In the wake of Luigi Mangione’s alleged killing of a health care CEO with a partially 3D-printed pistol, we built and tested the exact same model of weapon ourselves. And it was entirely legal.
I did a p80 build and would consider it more reliable than anything made in layers, and it is still collecting non existent dust in a safe cause of its issues. But Glocks are considered the gold standard of reliability and they are plastic lowers.
Making your own firearms has always been legal in America. And it’s not exactly easy. Even 3D printed guns take a lot of work.
Strictly speaking, if you want a reliable firearm you are much better off getting one made out of steel than composite plastics.
Most 3D printed guns use commercially available parts for the pressure bearing components.
A 3D printed Glock uses a slide and barrel bought from Glock. The only 3D printed part is the frame, which is the only part that has to be serialized.
I did a p80 build and would consider it more reliable than anything made in layers, and it is still collecting non existent dust in a safe cause of its issues. But Glocks are considered the gold standard of reliability and they are plastic lowers.