Hi there,
For the past couple of weeks I have been trying to find manufacturers for an airsoft project prototype that I am working on. I just need 2 more parts produced, since I managed to get everything else sorted out (around 90% of the whole project), but I am having trouble finding manufacturers that have reasonable terms and conditions to produce the last two parts, since every 3D printing manufacturer I have been able to find does not mention airsoft anywhere, and just says “we don’t produce firearms”.
Now of course, airsoft is a cool hobby that doesn’t involve any actual violence, or real guns, and provides joy to lots of players. That’s why I am asking what your policy is regarding producing parts for airsoft replica’s? And I’m not even asking about producing something that resembles a gun, just parts that could easily be mistaken for random items, a large hinge that can slide on a pole which resembles a large tent part for instance.
I already made the mistake of naming my 3D files as actual gun parts for personal reference, and another manufacturer from France (I would name them but their name gets censored here) automatically flagged my order and cancelled it. After contacting them to clarify that their terms and conditions are extremely vague and only state the single sentence “they will not produce firearms” I told them that airsoft replica’s are not firearms, their response was basically “we don’t produce firearms. your order is cancelled. Deal with it.”, which shows they don’t even properly read customer complaints and don’t care that their terms are vague.
Now I have the same question for i.materialise, your terms and conditions state the following:
“i.materialise acts according to its mission, which is to make the world a better and healthier place to live. Therefore, i.materialise reserves the right to refuse at its own discretion and at all times an order that is in conflict with its mission and value statement. Creating firearms, their components, or any other prototype or model intended for the weapon industry, or models for which i.materialise has ethical concerns in general, are rejected to be quoted or produced. i.materialise reserves the right to discontinue the execution process of those orders.”
Now this only mentions actual firearms or anything intended for the weapon industry. It does not mention airsoft parts. Does i.materialise consider airsoft as part of the weapons industry? Does i.materialise have ethical concerns for people who enjoy playing airsoft as a hobby?
Can someone clarify if the two parts I have designed will be accepted or not? If at all possible, please contact me personally so I can provide a more detailed description of my design and show why it is in fact a harmless component which in my opinion should be eligible for manufacture, since on their own the parts do not even resemble an actual weapon.
If not, maybe clarify the content policy a bit further on your website to specifically exclude airsoft items to prevent confusion for future visitors. Another website at least states the following on their terms and conditions and makes it completely clear what is accepted and what isn’t:
“-censored- does produce external accessories for guns and gun games (airsoft, paintball) that do not reproduce core functions. These include scopes, mounts, mono/bi/tripods, grips that do not integrate magazine wells, etc.
-censored- does not produce guns, realistic gun replicas, or gun games (airsoft, paintball). This includes parts that make up guns or could be assembled into guns or realistic gun replicas (including grips with integrated magazine wells).
-censored- does not produce conversion kit parts for guns, gun replicas, or gun games.”
In any case, I’m hoping for a positive answer that allows me to finally finish my project.
Kind regards,
Danny