Issue #26: Fully DIY .380 Pistol, Quokka-15, 4-Axis Desktop Wire EDM, Gun Maker's Match
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In today’s issue:
New Releases:
In this section, we cover new file releases that we find notable. If something catches your interest, go download and start printing!
Quokka-15 Releases - Simplified DIY Bufferless AR Upper
A quokka is a small, adorable marsupial, about the size of a housecat, that lives almost exclusively on a single island off the coast of western Australia. It’s also the name for Wade Robinson’s new release, the Quokka-15!
Like its predecessor, the Marsupial, the Quokka-15 is a DIY bufferless AR system, using a modified AR bolt carrier inside a printed upper. Notably, while the Marsupial required a custom lower, the Quokka-15 will fit on any milspec lower, dramatically expanding its versatility!
The design uses several laser-cut metal parts for the trunnion, bolt and charging handle. DXFs are included so you can get these made yourself, or you can order a parts kit from CipherParts!
It’s extraordinary to reflect on how a DIY AR upper, once considered a dream, is now an accepted reality. This hobby never ceases to amaze.
Maxxed and Sigpilled - 2011 Sigger Edition Releases!
After weeks and weeks of teasing, the printed 2011 from Nightalliance is here! USPSA shooters everywhere, rejoice!
This is actually the first of several planned releases for this project, with each one supporting a different magazine. This is the Sigger edition, because it supports the P320 mag - Para Ordnance and Dawson 2011 mags will also be supported. For those two, the frame will support both 9mm and 45ACP versions, but poor Siggers only get the 9mm option.
Other required parts for the build are a 1911 lower parts kit, a complete 1911 slide, a 2011 trigger and some OK Boomer rails.
Go build one so you can be the coolest kid in the upcoming world war!
Fluted Chamber ECM for 9mm!
Delayed blowback is becoming more and more common in the DIY space - perhaps in light of this, developer Ju5t3nc4s3 has released a new 9mm ECM mandrel that flutes the chamber in addition to cutting the rifling!
This would seem to require chambering the barrel prior to doing the rifling, which is different from standard ECM practice. In any case, it’s an interesting take and I hope to see someone try it out!
Updates:
In this section we will mention updates to major releases - fixes, new variants, etc.
DIY Kriss Vector Ejecting! Beta Coming Soon!
The DIY Kriss Vector is solidly at the top of my list of designs I am excited for, and it progresses ever closer to beta! Developer EfficientRabbit7377 is back with a new update showing the design fully cycling, reporting 10 rounds in a row without a stovepipe.
It sounds like he wants to do one more revision before opening up a beta for it. I’m eagerly standing by!
New Betas:
In this section we round up recently opened betas. Help support development by joining these betas and testing!
ORCBOLG - DIY .380ACP Pistol Enters Beta
I could not be more excited to announce that the ORCBOLG DIY pistol has entered open beta!
This is a fully DIY pistol, much like the SY22 (which it is based on), but with a notable difference: instead of rimfire, this is chambered in a centerfire .380ACP cartridge. This makes the ORCBOLG the very first fully DIY pistol chambered in centerfire, a serious leap forward.
It uses an ECM barrel and a piece of square steel tubing to reinforce the slide. Detailed instructions and several printable jigs and templates are included to assist with building.
I see this design as a leap forward in the same vein as the FGC-9, and its release will be just as significant. Help drive it towards release - join the beta! I’ve already started printing mine!
No Supports, No Hardware - Kabuto K15 Lower Open for Beta
Kabuto Filearms brought a fresh and innovative take to the FRT space with his Reset Assist Device. He now does the same with his newly released K15 Lower Receiver, a new AR lower design that looks quite interesting.
The design is fully printed, and I do mean fully printed - many of the commercial parts, such as the magazine catch, safety selector and safety detent are printed, not just for convenience but for necessity to match this design’s geometry.
