FGC-9
FGC-9 | |
---|---|
Type | Semiautomatic carbine |
Place of origin | Germany |
Service history | |
Wars | Myanmar civil war (2021–present) |
Production history | |
Designer | Jacob Duygu (JStark1809) of Deterrence Dispensed[1] |
Designed | 2018–2020 |
Produced | 2019–present |
Variants | see variants |
Specifications | |
Mass | 2.1 kg (4 lb 10.1 oz) without magazine |
Length | 520 mm (20.5 in) |
Barrel length | 114 mm (4.5 in) |
Cartridge | 9×19mm |
Action | Closed bolt blowback action |
Feed system | Glock magazine, including custom extended variants |
Sights | Picatinny rail |
The FGC-9 is a 3D-printable, semi-automatic, pistol-caliber carbine. The firearm was first designed and manufactured between 2018 and 2020 by Jacob Duygu, a Kurdish German[1][2] gun designer known by the pseudonym "JStark1809".[3][4] In April 2021, a "MkII" revision was released. As of 2024, the FGC-9 is "by far" the world's most common 3-D printed gun, used by insurgents, militia members, terrorists, and drug traffickers in "at least 15 countries".[5] The gun's most prominent promoter and co-designer is "Ivan The Troll," a man identified as John Elik in legal documents.[6][5]
Released with accompanying documentation to aid construction, assembly, and the home manufacture of suitable ammunition, the FGC-9's design generally circumvents the global regulation of firearm parts by avoiding regulated parts in favor of off-the-shelf materials. Though the majority of the firearm is 3D-printable, its pressure-bearing components are metal parts that may be purchased or homemade. The total cost of production, assuming the builder owns a 3D printer, is less than US$500.[7][8][9][10]
Etymology
[edit]The gun's name is an acronym for "Fuck Gun Control", where the "9" references its 9mm cartridge.[11]
Origin
[edit]The FGC-9 was originally designed and manufactured between 2018 and 2020 by JStark1809, a pseudonymous German-Kurdish[2] gun designer, with contributions from the "guerrilla 3D-gun file development group" Deterrence Dispensed, and was released on March 27, 2020. The design is based on an earlier 3D printable firearm, the Shuty AP-9 pistol by Derwood.[12] Where the "Shuty" relied on several factory-made or machined gun parts (like the barrel) in order to be completed, the FGC-9 made ergonomic and mechanical changes to accommodate builders without access to commercial gun parts or machine shops. These changes and documentation honor the mutual influence of Defense Distributed's Liberator and Philip Luty's even earlier SMG designs.[13]
The FGC-9 is designed with Europeans in mind; fasteners and build materials use the metric standard and are available from hardware stores. The magazine can be 3D printed, and the entire design works without needing any regulated, commercial gun parts. The FGC-9's barrel can be completed in several ways, including the easily adopted method of electrochemical machining.[14][15]
Mark II
[edit]An updated design, the MkII, was first announced on October 23, 2020 by En Bloc Press.[13] It was released on April 16, 2021 on DEFCAD and Odysee by user "The Gatalog".[16] The updated weapon uses a H&K MP5 style charging handle, an improved electro-chemical machining process to make the barrel, and some ergonomic improvements as well. The release was the final package in a string of multiple smaller releases, which included the improved barrel ECMv2.0 process, and the Menendez Mag v2.0, and the Common Sense Fire Control Group AR-15 printable trigger, all created by Ivan The Troll in preparation for the FGC-9 MkII release.[17]
Modifications
