New York’s budget bill would require “blocking technology” on all 3D printers • Hacker News Board

Re: New York’s budget bill would require “blocking technology” on all 3D printers

#361

Post by snailmailman » Wed, Feb 04, 2026, 4:56 AM UTC

le-mark wrote: post #260

gmueckl wrote: post #254

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How? The printer only ever retrieves G code for individual parts without any knowledge of what they are going to be assembled into. There is no viable way to solve this classification problem on this kind of incomplete data, is there?

It’s not nearly that hard of a problem. There are n gun files on internet, so validate the hash of those n files (g code whatever). These people aren’t cadding their own designs.

One big part of this is that gcode isnt really a 3d model its a set of instructions on how to move the printhead around. You don't download the gcode directly, because that varies by printer. You download a model, and then a slicing program turns that into a set of printer-specific gcode. Any subtle settings changes would change the hash of this gcode.

And the printer doesn't really know what the model is. It would have to reverse the gcode instructions back into a model somehow. The printer isn't really the place to detect and prevent this sort of thing imo. Especially with how cheap some 3d printers are getting, they often don't really have much compute power in them. They just move things around as instructed by the g-code. If the g-code is malformed it can even break the printer in some instances, or at least really screw up your print.

There are even scripts that modify the gcode to do weird things the printer really isn't designed for, like print something and then have the printer move in such a way to crash into and push the printed object off the plate, and then start over and print another print. The printer will just follow these instructions blindly.

Re: New York’s budget bill would require “blocking technology” on all 3D printers

#362

Post by satiric » Wed, Feb 04, 2026, 4:56 AM UTC

le-mark wrote: post #260

gmueckl wrote: post #254

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How? The printer only ever retrieves G code for individual parts without any knowledge of what they are going to be assembled into. There is no viable way to solve this classification problem on this kind of incomplete data, is there?

It’s not nearly that hard of a problem. There are n gun files on internet, so validate the hash of those n files (g code whatever). These people aren’t cadding their own designs.

The g-code is not being distributed, because it's specific to each printer, filament, etc. G-code is not the same thing as a STP or STL file.

Re: New York’s budget bill would require “blocking technology” on all 3D printers

#363

Post by notepad0x90 » Wed, Feb 04, 2026, 5:01 AM UTC

shit_game wrote: post #360

notepad0x90 wrote: post #347

Earlier quoted context omitted.

really? they didn't have machining in the 1700s. how about a good'ol musket? or a bit more modern: a gatling gun. I always thought those were made under coarse conditions. I mean, people just need something that makes a spark against gun powder,goes boom and shoots really fast projectiles. If a shotgun is possible, then an automatic shotgun doesn't feel like it's a stretch. I would think the firing mechanisms might n…

They certainly didn't have mills as we know them in the 1700s, but lathes, drills, and subtractive manufacturing had been in practice for millenia. You could say they were "machined by hand". Most early firearms (barring large-bore guns like cannons) were made from forged steel or iron, which is significantly stronger than cast iron due to its lower carbon content and regular grain structure. These forged parts were…

Well, the kind of guns politicians are afraid people will make at home are not intended for durability. But things like street crime, school shootings,etc.. where it's just a one and done affair.

Re: New York’s budget bill would require “blocking technology” on all 3D printers

#364

Post by beeflet » Wed, Feb 04, 2026, 5:04 AM UTC

notepad0x90 wrote: post #347

convolvatron wrote: post #268

Earlier quoted context omitted.

not a gunsmith, but cast iron manages to be both soft and brittle at the same time. and the barrel and bearing parts would have to be machined anyways. you have to try to harden it too. its probably easier to just machine the whole thing out of decent quality steel. just guessing.

really? they didn't have machining in the 1700s. how about a good'ol musket? or a bit more modern: a gatling gun. I always thought those were made under coarse conditions. I mean, people just need something that makes a spark against gun powder,goes boom and shoots really fast projectiles. If a shotgun is possible, then an automatic shotgun doesn't feel like it's a stretch. I would think the firing mechanisms might n…

they also didn't have 3d printers in the 1700s, so I figure the 3d printer doesn't add much if it requires all of these post-processing steps like molding, casting, and finishing

