Finally: The flying car arrives
posted at 5:57 pm on April 3, 2012 by Jazz Shaw
We’ve screamed for them for years. We’ve joked about it. We’ve featured them in auto insurance commercials. IBM was using the idea in their advertisements well over a decade ago. But now the flying cars are here.
Flying cars aren’t just science fiction anymore.
Woburn, Mass.-based Terrafugia Inc. said Monday that its prototype flying car has completed its first flight, bringing the company closer to its goal of selling the flying car within the next year. The vehicle — dubbed the Transition — has two seats, four wheels and wings that fold up so it can be driven like a car. Last month, it flew at 1,400 feet for eight minutes.
Here’s what it looks like in non-flying mode. It’s not the size of your Hummer and you won’t be taking the whole family out to Golden Corral, but it’s still pretty cool.
The one big problem with the era of flying cars is that the fishbowl theory won’t work any more. One of the early assumptions in air travel was that the sky was so gosh darn big and there were so few planes, that the odds of running into each other were pretty low. That changed over time, but we also developed much better radar and air traffic control systems. Those are in place to track big planes at high altitudes, though. The tree-top skimmers still frequently rely on far more casual controls and the honor system. What happens if there are thousands of these taking wing over suburban communities?
Ah, never mind. We’re finally going to have flying cars. And at long last, we can answer this guy’s question.
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Yes they will. Whatever is at hand. Same goes for assault weapons. Many items fit that definition that can be lethal.
Kid Sheleen: Guns, bottles, fists, knives, clubs – all the same to me.
hawkeye54 on May 4, 2013 at 12:06 PM
The first thing we do is stop the NYT from sneaking the plans out to their friends in Iran and Russia until….
Don L on May 4, 2013 at 12:12 PM
They already did that. http://defdist.tumblr.com/post/44209819568/printed-ar-lower-v5-review
ChrisL on May 4, 2013 at 12:15 PM
What I want to know is can we print this one?
http://directorblue.blogspot.com/2013/05/daddy-like-israels-iwi-tavor-battle.html
Video available also:-)
bluefox on May 4, 2013 at 12:16 PM
Also, a few folks have opined the any gun that could be manufactured by a printer would be “untraceable”. Even paper printers have been traceable for years. Everything leaves a footprint, intended or not.
whatcat on May 4, 2013 at 12:18 PM
The real value of 3d printing in gun manufacturing would be making the masters. Or, if it could print in the mold medium for cast pieces, you’d really have something. My Beretta and Taurus both have composite pieces, but the barrel and many other working have to be made out of metal if you want any longevity out of the piece.
hawkdriver on May 4, 2013 at 12:20 PM
Their AR lower receiver is freakin awesome and on sale
Their magazines are on sale too. All proceeds go directly to their cause.
jawkneemusic on May 4, 2013 at 12:21 PM
There’s video of him firing an AR15 built using a printed receiver. The receiver broke after 6 shots, IIRC. Nobody’s dumb enough to fire something like this (or any gun) for the first time. You put it in a clamp and pull the trigger with a string. I’m sure video will be forthcoming, if it fires. If not, he’ll continue the prototyping process.
Dubya Bee on May 4, 2013 at 12:22 PM
I just went to a 3D printer face off… Two machine types with different printing techs and plastic printing materials. While I don’t assume to know what tricks the gun printer used to get the gun to work and survive the shot… it may be a simple matter to add some metal or ceramic chamber liners, and a real firing pin… while the printing is in progress.
The criminals will absolutely be using this tech one day. For about $20,000 a decent base machine can be had… so once they ban guns, and confiscate all the legally own guns, and then slowly by attrition the illegal guns disappear… this will be the gun source of choice for the BAD GUYS. Or maybe they’ll just do bombs…
RalphyBoy on May 4, 2013 at 12:29 PM
Thrived already perfected their design. 600+ rounds with no failures.
http://youtu.be/tAW72Y_XPF4
jawkneemusic on May 4, 2013 at 12:35 PM
The receiver of a Sten, is literally a tube with some holes cut into it, it can be made with a drill, dremel, and a glue-on pattern if necessary. The rest of the parts were still widely available a few years ago, I dunno about now.
If you’ve got a machine shop handy and know what you’re doing, you could build the rest, minus maybe rifling the barrel. If you’ve got that kind of capability, well, then you’ve got gunsmithing tools.
PXCharon on May 4, 2013 at 12:41 PM
It depends on the ammunition. Going back to the examples I cited, the “Paltik” 12-gauge weapons mostly had barrels consisting of a length of Jeep (TM) steering-wheel shaft tubing; it’s a nominal .68″ ID, and has ample wall thickness to handle the relatively low pressures of shotgun rounds.
Pistol rounds other than Magnum types can be safely used in heavy-wall seamless tubing of the correct size.