[edit]Due to the open-source nature of the FGC-9, there have been many packages released that alter the configuration, caliber, ergonomics, and other legally-restrictive qualities of the base-model firearm. These are all available through a wide variety of channels, all with different levels of testing, and allow the end user to customize their weapon as needed. One very common branch is replacing the buttstock with an ATF-approved pistol brace, in order for U.S. citizens to comply with NFA rifle and pistol requirements. Another common branch is replacing the barrel with a 16-inch (41 cm) barrel in order to comply with U.S. minimum barrel length requirements, in addition to adding an extended handguard to replace the default one. The firearms hobbyist and instructor QueerArmorer created a version of the top rail for use in Myanmar by rebels fighting with limited access to optics in the Myanmar civil war, however its use was limited as another team from Deterrence Dispensed developed printable iron sights that allowed for more flexibility.[18]
Variants
[edit]Name | Date made public | Designer |
---|---|---|
FGC-9 MkII[19][16][20] | April 16, 2021 | JStark1809(DetDisp), IvanTheTroll(DetDisp), 3socksandcrocs(DetDisp) |
| ||
FGC-9 MKII Stingray[21][22][23] | June 18, 2022 | hotsauce |
| ||
Partisan-9[25][26][27][28] | February 3, 2023 | ImmortalRevolt, Deterrents Dispensed / The Gatalog |
FGC-9 MKII Bufferless[29][30][31] | Bufferless version with the bolt placed mostly forward similar to Mussy's WTF-9 | |
FMGC-01[32][33] | Bufferless select fire variant that uses Sten magazines instead of Glock's | |
Nutty-9[34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41] | July 15, 2024 | TooAceForThisShit, Joe.Dirt, Ruby Grace Builds, NotThatTimmyHicks, IamArizona, DetDisp, The Gatalog, Black Lotus Coalition |
| ||
The Urutau[42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49] | August 20, 2024 | Joseph The Parrot, A.K.A. Zé Carioca |
Bullpup variant which uses a telescoping bolt, a 3D printed fire control group/trigger designed from the ground up and CZ Scorpion magazines, notable for its quality documentation wriiten by RSmith28. While most of the underlying mechanics of The Urutau are comparable to the FGC-9, all parts were significantly redesigned. All parts are made from easily accessible, less-firearm-related components that improve supply chain resilience and enhance the builder's operational security when sourcing materials. The Urutau features a bolt designed to eliminate any welding requirements, eliminating the need for welding hardware and reducing the initial price by roughly $100, depending upon the builder's location. The estimated minimum cost to construct a Urutau stands at around $500 for the initial gun, including printer and hardware, and $200 for each subsequent gun. Aside from the ejection port, the entire gun is ambidextrous. The controls are all extremely basic so that non-English speakers with little firearm experience may intuitively understand how to use them. In addition to the manual safety mechanism, the Urutau incorporates safety features to manage the risk of an out-of-battery detonation. The hammer's geometry is designed to ensure that it cannot make contact with the firing pin unless the bolt is in battery. In the unlikely event of an out-of-battery detonation, a specially engineered channel redirects gasses upwards and away from the user, enhancing safety and minimizing the risk of injury. |
Materials
[edit]The upper and lower receivers of the FGC-9 are fully 3D-printed, as are its pistol grip and stock. Its magazine, based on the Glock magazine design, may also be printed. For the MkI, an AR-15 or modified airsoft trigger system is needed for the fire control. In the MkII release, the developers released a package to 3D-print the AR-15 trigger. The barrel can be rifled polygonally through electrochemical machining. Some designers have estimated the tooling to complete the FGC-9, including the price of the printer (~$200) and electrochemical machining equipment (~$100), at $500.[50][better source needed] JStark1809 himself estimated the project to take 1.5 to 2 weeks to build.[51]: 12:34
Availability
[edit]The gun's 3D-printing files were released under an open-source license on DEFCAD by JStark1809, and then uploaded to various hosting platforms by Deterrence Dispensed such as Odysee, a free-speech blockchain based video, audio and file hosting site using the LBRY protocol.
