’s second 3D printed metal gun was released last October. Ironically called ‘the Reason’, it has the look, feel and sturdiness of a regular pistol.
Seeing that progress, it’s hardly surprising to learn that the same technology would be used for other gun components as well. One metal part manufacturer, who has so far remained anonymous, has even used a 3D printer to produce perhaps the most complex part of a gun arsenal: the silencer. As any gun enthusiast will tell you, a silencer does much more than silence the noise. It needs to efficiently slow and cool gasses released upon firing at the same time. That usually requires an intricate cylindrical housing consisting of small stackable baffles – something that isn’t easy to produce on a large scale.
But this company has managed to make exactly that with a laser sintering 3D printer, they reveal to gun advocate website thetruthaboutguns.org. While making a gun silencer itself wasn’t their overarching goal, a complex project like this enabled them to test and explore the limits of 3D metal printing. And laser metal sintering – which essentially welds metal particles together using a laser – is obviously the only suitable 3D printing technology to do so.
The result? A 30 caliber silencer that could be called a modified K-baffle that can actually be used on the shooting range. While reportedly slightly louder than a conventional silencer, it still easily deserves the ‘hearing safety’ label when using subsonic 300 AAC Blackout ammunition. It is expected that further enhancements of the design should make it even more effective. Really the only downside of 3D printing one of these parts is that they are less durable than regular silencers and there’s a chance of bursting during repeated heavy use.
As mentioned above, this part was simply chosen for its complexity, not for its function as a gun component. Consequently, this 3D printed silencer isn’t for sale, nor can you request the manufacturing of a part for yourself. Aside from a 5.56 version, it’s a unique part and a one-off component that only serves to demonstrate the powerful combination of a simple SolidWorks design and a high-quality 3D printer. As the quality of these machines increase – and the prices decrease – metal 3D printers could be taking the high-end metal industry by storm. This silencer is thus essentially a glimpse of things to come – even outside the gun community.
Posted in 3D Printing Applications
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Actually Oceanic defence in New Zealand did the world's first, I'm running one on my AR15 since 2014, brilliant bit of kit, so light, so quiet.
Bunny Bagger wrote at 4/9/2015 12:32:12 PM:
I have printed silencers for air rifles over the last couple of years.
h winestenburger wrote at 4/9/2015 5:57:57 AM:
actually they are quite easy to make. and not all that complicated. It is akin to a muffler on a engine.
That Guy wrote at 4/9/2015 2:26:29 AM:
It's a suppressor, not a silencer. Bursting is a bad 'feature' for firearm barrel modifications. A suppressor is actually a good use of additive manufacturing since there are few, if any, moving parts. There are just baffles on the inside to slow the supersonic gases to below the speed of sound to reduce the 'crack' of the rifle. You do need to use subsonic ammunition to maximize the effect- minimize the sound. Standard rifle ammunition is still loud due to the sonic boom of the bullet.
Have Blue wrote at 4/8/2015 9:20:44 PM:
This is far from the first DMLS made suppressor - there's at least two companies that have been offering DMLS printed suppressors commercially: http://www.titandemper.no/ http://oceania-defence.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=41
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