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DIY

3D printed cartridges and a revolver drum | Miriam Doerr | Dreamstime.com

Guns

Making the World Freer with Homemade Guns

DIY firearms aren’t just an end-run around the law; they represent a libertarian political movement.

J.D. Tuccille | 8.8.2025 7:00 AM

collage of various images showing relief efforts after Hurricane Helene | Photos by Eric Boehm, Max Correa/Polaris/Newscom

Natural Disasters

The Remarkable Redneck Air Force of North Carolina

The relief effort after Hurricane Helene is powered by private citizens, and volunteers have discovered that it's better to ask forgiveness than permission.

Eric Boehm | 10.23.2024 2:00 PM

Vials for CRISPR editing | Stanford/Marvin

Biotechnology

DIY Genome Editing at Only $2 a Pop

Avoiding regulation, DIYBio becomes cheaper and more available.

Ronald Bailey | 9.27.2024 10:40 AM

A man sits at a table using an at-home medical test |  frank11/Newscom

Health Care

Boom in DIY Medical Testing Gives Americans More Control Over Their Health

Thanks to clever inventions and investments from venture capitalists, the average American can head to CVS and purchase kits to test for drug use, sexually transmitted diseases, AIDs, diabetes, blood pressure and cholesterol.

Steven Greenhut | 6.21.2024 7:45 AM

Hand shaped like gun with Japanese flag symbol | Lex Villena; Photo: DPST/Newscom

Gun Rights

Jacob Sullum: Why Japanese Gun Control Isn't a Model for America

Senior Editor Jacob Sullum examines how the claim that Japanese gun restrictions account for the country's low violent crime rate isn't as simple as it sounds.

Peter Suderman | 7.15.2022 6:00 AM

Brian Doherty is author of Dirty Pictures, a history of underground comic books. | Lex Villena, Reason

Culture

Brian Doherty: From MAD Magazine to Maus

A new history, Dirty Pictures, explores how underground comix revolutionized art and exploded censorship once and for all.

Nick Gillespie | 7.6.2022 4:10 PM

ghost3

Guns

Cody Wilson Thwarts Another Attempt To Stop Ghost Guns

The ATF is expected to adopt a new rule requiring that the metal parts hobbyists used to manufacture their DIY weapons be registered as legal firearms. So Cody Wilson made those parts unnecessary.

Zach Weissmueller | 1.12.2022 4:00 PM

Shooting_At_Range | J.D. Tuccille

Guns

Building Your Own Rifle Is the Perfect Family Project

Improve your skills! Bond with the kids! Infuriate control freaks!

J.D. Tuccille | 8.2.2021 7:00 AM

guns | Jay Janner/Austin American-State/TNS

Guns

ATF's Proposed Rules Threaten a Legal Mess but No End to Ghost Guns

Regulations might reshape DIY gun products, but they can’t eliminate the demand that created the industry.

J.D. Tuccille | 5.14.2021 7:00 AM

49331527821_08bccbbe23_b

Guns

Biden's Plan to Stop Ghost Guns Is Doomed To Fail

"There's this growing gap between what's on paper and what is enforceable in law," says Kareem Shaya, the co-founder of Open Source Defense.

Zach Weissmueller | 4.22.2021 12:55 PM

topicseconomy | Face Mask Fairies

Economics

Face Mask Volunteers DIY Their Own Kind of Division of Labor

Making masks, face shields, and other protective equipment is the bottom-up, COVID-19 version of rolling bandages or knitting socks for the troops.

Virginia Postrel | 6.4.2020 6:00 AM

sfphotosfour583761 | RAPHAEL BLOCH/SIPA/Newscom

Coronavirus

Americans Have Rediscovered Self-Reliance

The lockdowns are prompting Americans to relearn skills and revive almost-forgotten habits.

J.D. Tuccille | 5.20.2020 2:15 PM

DIY-thumb | Fotogramma/IPA/ABACA/Newscom, ID 72769978 © Pixelrobot | Dreamstime.com, Photo 179243200 © Jamroen Jaiman - Dreamstime.com

Coronavirus

Snorkel Respirators, 3D-Printed Masks, and Other Grassroots Efforts To Fight COVID-19

People around the world are working together in unprecedented ways to help their neighbors and produce critical medical supplies.

Justin Monticello | 4.20.2020 10:10 AM

thumbv1

Coronavirus

Sketch: Watch a Libertarian Make a DIY Face Mask

Politicians aren't the only crafty ones.

Austin Bragg and Meredith Bragg | 4.17.2020 10:15 AM

wildlightrmpix008041 | Douglas Graham/Loudoun Now/Newscom

Guns

Biker Gang Leader's DIY Guns Are Part of a Predictable Prohibition Story

From Australia to Massachusetts, illegal gun makers step in to supply what legal markets aren’t allowed to produce.

J.D. Tuccille | 11.11.2019 10:00 AM

dreamstime_m_39013217 | Ulldellebre | Dreamstime.com

Social Media

A Social Media Platform Has Banned Support of Trump 

It's Ravelry, and it's not just a "knitting site."

Katrina Gulliver | 6.25.2019 8:10 PM

Large image on homepages | National News/ZUMApress/Newscom

Gun Control

When Governments Restrict Guns, People Make Their Own By the Millions

Sophisticated firearms are becoming ever-easier to illicitly manufacture in basic workshops, says a new report. We'll even show you how to do it!

J.D. Tuccille | 11.29.2018 2:00 PM

Large image for longform feature pages. | NASA

1968

'We Are as Gods and Might as Well Get Good at It'

Commemorating the Whole Earth Catalog 50 years later.

Nick Gillespie | 11.4.2018 6:00 AM

Large image on homepages | Lannis Waters/ZUMA Press/Newscom

Guns

Makers of 3D-Printed Guns Follow In DIY Tradition of Ammunition Reloaders

Reloaders and DIY gunmakers alike are motivated by innovation and a willingness to make for themselves what the government doesn't want them to have.

J.D. Tuccille | 10.17.2018 1:23 PM

Large image on homepages | STEPHEN LAM/REUTERS/Newscom

3D Printing

You'll Soon Be Able to Manufacture Anything You Want and Governments Will Be Powerless to Stop It

From DIY guns to designer drugs, classic-car parts, and human livers, 3D printing promises a dynamic and uncontrollable world.

J.D. Tuccille | 6.12.2018 12:00 AM

Large image on homepages | Ronald Bailey

CRISPR

Adventures in Home Biohacking with CRISPR

I made antibiotic-resistant E. coli in my kitchen, and the world didn't end.

Ronald Bailey | 5.31.2018 12:00 AM

Reasontv

How to (Legally) Make Your Own Off-the-Books Handgun

Build a Glock 17 using parts from the internet

Mark McDaniel | 5.31.2018 12:00 AM

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