An interesting and controversial story was published by Atomic MPC this week involving hobbyists designing and 3D printing automatic weapons.

In the wake of the tragic shooting in Colorado earlier this week, the Atomic forums entered a discussion on gun control and gun laws not only in Australia but the USA. Naturally as conversation progresses the topic goes off track a little, and one Atomican discovered a forum discussing the manufacture of AR15 lower receivers.

At first glance some readers, and especially gun enthusiasts may say “so what, why is this any different to making your own car parts?”. Well, the answer really is very simple, an engine part is not an object designed with the specific purpose of forging a weapon, a lower receiver is for the most part, is destined for such duties.

Okay, here comes the controversy. 3D printing is enabling easier access to guns, right? Wrong.

Look back at the 1993 film In The Line of Fire, starring Clint Eastwood and John Malkovich, and you will see a fanatic who creates a gun out of plastic molds. That was well before MakerBot got its start. Dangerous people will always find ways to hurt others. Technology does not accelerate this trend.

3D printing will have a revolutionary impact on our society, spanning industries from medical to logistics to entertainment. We hope to see, and report on, many more stories about the positive applications of this technology.

Via Atomic MPC.

MakerBot is well known for its affordable consumer 3D printers. Now the company is branching out into consumer entertainment products with its new MixTape – buy it or print it.

From the MakerBot website:

A long time ago, before Pandora or RDIO or even ancient technologies like iTunes, there was the mixtape — a carefully selected group of songs, organized into a playlist and recorded onto a cassette. You had to get these songs from other tapes or even record them from the radio. You had to have a machine that allowed for transferring songs from one tape to another tape. The whole process took planning… and patience. But the payoff was oh so sweet.

The MakerBot Applications team, our division of makers and designers, have figured out a way to bring this magic back to life — with a modern twist — and make it 3D-printed, too.

If you own a MakerBot printer, the unassembled “print your own” version sells for $25. Or you can buy an assembled MixTape for $39.

CNET reviewed the device.

The actual specs of the MixTape MP3 player are modest. It has 2GB of storage capacity, and a 4-hour lithium-ion battery that charges when you connect it to your Mac or PC via the included USB cable. The MixTape also conveniently functions as a standard thumb drive.

MakerBot produced the video below to showcase the nostalgia and romance of the MixTape product.