Re: New York’s budget bill would require “blocking technology” on all 3D printers

#365

Post by olyjohn » Wed, Feb 04, 2026, 5:07 AM UTC

monero-xmr wrote: post #309

mystraline wrote: post #307

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure. I'll bite. The majority in this country is "didn't vote". Multitudes of reasons for this. They forgot. They dont care. They missed the registration deadline. They're homeless, and no address. They can't get proper papers, even though they are US born. They're in prison/jail. The candidates suck, so you dont vote. Can't afford to take time off work. They've been gerrymandered, so their votes are significantly de…

I mean you can make up all the excuses you want for losing an election but you still lost. Doesn’t make the result illegitimate

"you" lost? Did this guy you're replying to run for office? This whole my team vs your team bullshit is really one of the big problems in our country. No independent thought. Just stick with what news says. Always vote my team. Dumb. Here's a news bulletin for you, everybody lost.

Re: New York’s budget bill would require “blocking technology” on all 3D printers

#366

Post by bhawks » Wed, Feb 04, 2026, 5:07 AM UTC

The only logical end of this is that they should ban 3d printers and cnc mills to unlicensed individuals. Which, is probably the goal. Things like 3d printers, drones, GPUs, general purpose computers, vpns, encryption, talking to people in private and the like are far too dangerous for the citizenry to be allowed to do without appropriate oversight and approval.

Re: New York’s budget bill would require “blocking technology” on all 3D printers

#367

Post by throw3e98 » Wed, Feb 04, 2026, 5:07 AM UTC

pjc50 wrote: post #33

This is insanely stupid stuff. Even the UK with our weird panic over Incredibly Specific Knives hasn't tried to do this kind of technical restriction to prevent people printing guns. Why not? Because nobody is printing guns! It's an infeasible solution to a non-problem! Someone should dig into who this is coming from and why. The answers are usually either (a) they got paid to do it by a company selling the tech, whi…

I haven't printed a full firearm but I've printed some replacement/ergonomic parts for my legally purchased firearms. And there are people printing guns - you don't hear about it because they keep their mouth shut about it.

Re: New York’s budget bill would require “blocking technology” on all 3D printers

#368

Post by RevEng » Wed, Feb 04, 2026, 5:09 AM UTC

kart23 wrote: post #248

hazmazlaz wrote: post #168

The most insane thing about this is that it is not illegal to manufacture firearms in the United States. Providing that you do not sell or distribute the firearm, it is entirely legal to manufacture a firearm in the USA for personal use only. Laws vary state by state, of course, and it may be different in the state of New York, but assuming that this federal law has not been overridden by some state law in New York,…

it’s illegal to make a gun for personal use without a serial number in ny and ca. https://oag.ca.gov/system/files/attachments/press-docs/consu...

So it's okay to 3D print a gun as long as you have a serial number? That seems to reinforce that 3D printing shouldn't be banned, especially by blanket technical means.

Re: New York’s budget bill would require “blocking technology” on all 3D printers

#369

Post by beeflet » Wed, Feb 04, 2026, 5:09 AM UTC

cjbgkagh wrote: post #281

silver_silver wrote: post #127

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not necessarily a lot less but I’m sure removing the aesthetic/cool factor reduces how often they’re carried

Maybe if the law required all knives to be pink they might be too embarrassed to murder someone. One problem then is the switch to acid attacks which are just clear liquids in containers.

You could require that all acids are also dyed pink

Re: New York’s budget bill would require “blocking technology” on all 3D printers

#370

Post by throw3e98 » Wed, Feb 04, 2026, 5:14 AM UTC

le-mark wrote: post #260

gmueckl wrote: post #254

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How? The printer only ever retrieves G code for individual parts without any knowledge of what they are going to be assembled into. There is no viable way to solve this classification problem on this kind of incomplete data, is there?

It’s not nearly that hard of a problem. There are n gun files on internet, so validate the hash of those n files (g code whatever). These people aren’t cadding their own designs.

Guns can be made out of simple geometric shapes like tubes, blocks, and simple machines like levers and springs. There is mathematically no way to distinguish a gun part from a part used in home plumbing - in fact you can go to the plumbing section of your local hardware store and buy everything you need to build a fully functional shotgun.