More interestingly, the high-stress areas (buffer tower, front pivot) are also fully printed, requiring no external metal reinforcement like U-bolt or hose clamp. The plates meant to reinforce these areas are printable, and while the documentation does note that these can be made from metal, their design seems to clearly indicate that printing was not just contemplated but intended.
Several interesting design elements abound, including a slide-on grip and a trigger cassette. Also, the entire thing can be printed without supports!
The design is fascinating and I look forward to seeing people print it. Let’s see how it performs!
Double Stack Your Mac - Middleton Open Beta
The world eagerly awaits the release of the Mac ‘n Cheese v3, which I am assured is coming very soon! One of the most exciting elements of this platform will be its support for a variety of magazines, including double-feed mags. This will require an upper that differs in a few ways from the standard Mac-11 upper design, and to this end Middleton Made will be releasing a commercial upper.
That said, Middleton has also released printable jigs to help you modify your existing Mac-11 upper, if you so choose. Those who just can’t wait can print them today and get their upper ready!
Middleton wryly notes that by releasing this he’s theoretically undercutting his own profits - but in true FOSS fashion, he’s making the information available regardless. Gentlemen, support this man! He’s one of the best people in guncad.
Yeet Sheet Beta - New Mac FRT Trip from NightAlliance
Speaking of Macs! The prodigious NightAlliance has released his YeetSheet Mac trip as a beta. This trip is a thin shim, inserted between a Mac upper and lower, which interacts with an installed Super Safety to allow FRT functionality. By all appearances, this design is stouter and easier to make than previous trip designs.
You start by getting the laser cut sheet from the usual places, and then bending the two tabs to 90 degrees. You’ll need to cut your Mac upper as well - some instruction and images are provided in the release package, but not enough, and it’s likely you’ll need to check out the Matrix room for guidance.
Documentation confirms that this trip can be used on both DB Alloy SS lowers and the PWC Full Retard 9mm edition, and it will also be compatible with the Mac ‘n Cheese v3!
Coming Soon:
This section lists announcements or previews for projects that have not yet hit open beta. Keep an eye out for further news about these projects!
Betta Wire 4 Axis Desktop Wire EDM Nears Release
3D2A often focuses heavily on 3D printing, and understandably so, but it is not limited to this technology! Any tech that brings industrial manufacturing capability into the home in a way that is affordable and accessible belongs in 3D2A. This includes ECM, casting, and others - and thanks to Rack Robotics, this will soon include wire EDM!
For those unfamiliar, wire electrical discharge machining (EDM) involves cutting parts out of a block of metal using a thin wire. The wire and part are submerged in a fluid and electrified, and the wire is slowly drawn through the metal, cutting as it goes - see the video above. Using this technique, arbitrary shapes can be cut in the metal stock.
The Betta Wire is a four-axis machine that can be assembled, submerged in a tank, and programmed to perform wire EDM cuts at home. It is four axis because it can not only move the wire in the X and Y dimensions, but it can also skew / angle the wire to create angled or tapered cuts.
This allows not only SCS at home, but possibly even more than what SCS can easily provide. This is a very exciting contribution!
If you’d like to add this to your workbench, preorders are live on the Rack Robotics website. This kit contains all the metal parts required - you’ll have to print the printed parts, assemble, and dunk the whole thing in a fishtank for use.
This is extremely cutting edge stuff, and I’ll admit that it’s not for everyone. But those whom it is for will find great value in it, and will drive the technology forward. We may be on the cusp of something great here, gentlement.
Project Gargoyle - New Production Metal VZ-61 Lowers
Developer Penteona continues to stay busy with his VZ-61 work! Not satisfied with only doing a printed VZ lower, he has struck a deal with a manufacturer to make the first new-production metal VZ lowers we’ve seen since, well, ever!
Dubbed Project Gargoyle, these lowers will be compatible with standard VZ parts kits, but will use an AR-15 FCG just like the printed ones. He’s expecting them to cost a few hundred once they hit the market.
One of the most exciting things for me is when a developer is able to successfully bring a product to market. Major congratulations to Penteona, I look forward to seeing this project hit shelves!