According to Rajan Basra, a professor at International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation and a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of War Studies at King's College London, the FGC is particularly popular among far-right groups due to the sharing of its instructions in extremist internet forums.[52]
Promotion
[edit]Ivan the Troll, the one of the head/admin of Deterrence Dispensed/Gatalog and FGC-9 co-designer, actively promotes the use of the gun in podcasts[53][54][55][56][57][58][59][60][61][62][63][64][65][66]and YouTube videos.[67][68][69][70][71][72] According to the Rajan Basra, a professor at International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation and a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of War Studies at King's College London, Nathan Mayer, a security researcher from the United States, and New York Times, "court documents, corporate records and information posted on his social media accounts" link Ivan to one John Elik, a 26-year-old licensed gunmaker in Illinois. [73] [5]
Investigations
[edit]Jake Hanrahan of Popular Front interviewed JStark1809 about the FGC-9 and 3D printed guns in November 2020.[51] JStark1809 stated that he had no background in engineering, taught himself CAD, and learned what he needed through widely-available resources on the internet. With his rudimentary operation, he showed how to manufacture an FGC-9 in two weeks or less. He shot the gun in a forest and demonstrated its reliability and rapid firing rate. JStark1809 described his absolutist belief in the right to keep and make arms, as well as his desire to make the weapons widely available in order to protect human rights. Hanrahan described him as "one of the most dangerous people" he had ever met and criticized authorities for underestimating the power of 3D-printed guns.[51]
Der Spiegel reported in October 2021 that British financial services had provided clues on the identity of JStark1809 to the Federal Criminal Police Office, and they identified a 28-year-old man in Völklingen who went by "Jacob D." Police had raided his home that June, though they found no weapons and did not take him into custody. Two days after the raid, he was found dead in his car in front of his parents' home in Hannover. Coroners determined the cause of death to be a heart attack and ruled out foul play.[3]
In October 2023, a report published by the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation and Political Violence named JStark1809 as Jacob Duygu, a German national born to Kurdish parents who arrived as refugees from Southeast Turkey in the 1990s. The report claims he is the author of hundreds of anonymous internet posts, but does so using statistical inference from language patterns rather than direct evidence.[1] The recovered posts are xenophobic, racist, antisemitic, and misogynistic, and endorse anti-State violence. Direct evidence of Jacob's life as an incel, and his desire to travel to Southeast Asia and commit suicide, has been found in episode 5 of investigative journalist Naama Kates' podcast The Incel Project.[74][75]
Users and use
[edit]According to the New York Times, from 2021-2024, the FGC-9 has been used by or found in possession of "paramilitaries in Northern Ireland, rebels in Myanmar and neo-Nazis in Spain", and has become a "staple" weapon of "the world's far-right extremists". Improvised factories for making the gun have been found in Australia, France and Spain. As of September 2024, an FGC-9 has not been linked to a homicide by law enforcement agencies, but this may be "because traditional forensic techniques are not always reliable on homemade weapons".[5]
- Myanmar: MkII and MkII Stingray variant used by rebel forces in the Myanmar civil war (2021–present).[76][77][78]
- Complete and incomplete models have been recovered by police forces in the European Union, United Kingdom,[79] Australia,[80] New Zealand,[81][82] Canada,[83] the United States,[84] Taiwan,[85] and Iceland[86]
- Dissident republican paramilitaries: MkII variant seen in the hands of a member of the dissident Irish republican paramilitary Óglaigh na hÉireann during a parade in Easter 2022.[87][88]
- Finland: A Finnish man was sentenced to prison for one year four months because he manufactured at least 8 guns.[89] Also in Finland, three men were convicted in relation to the production of 3D-printed weapons.[90]
- United Kingdom: Matthew Cronjager, a British neo-Nazi, was arrested after attempting to pay an undercover police officer in exchange for the manufacture of an FGC-9. His goal was to recruit and arm a militia, targeting Jews, gay people, Muslims and others, and to overthrow the UK government. He was convicted and jailed for more than 11 years.[5] In the UK, possession and sharing of a FGC-9 instruction manual is a terrorist offense.[5]
See also
[edit]References
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- ^ Jump up to: a b "A clip from jake hanrahan's interview with jstark". Archived from the original on 27 March 2022.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Baumgärtner, Maik; Epp, Alexander; Lehberger, Roman; Höfner, Roman (12 October 2021). "The Shadowy, Homemade Weapons Community Just Keeps on Growing". Der Spiegel. Archived from the original on 8 April 2023. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
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- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f Dearden, Lizzie; Gibbons-Neff, Thomas (10 September 2024). "He's Known as 'Ivan the Troll.' His 3D-Printed Guns Have Gone Viral". New York Times. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
- ^ "Lawsuits, Rivalries, and Trolls: Examining the Behaviour of the 3D-Printed Gun Movement". 10 September 2024.
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