News Police link 3D printers to ghost guns using 'fingerprints' from printers — toolmarks left behind during printing can make ghostguns traceable

[Admin]

Kirk Garrison has identified toolmarks left behind on 3D-printed ghost gun pieces that can suggest what printer was used to print them.

Police link 3D printers to ghost guns using 'fingerprints' from printers — toolmarks left behind during printing can make ghostguns traceable : Read more

 

[ex_bubblehead]

Seems to me that running a heat gun or similar on the surface to flow it just a touch would alter things enough to make it completely untraceable. Either that or a quick pass with a piece of emery cloth to remove any surface marks. Or, for bulk manufacture, a quick pass through a bead blaster.

 

[Anon Hamster]

It sounds like some very smart person just found their Golden goose in funding for the next decade. Anyone who has done 3D printing knows that this is nearly impossible with how many hundreds of thousands of different printers are on the market, the frequency that users swap out nozzles hot ends etc, and also the complete lack of a 24/7 updated database on everything that's going on with your specific printer at any time. Oh and not to mention the fact that people do home build printers just from parts online that can be acquired from anywhere. Someone he's using government fear mongering to fleece all the officials and departments that has zero understanding of how this technology works.

 

[USAFRet]

This might also require that the profile for your printer already be on file somewhere. for comparison.

I have 1/2 dozen build plates, several different nozzles of various sizes, a basically infinite series of temperature and layer settings....
Good luck.

 

[Telchars Apprentice]

There is no way this science will be remotely viable and would get torn to shreds in court. A gun leaves a finger print on a bullet because of the barell. Change the barell and the finger print is gone.

In 3d Printing changing the nozzle, print speed, bed temp, nozzle temp, top surface layers or pattern and the finger print will not match.

Also, if you anneal the part you lose the finger print.

 

[Dave 58]

This might also require that the profile for your printer already be on file somewhere. for comparison.

I have 1/2 dozen build plates, several different nozzles of various sizes, a basically infinite series of temperature and layer settings....
Good luck.

That would be a waste of taxpayer dollars. The costs far outweigh any potential benefits.

 

[ackza]

Power sander goes brrrr

 

[hazmat456]

Not even remotely possible. Not to mention the request to Thingiverse to remove CAD files by a government agency is a blatant violation of the First Amendment. Even casually mention it during a conversation. It is ground for lawsuit.

 

[snemarch]

If you're interested in 3D printing but aren't sure where to start, we always suggest newcomers check out our list of the best 3D printers to get an idea of what's out there. Who knows, it could bring you one step closer to a career in forensics.

Yeah, forensics. A career in... forensics... was definitely what came to mind as I read the first part of this paragraph 😉

 

[frankens]

This is the same method of barrel marks on a bullet.. except.. 3d printer heads aren't cleaned regularly, plug, get contaminates, wear. As such, less accurate.

 

[FHM Studios]

Doesn't really matter either way to be honest. Ghost guns where readily available before 3d printing was even a thing. Heck zip guns were the thing in the 90s. As others have mentioned, there's numerous ways that make this "tracing" pointless, as well as numerous work arounds. Even if they did remove them from thingsverse, EVERYONE that is involved in ghost guns typically don't get them from there anyways, that's more so a place for beginners to easily find files. It's not difficult at all to design your own. But of course mine aren't just printed plastic, but reinforced carbon polymer, if you know you know 😏