411
California’s New Bill Requires DOJ-Approved 3D Printers That Report on Themselves
(blog.adafruit.com)
this post was submitted on 19 Feb 2026
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Silly woman who proposed that bill, if passed the law will only create a black market for 3D printers.
And largely unenforceable. Like, it can only really block the sale of prebuilt, proprietary crap like Bamboo, but most of these things are built out of common parts that are used for a verity of applications and there are countless completely open source printers you can just built from sourced parts that this literally cannot apply to.
Even for most of the prebuilt or kits you get you put open source firmware on it. They can boot lock the board that comes with it, technically, but the board is easy enough to replace on most printers and it's a standard micro controller and/or raspberry pi nowadays.
Half the time people who get those kits end up replacing various components to customize for their use case. I have a Sovol SV08 that I put stock Klipper on and want to do the multi-print-head mod someday. I've even considered replacing the main board with a more powerful one so I can run higher microsteps without overloading the processor.
The abject retardation spirals off infinitely in all directions like the blades of the time knife. I mean, just out of my own twisted head:
they're talking about making it illegal to traffic 3D printers that don't have a "certified gun detection algorithm." Okay, what part of the 3D printer are you going to control? Hot ends? Control boards? 3D printers don't have lower receivers. If I were to disassemble my Prusa MK4S back into the ~1000 weird shaped hunks of plastic, metal plates and sticks, wires, circuit boards, nuts and bolts it came in as a kit, and then drive through California, which exact piece am I going to be arrested for carrying?
I can't wait until someone Man With The Golden Gun's one of thes "certified algorithms", prints stuff that looks like cabinet hooks, musical instruments, a walkie-talkie case, a toy dinosaur, which clip together in a certain way to make a functioning weapon. I've never 3D printed a gun before, this might just get me into it.
I had 3 printers (long story), but sold 2 and kept one, an Ender 5 plus. Of the original printer, there is the frame, a couple motors, the electronics case, and little more. Its now an Endorphin, direct drive sherpa mini, rails, Hybrid coreXY, Octopus Max board, Pi with Klipper... Anyone can take measurements, and make themselves one of these, or a Voron, or a VZbot, or... Good luck, California.