Pennsylvania machinist creates steel-reinforced bullet for 3D-printed guns

According to a recent report published in Wired magazine, a 25-year-old Pennsylvania machinist - named Michael Crumling - has created a steel-reinforced bullet which he claims will give a 3D-printed gun to fire repeatedly without breaking.

The steel-reinforced bullet round which Crumling has created has been designed to be fired specifically from 3D-printed guns. Crumling has reportedly been testing the steel-reinforced bullets on a 3D-printed gun which he has built himself.

The bullet created by Crumling makes use of a thick steel shell in which a lead bullet is inserted one inch inside. The insertion of the lead bullet is deep enough to allow the shell to contain the explosion of the round's gunpowder rather than letting that force get transferred to the plastic body or barrel of the gun.

Crumling claims that the steel-reinforced bullet has been created in such a way that it enables repeated firing of a home-printed firearm made from even the cheapest materials. Even if the firearm is fired again and again, there is no cracking or deformation.

About the "really simple" concept of the steel-reinforced bullets, Crumling told Wired: "It's kind of a barrel integrated into the shell, so to speak. Basically it removes all the stresses and pressures from the 3-D printed parts. You should be able to fire an unlimited number of shots through the gun without replacing any parts other than the shell."