Cardboard And Paper Gun Shows Off Clever Construction

June 14, 2017 by Donald Papp 22 Comments

This project by [blackfish] shows off a cardboard lookalike of an MP5 that loads from a working magazine, has a functional charging handle, and flings paper projectiles with at least enough accuracy to plink some red party cups. It was made entirely from corrugated cardboard, paper, rubber bands, and toothpicks.

In the video (embedded below) you can see some clever construction techniques. For example, using a cyanoacrylate adhesive to saturate areas of wood, cardboard, or paper to give them added strength and rigidity. The video is well-edited and worth a watch to see the whole process; [blackfish] even uses a peeled piece of cardboard — exposing the corrugated part — as a set of detents (6:56) to retain the magazine.

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Folding Mass Effect Pistol!

May 16, 2017 by James Hobson 13 Comments

Video game props require a dedicated maker with a repertoire of skills to create. When those props are pulled from the Mass-Effect universe, a little more technological mastery is needed. Bringing those talents to bear, [Optimistic Geometry] has built a motorized, folding M-3 Predator Pistol!

The gun was modeled in Fusion 360 and 3D printed on an Ultimaker 2 at the MAKLab Glasgow. [Optimistic Geometry] felt constrained by the laws of our reality, so opted for the smaller firearm thinking it would be an appropriate entry-level challenge. I’m sure you can guess how that went.

There wound up being three main build phases as well as a spring-loaded version to testing purposes. Throughout, [Optimistic Geometry] struggled with getting the parts to latch fully open or closed, as well as working with the small form factor. However, overhauling the motor design — and including some limiters lest it deconstruct itself — a custom latching circuit, and — obviously — a few LEDs for effect, produced a magnificent prop.

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A Touchscreen From 1982, That Could Kill With A Single Finger Press

April 17, 2017 by Jack Laidlaw 73 Comments

Over the pond here in the UK we used to have a TV show called Tomorrow’s World, It was on once a week showing all the tech we would have been using in 10 years time (or so they said). In 1982 they ran with a story about a touch screen computer. Perhaps not what you would recognize today as a touchscreen but given the date and limited technology someone had come up with a novel idea for a touchscreen that worked sort of.

It was a normal CRT screen but around the edges where photodiodes pointing inwards as if to make an invisible infrared touch interface just half an inch in front of the screen. Quite impressive technology giving the times. As they go through the video showing us how it works a more sinister use of this new-fangled touch screen computer rears its ugly head, They turned it into a pretty cool remote-controlled gun turret complete with a motorized horizontal and vertical axis upon which an air pistol was placed along with a camera. You could see an image back from the camera on the screen, move the gun around to aim the weapon, then with a single finger press on the screen, your target has been hit.

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A Grenade Launcher Named RAMBO

April 8, 2017 by James Hobson 81 Comments

Always one to push the envelope, U.S. Army researchers from the U.S. Army Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center (ARDEC) have been successfully experimenting with 3D printing for one of their latest technologies. The result? RAMBO — Rapid Additively Manufactured Ballistic Ordinance — a 40mm grenade launcher. Fitting name, no?

Virtually the entire gun was produced using additive manufacturing while some components — ie: the barrel and receiver — were produced via direct metal laser sintering (DMLS). So, 3D printed rounds fired from a 3D printed launcher with the only conventionally manufactured components being springs and fasteners, all within a six month development time.

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DIY Barrel Rifling With 3D Printed Help

March 8, 2017 by Donald Papp 92 Comments

[Jeff Rodriguez] has been busy testing a feasible DIY method for rifling a barrel and has found some success using salt water, a power supply, wire, and 3D printed parts to create the grooves of rifling without the need for any moving parts or cutting tools. Salt water flows between the barrel’s inside surface and a 3D-printed piece that holds wires in a precise pattern. A current flows between the barrel and the wires (which do not actually touch the inside of the barrel) and material is eroded away as a result. 10-15 minutes later there are some promising looking grooves in the test piece thanks to his DIY process.

Rifled barrels have been common since at least the 19th century (although it was certainly an intensive process) and it still remains a job best left to industrial settings; anyone who needs a barrel today normally just purchases a rifled barrel blank from a manufacturer. No one makes their own unless they want to for some reason, but that’s exactly where [Jeff] is coming from. The process looks messy, but [Jeff] has had a lot of space to experiment with a variety of different methods to get different results.

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Tear Gun Transmutes Emotions Into Firepower

January 27, 2017 by James Hobson 28 Comments

Frustration is tough to deal with. When driven to the point of tears it’s sometimes a short step to lashing out irrationally. Focus in these situations helps, channeling your frustration into something useful. [Yi-Fei Chen] has done that — quite literally — by designing a gun that fires her shed tears.

The gun’s design manifested following a strenuous midterm presentation. Her insistent tutor drove her to tears as frustration clashed with the deep cultural values of her native Taiwan which prevented her from speaking up against authority.

A silicone cup resting against her cheek collects the tears which flow into a chamber of the gun to be frozen. Removing the safety slide preps the round to be fired by the pressure plate trigger on the gun’s rear. It’s simple and it works — tutors beware.

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This Tampon Gun Won’t Cramp Your Style

January 17, 2017 by Kristina Panos 56 Comments

Finally, there’s a way to get rid of those applicator-less tampons that literally no one uses while also destroying a bunch of Axe body spray. Just use the Axe as the propellant in a 3D-printed, gas-powered tampon gun.

As you’ll see in the assembly and demonstration video after the break, most of the parts in [HarambesLabs]’ modular gun design are 3D-printed. Aside from those, you just need to add a PVC tube for a barrel, a bottle that fits the threading on the body, and a pair of o-rings to make a nice, tight seal. Snap in the piezo mechanism from a lighter, fill the bottle with an Axe cloud, and screw it on to the body. If the gas/air mixture is close enough, the compacted cotton bullet should fly. The gun is single-shot, but [HarambesLabs] is working on a mod to make it fully automatic.

We love a good gun build around here, be it mostly benign or downright terrifying. This build isn’t necessarily tampon-dependent but the size, weight, and plastic covering (reducing friction) make it ideal for this particular design. Nerf darts may be another option if you can find the correct fit for the barrel.

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