Is it legal to 3D print your own firearms?
<p>Lets say Bob wants to 3D print his own firearms that are not considered NFA items.</p>
<ul>
<li>Is it legal for Bob to 3d print his own firearms?</li>
<li>Is it legal for Bob to gift the 3d printed firearm to his son?</li>
<li>Is it legal for Bob to sell his 3d printed firearm via a private transaction?</li>
</ul>

<p>Bob can probably print the firearm for personal ownership if Bob is not prohibited from possessing a firearm himself, but after that it gets problematic.  This is ignoring any potential safety violations and liability issues or patent violations which might arise.</p>
<p>According to an ATF spokesman quoted in <a href="https://freebeacon.com/issues/atf-explains-law-surrounding-3d-printed-guns/" rel="noreferrer">this article</a> :</p>
<blockquote>
<p>it is legal for Americans to build their own firearms without a license so long as they are not prohibited by law from possessing firearms, the firearms are legal to own, for personal use, and <strong>not for sale or transfer to others</strong>. Whether the gun parts are printed, created by other ways of manufacturing, or legally purchased from a licensed dealer has no impact on whether it is legal for an American to build a gun for personal use, though some states like California have placed additional requirements on the process.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>So transfer of ownership is possibly problematic.</p>
<p>It's notably not a way to avoid normal firearm possession restrictions :</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Knight [the ATF spokesman]  emphasized it is not legal for felons or somebody otherwise prohibited from possessing firearms to build their own guns under any circumstance.</p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
<p>&quot;Title 18 of the United States Code, section 922(g) prohibits several categories of persons (i.e., persons convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for more than a year) from possessing firearms in or affecting interstate commerce,&quot; Knight said. &quot;Title 18 of the Unites States Code, section 922(d) prohibits persons from disposing of any firearm to a person the transferor has reason to believe is prohibited from possessing firearms under federal law.&quot;</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Finally there's a rather crucial point to note about the design of such firearms :</p>
<blockquote>
<p>He said the Undetectable Firearms Act of 1988 outlaws the manufacture or possession of firearms that can pass through a walk-through metal detector or X-ray machine commonly employed at airports without being detected.</p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
<p>&quot;A person or manufacturer cannot produce an undetectable firearm as prescribed in Title 18 of the United States Code, section 922(p),&quot; he said.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>So making a weapon that's undetectable by a metal detector is not allowed (at least according to the ATF).</p>

<h2>in <a href="/questions/tagged/germany" class="post-tag" title="show questions tagged &#39;germany&#39;" aria-label="show questions tagged &#39;germany&#39;" rel="tag" aria-labelledby="tag-germany-tooltip-container">germany</a>, private manufacture is banned anyway</h2>
<p>To manufacture any firearms, you already need certification as a gunsmith in Germany. Because a gunsmith has to register any gun they make and sell, as well as having to undergo <em>Beschuss</em> (<em>proof</em>) for any firearm  to show it is safe, the <a href="https://www.deutschlandfunk.de/waffen-dreiddrucker-100.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">laws did not have to be changed at all</a>:</p>
<ul>
<li>It is illegal to make 3D-printed firearms at home because that is manufacturing firearms without a license.</li>
<li>As the quality of 3D printed weapons generally is poor, they can't manage to gain proof marks after having shown their suitability at a proofing test and not gain the proof mark.</li>
<li>A firearm without a proof mark can not legally be sold.</li>
<li>The shape and color of a firearm or its accessories may not give the weapon the appearance of a toy or any other item. If it does, it is an illegal concealed weapon. Examples of such banned items are belt-buckles, shooting canes or pen-guns, but also a &quot;hello Kitty&quot; themed hunting rifle or many pure-plastic 3D printed guns.</li>
</ul>
<p>Relatedly, the sale or gifting of firearms is regulated and requires a registration of the transfer. The receiver of the firearm needs to have a weapon ownership card.</p>
<p>The same principle applies to accessories that are not defined as an integral part of the weapon: they are treated as what they are. Custom grip panels or mounting hardware are unregulated, while silencers are regulated for hunters only while targeting lasers or firearm-mounted lights are illegal in any shape or form - no matter if those are 3D printed or otherwise made.</p>

united-states firearms