Meet RAMBO, the Army’s new 3D-printed grenade launcher
It has come to be that 3D Printing is the wave of the future. #D Printed toys, firearms, art, furniture, houses…
Now apparently even grenade launchers can be 3D printed. Cheaper and faster to make, the RAMBO is a technical marvel. With all the advancements in 3D Printing tech, it is a curiosity as to what the limits of such tech truly are.
There is even a 3D Printer that can build a 400 sq ft house in a day now. The human mind and capability for innovation has always astounded me. 3D printing is quickly becoming a game changer in the realm of firearms and munitions for sure. Could it be a threat to the hundreds year old trade of firearm smithing? Only time will tell. Personally, I want to see a 3D printed tank! Just saying.
The grenade launcher, aptly named RAMBO (Rapid Additively Manufactured Ballistics Ordnance), was designed and developed as part of a collaborative effort between the Army Research, Development, and Engineering Command (RDECOM) and the U.S. Army Manufacturing Technology (ManTech) Program. Also involved was AmericaMakes, an accelerator program that brings together the best minds in additive manufacturing and 3D-printing technology.
The RAMBO grenade launcher is comprised of 50 parts, and all of the components, except the springs and fasteners, were produced using 3D-printing. Different parts of the grenade launcher, however, were manufactured using different materials and additive manufacturing techniques — the barrel and receiver were fabricated from aluminum using a direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) process, while the trigger and firing pin were printed using alloy steel.
When developing the grenade launcher, the Army wanted a weapon that could move through the prototype stage and land in the hands of soldiers quickly. Instead of waiting for months for a single machined prototype weapon, Army researchers were able to 3D-print and test multiple versions of the grenade launcher in a fraction of that time. It took 70 hours to print the barrel and receiver and another 5 hours to finish off the part in post production. Overall, instead of years, it took a mere six months to produce a weapon and compatible ammunition that was suitable for test firing.
(Photo Credit: U.S. Army photo by Sunny Burns, ARDEC via Fox News)