Today the Olympic Games begin and until August 8 you can enjoy hundreds of Olympic events. In one of these tests, the shooting test, one of the competitors will use a pistol whose grip is made thanks to 3D printing technology.
Anyone can have a 3D printer at home, since it is a device that is accessible to everyone and that allows us to create practically what we want in a short period of time.
It would be difficult to imagine that 3D printing and the Olympics could be combined, but shooter Celine Goberville has shown us that they cannot. This competitor carried out the great competition prior to the Games (the European Shooting Championship) using a pistol whose grip is 3D printed.
Grip, key in shooting competitions
Even so, the marksman team will continue to work on the pistol grip to have a better version for the Olympic Games. These tasks will consist of making the grip of the hand to the pistol as smooth as possible, in order to better stabilize the weapon when shooting.
However, the entire grip structure had to be done first and then focused on its texture , to make it as smooth as possible. To apply the smoothness, the grip was first manually rubbed with sandpaper and then chemicals were applied to it.
After finishing the whole process, all that remained was to paint the handle and stamp a logo that certifies that it has been made with a 3D printer.
3D printing only gives advantages
In addition, another advantage of 3D printing is that the team has already saved the grip model to print it again if necessary. A replacement of the handle could be given in the event of some kind of breakage due to a blow that has occurred more than once in airport travel.
Therefore, Celine Goberville will make its official premiere at these Olympic Games with this pistol made with 3D printing. Right now the shooter is training with her to feel comfortable and arrive at the competition with the maximum possible confidence to try to get a medal for her country.
He has also stated that this is the final model and that there will be no further changes , as that would harm it when it comes to adapting. What the team has assured is that once the Olympic Games are over, they will work on the pistol again to continue improving it.