The lower / reciever / frame is the part of a semi auto handgun that has the serial number, as this is the part that is legally considered ‘the firearm’.
If you 3d print the lower, you can just buy every other part, often without a background check, in many instances without any ID at all, and assemble the gun around your 3d printed lower.
What makes something a ghost gun is that it does not have a serial number that can be tied back to a purchaser, who would have had to be ID’d / NICS checked or w/e.
What makes it a ghost gun is not that it is entirely made of plastic that wouldn’t show up on a xray or something, its that it is untraceable to a point of origin if you have the gun and nothing else to go on.
The other way people do this is by destroying the etched in serial number.
…
I haven’t actually heard it confirmed that Luigi only had 3d printed the lower, though for a normal person, that would probably be the easiest way to assemble a ghost gun.
But, he’s an engineering graduate.
Its possible he did ‘3d print’ many other components by using metal machining tools.
A homemade gun can be, but is not necessarily a ghost gun.
You can purchase a serial stamped, legal, traceable lower reciever/frame, and then purchase all the rest of the components of a gun, and assemble the whole gun yourself.
This is fairly common amongst experienced gun enthusiasts who prefer specific brands or designs for various parts, and like to do their own custom builds.
The result is a totally legal, non ghost, homemade gun.
…
Long Explanation of all the metal FGC9 parts an average person cannot make at home, period, or metal parts you can make at home but would need to have a CNC machine and significant machine shop experience.
The FGC 9 that you linked an article about… yes, it does feature more 3d printed parts which are typically made of metal… but it still requires you to buy many various metal parts.
So even with this thing, here’s all the parts that are not 3d printed plastic, that you would be very difficult even for an engineering graduate to create on their own unless they had access to their own industial machining tool manufactory:
Fire Control / Trigger Mechanism;
Springs
Disconnector
Pin
… Phew. Ok, so, sure these parts are not that difficult to purchase, why bother listing them all?
Because you said you don’t need to be an engineering graduate to make the metal parts of a gun.
That’s not true for all the above parts.
You’d need to have an entire manufactory to make these things out of the material required, at the quality required.
…
The following parts actually could be CNC’d by someone with moderate experience with a CNC machine, and a CNC machine at home, but they’re not made of 3d printed plastic:
Bolt
Barrel
(Non Threaded, thus significantly innacurate at range)
Now, if you are even more experienced with machining, you may be able to produce a threaded barrel…
… But at that point we are talking about an experienced machinist with pretty uncommon equipment, which itself can be traced.
Either way, you can’t make the bolt or barrel out of plastic for the FGC 9, and while yes, a novice machinist could learn how to machine one at home, the vast majority of people who build FGC 9s purchase the bolt and barrel from someone who runs a small, often psuedo legal business of making them.
The lower / reciever / frame is the part of a semi auto handgun that has the serial number, as this is the part that is legally considered ‘the firearm’.
If you 3d print the lower, you can just buy every other part, often without a background check, in many instances without any ID at all, and assemble the gun around your 3d printed lower.
What makes something a ghost gun is that it does not have a serial number that can be tied back to a purchaser, who would have had to be ID’d / NICS checked or w/e.
What makes it a ghost gun is not that it is entirely made of plastic that wouldn’t show up on a xray or something, its that it is untraceable to a point of origin if you have the gun and nothing else to go on.
The other way people do this is by destroying the etched in serial number.
…
I haven’t actually heard it confirmed that Luigi only had 3d printed the lower, though for a normal person, that would probably be the easiest way to assemble a ghost gun.
But, he’s an engineering graduate.
Its possible he did ‘3d print’ many other components by using metal machining tools.
as i’ve said elsewhere, i meant purely homemade, not ghost.
and you don’t even need to be an engineering graduate to homemake the metal parts of a gun
Well, you said ghost gun.
A homemade gun can be, but is not necessarily a ghost gun.
You can purchase a serial stamped, legal, traceable lower reciever/frame, and then purchase all the rest of the components of a gun, and assemble the whole gun yourself.
This is fairly common amongst experienced gun enthusiasts who prefer specific brands or designs for various parts, and like to do their own custom builds.
The result is a totally legal, non ghost, homemade gun.
…
Long Explanation of all the metal FGC9 parts an average person cannot make at home, period, or metal parts you can make at home but would need to have a CNC machine and significant machine shop experience.
The FGC 9 that you linked an article about… yes, it does feature more 3d printed parts which are typically made of metal… but it still requires you to buy many various metal parts.
https://www.hickoryhillarms.com/post/building-the-fgc-9
So even with this thing, here’s all the parts that are not 3d printed plastic, that you would be very difficult even for an engineering graduate to create on their own unless they had access to their own industial machining tool manufactory:
… Phew. Ok, so, sure these parts are not that difficult to purchase, why bother listing them all?
Because you said you don’t need to be an engineering graduate to make the metal parts of a gun.
That’s not true for all the above parts.
You’d need to have an entire manufactory to make these things out of the material required, at the quality required.
…
The following parts actually could be CNC’d by someone with moderate experience with a CNC machine, and a CNC machine at home, but they’re not made of 3d printed plastic:
Now, if you are even more experienced with machining, you may be able to produce a threaded barrel…
… But at that point we are talking about an experienced machinist with pretty uncommon equipment, which itself can be traced.
Either way, you can’t make the bolt or barrel out of plastic for the FGC 9, and while yes, a novice machinist could learn how to machine one at home, the vast majority of people who build FGC 9s purchase the bolt and barrel from someone who runs a small, often psuedo legal business of making them.