If It Bleeds, We Can Kill It - Predator Laser Project Incoming
What the hell are you? That’s what the fudds at the range will be asking when they see this laser mounted on your gun. It uses the guts of three laser pointers to create a Predator-style laser pattern, which is way cooler than it has any right to be. It fits on standard G19 frames, but of course could be adapted to many other designs.
Developer thewayoftoday expects to have a final build ready soon, so keep a close eye out! Hopefully you see it before it sees you…
BB15 Bullpup Bufferless AR Lower Coming Soon
It’s beautiful. I’ve been staring at this picture for hours. This incredibly clean print is the BB15, shared by sistrum666 aka guttercheese!
I’m less familiar with this but from the pic and commentary around it, it’s a bullpup AR lower meant for bufferless uppers - primarily the BRN-180, but also the Foxtrot Mike FM15 and any AR upper compatible with a handful of bufferless bolts.
We are assured that this will release soon, so keep an eye out!
News:
In this section we’ll review major news events either originating in the 3D2A space, or particularly pertinent to this space.
Gun Maker’s Match 6 Wrapped!
Easily the most important news in the last two weeks - or perhaps the entire year? - is the Gun Maker’s Match! Shot on May 16th / 17th, this was the sixth iteration of the match and it is still going strong.
The match was shot across six stages, with divisions for printed / kit pistol, PCC and rifle. Overall match winner was Pembleton - congratulations!
Another major winner of the match was the Decker 9, which took the People’s Choice award, indicating hopefully a release in the near future!
You may see a familiar sponsor in the photos below :)
If you didn’t attend, you missed out! The next Maker’s Match is already being planned for 2027 - join the email list to stay up to date on it, or watch this newsletter for announcements!
Hoffman Super Safety Lawsuit Update
We haven’t written about the Rare Breed v. Hoffman suit for a while, but that doesn’t mean it has stopped. Hoffman recently shared a video sharing his experiences in and theory of the case. Go watch it!
One of the most interesting updates is the fact that the case was moved out of Tennessee to the Eastern District of Texas, where it was merged with several other of Rare Breed’s lawsuits. As Hoffman notes, this may actually be a good thing as it gets the case away from the obviously biased Tennessee judge.
We’ve seen little action in the new Texas docket to tell us where things might be going. Merging it into a multi-district suit will slow things down considerably, but we’ll keep an eye on it nonetheless.
Rare Breed Sues Pembie
Speaking of Rare Breed: in a move that is somehow shocking and unsurprising, this company continues to terrorize the gun community by filing yet another lawsuit, this time against Pembleton and Sons.
The charges are patent infringement due to Super Safety sales, which is bad enough. Even worse is the charge that, by calling one or more of his products an “FRT”, Pembleton is infringing on Rare Breed’s trademarks.
To be clear, they are claiming ownership of the very term “FRT.”
By my count, Rare Breed has in the last two years filed patent suits against no less than 27 different companies. It is clear that they are attempting, through patent trolling lawfare, to gain a monopoly in the FRT space. Not just a monopoly in sales, but a monopoly on ideas - they claim ownership of the very idea of an FRT.
Pembleton has opened a GoFundMe to raise money for his defense, which I gladly share.
Other Links:
This section will collect any other links I find interesting. These may be older designs I want to share, releases I find notable but don’t have much commentary on, or anything else that catches my eye.
Snap caps are one of the hundreds of small but fantastic use cases for 3D printing that don’t involve making a full gun. Developer Vazer1079 has released a megapack of snap cap designs - go grab some!
About the Guncad Digest:
Thank you for reading this issue of the Guncad Digest! Please send us your feedback and suggestions for improvements on the issue.
The Guncad Digest is sourced using the very excellent Guncad Index, from /r/3D2A, and from readers like you. If you know of a project you think should be featured, send it our way!
This issue was compiled and authored by Alyosha from 3D Print Freedom / 3D2A. We sell high quality parts kits for some of the best DIY guns available - if you’re looking for your next gun build, come check us out!