And as for 3D printing, modern plastic composite formulas can be used that have much higher tensile strength vs pressure (kg/cmE2) than the majority of even ordnance-type alloys. You often find them used in the aerospace industry today for just that reason; lighter and stronger than metals.
Technology always has the last laugh.
cheers
eon
eon on May 4, 2013 at 12:46 PM
Can this be done with pizza? Beer?
Blaise on May 4, 2013 at 12:48 PM
jawkneemusic on May 4, 2013 at 12:21 PM
Well, at that price, they aren’t going to sell very many.
You can buy a polymer lower from New Frontier Armory for $60 and there’s have been stress tested and used for rifle builds for a couple of years now A few other places are comparable in price.
Forged, stripped lower are also available for less if you know where to look. AR15.com is a good place to strt looking if you’re in the market.
For $150, it’s too high without any real-world testing and use available. The novelty of is also doesn’t warrant the price. If they can bring the price down and it gets some real world ‘shakedown’ they could be a market player.
catmman on May 4, 2013 at 12:55 PM
Kevin K. on May 4, 2013 at 10:31 AM
In current polymer lowers for AR/, the two biggest areas of failure are the area at the front of the receiver where the pivot pin is and where the recoil tube attaches to the rear of the receiver.
Sme companies have addressed the issue by strengthening their formula. But for normal use, their strength is comparable to a forged receiver.
Youwouldn’t be able to buttstroke someone, but for normal shooting they should be fine. Or if you’re apwanting to build a .22lr platform for your kids or something.
catmman on May 4, 2013 at 1:02 PM
Crap technology. Do not invest.
John the Libertarian on May 4, 2013 at 1:04 PM
I’ve got an 80% AR lower. No serial number or background check. Sent to me in the mail no questions asked. Haven’t had a chance to get it machined yet though.
WhatSlushfund on May 4, 2013 at 1:20 PM
Gotcha, wasn’t aware polymer lowers were that cheap. From my understanding their goal isn’t really to make a profit since they’re giving away the design on their defcad.org site. They’re just trying to raise what they can to dump back into the project. It’s sparked my curiosity enough though that I may order one in the future. You know, for the cause. ;)
jawkneemusic on May 4, 2013 at 1:24 PM
Yeah. I’ve got a bunch of P-12/P-13 paperweights that I am slowly working on. Fun stuff, though more than a bit frustrating at times. The AR paperweights are much easier to finish.
That said, some guy showed how to make an AK lower out of a shovel that he claims shoots very well.
ThePrimordialOrderedPair on May 4, 2013 at 1:26 PM
Ban all the magazines they want, 3D printing will allow the generation of magazines of all makes and sizes.
Expect the government to attempt to restrict access to 3D printing under gun and copyright laws.
zdpl0a on May 4, 2013 at 1:30 PM
It’s not a loophole. A piece of metal is just a piece of metal and you are certainly allowed to build your own gun for your own use. Also, you can sell it, eventually, but you just cannot build it with the intent to sell since that would make you a manufacturer and you would then need to apply for all sorts of licenses and permits and such.
ThePrimordialOrderedPair on May 4, 2013 at 1:32 PM
If they’re going to start confiscating your guns because you got a prescription for valium at some point in your life, then making your own or buying them illegally will be the only way to go in the future.
The Rogue Tomato on May 4, 2013 at 1:36 PM
Send this to all you know.
Schadenfreude on May 4, 2013 at 1:37 PM
We print our own, of course. And the media starts printing stories about “An Arms Race in America.”
There Goes the Neighborhood on May 4, 2013 at 1:42 PM
But can it make a baseball bat. Joe …err….I mean Brayam’s gots to know.
CW on May 4, 2013 at 2:05 PM
And, it will take just one nut to take one past metal detectors somewhere and do something stupid. Welcome to an all new mess.
Hope you enjoy having your 3D printers taxed and regulated to infinity. If, you can even get one into your state.
Moesart on May 4, 2013 at 2:10 PM
Not quite printable but years ago I watched a TV show(Bonanza I think) where the stars were being held captive in a barn. They found some bullets in the barn and built slap guns out of a board and a nail. I have remembered that show all these years and have always known that if needed I could build a shooter if needed.
lakeman on May 4, 2013 at 3:13 PM
Why not? Edible ink for food decoration art has been around for years. 3D just take that concept a step further.
hawkeye54 on May 4, 2013 at 3:28 PM
…But you’ve got to run a background check on yourself before you can print one. LOL!
FloatingRock on May 4, 2013 at 3:44 PM
Actually, there are plans on the ‘net for building your own. So, good luck with that.
GWB on May 4, 2013 at 4:07 PM
The preverbal Genie is out of his bottle, and is he pissed! I remember news coverage of the war in Kosovo, they showed a man making mortars in his small 3rd world shed. All he had a computer with Pro-e and a CNC machine. And that was in 1998! The problem with 3D printing is that is uses plastic resin which cannot handle the forces/pressures. Until they come out with a liquid metal that maybe could be somehow cured into a solid metal part, the 3D printer will be limited.
That said, there is another option to my surprise few have talked about. And all the parts are available now…Tesla Coil Gun. While admittedly, this is a low power version, it will take next to nothing to create a high power version able to reach out and touch someone.
http://youtu.be/QmpHpQhN9RE
JimmyGee on May 4, 2013 at 6:40 PM
I don’t think you guys get it. If you can create a one shot polymer gun, then you can create a one shot polymer shotgun. Either one is plenty for the poor person in a high crime area who can’t afford $200 for a crappy pistol. Theoretically, if he can print one up at the library for $14, you’ve got a revolution in self protection and crime prevention.
rbk2000 on May 4, 2013 at 8:14 PM
So we can all become our own China and make crappy copy’s of products…lol
Y314K on May 4, 2013 at 8:27 PM
Rail gun. Don’t need gun powder, just a piece of metal that can be moved by magnets.
LoganSix on May 4, 2013 at 9:31 PM
Let’s not forget a technology almost as a good as a gun under under some circumstances: the slingshot.
thuja on May 5, 2013 at 8:51 AM
As usual Homer Simpson says it best: “Now I know how God must feel when He’s holding a gun.”
In America, the gun is god.
chumpThreads on May 5, 2013 at 9:32 AM
3d Printing will soon become one of the biggest technological revolutions since Gutenberg’s Press and movable type…
…and perhaps even bigger than that.
All of you focusing on the gun aspect are missing the point. It’s not about the gun. It’s not even about the printer that made it.
It’s about having the ability to make what you want (and more importantly what you need) whenever you have the materials, the know how, and a printer that can work said materials. This is the end result of the industrial revolution: the power of the machine now universally available and usable by all.
In the words of Cody Wilson himself:
This is what it really means: One less obstacle, one less way that our freedoms can be trampled upon.
Chaz706 on May 5, 2013 at 10:25 AM
No, public assistance is.
hawkdriver on May 5, 2013 at 12:27 PM
Even if that were true, it would be one more way you’re Godless and powerless.
MelonCollie on May 5, 2013 at 12:43 PM
Unintentional damning confession.
tom daschle concerned on May 5, 2013 at 12:51 PM
A nice technical exercise but if guns were banned how long would it take for smugglers to add guns to their inventory?
Nomas on May 5, 2013 at 5:45 PM
Yup….got two of ‘em. Nice backups to our rifles, pistols, bow, machetes, k-bars.
Can’t have too narrow a selection of weaponry.
And, uh, our baseball bats too. :)
hawkeye54 on May 5, 2013 at 9:07 PM
It’s a mistake to copy an AL part. The design has to incorporate the strengths of the polymer. These guys need to spend a little time looking at modern automotive parts. Currently your gas, brake, and clutch pedals are plastic. The designs include metal bushings at the stress points to absorb the forces and distribute them over a wider area.
I’ve been working with plastic since the eighties and I can make anything, but you have to make it for the polymer.
danielreyes on May 6, 2013 at 12:42 AM
I’ve just been thinking, that you could print this gun into the body of a small drone. Basically a four rotor flying toy, with a wireless video camera and a printed integrated firearm.
You could make this today.
It could be flying outside your window tomorrow.
danielreyes on May 6, 2013 at 1:06 AM
Middleton Ohio shoot out from yesterday
danielreyes on May 6, 2013 at 1:49 AM
Actual link:
Police Dash Cam.
danielreyes on May 6, 2013 at 1:50 AM
“Look, a gun: ban it!” -Upchuck Schumer
Akzed on May 6, 2013 at 9:46 AM
Background check and national registry for anyone who wants to buy a 3-D printer. That should stop any criminal from printing guns, right?
lea on May 6, 2013 at 5:08 PM
VICE Magaine made a comprehensive documentary on Cdy Wilson and as I understand was one of the earliest to bring the story to national consciousness. Worth checking it out and seeing Cody’s philosophy
‘Click, print, gun’
http://motherboard.vice.com/read/click-print-gun-the-inside-story-of-the-3d-printed-gun-movement-video
PunditFight on May 6, 2013 at 8:46 PM
Do you mean 360811.548?
It’s math from these two posts.
Multiply then add.
The math? See above.
It’s math from your numbers. Do you want to try them again?
BTW, here in the US we would say “ten times higher”. We may also note that you established the US has “probably about 1 gun per person in the country.”
Using your numbers the US firearm-crime rate is only ten times higher than the UK with, per you, near-universal and an infinitely higher percentage of exposure to guns.
Good point. That’s extremely low now that we put it in perspective. Thanks.
Except you typed the accusatory
Implying 3% is low.
What are you talking about? The reversed US/UK? It was comical, that’s all. I don’t use typos as gotchas. We all make mistakes.
rogerb on May 7, 2013 at 1:38 PM
What the heck? I know for a fact I was on the right thread.
rogerb on May 7, 2013 at 2:13 PM
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