3D-printed components: start-up OPOS develops modular sport pistol “Venator”

The Burgenland-based start-up OPOS aims to address the market for sport firearms and, in the longer term, the defense sector with its “Venator” pistol platform. At the core of the concept is a modular handgun that combines classic mechanics with digital functions and consistently relies on metal 3D printing for key components. Founder Florian Tripaum, gunsmith and graduate of HTL Ferlach, describes the approach as a response to an industry that has long focused primarily on mechanical advancements.

In its basic version, Venator is a conventionally operated pistol with a low bore axis and rotary-barrel locking, designed for low recoil forces and a high rate of fire in sporting use. Optionally, a vision module can be added that displays status information such as remaining ammunition, safety status, battery charge and temperature.

“With our sport firearm ‘Venator’ we are hitting the spirit of the times,” explains the gunsmith and HTL Ferlach graduate, who has been fascinated by pistols since his school days. “Early on, I noticed that the industry was driving hardly any innovation. Concepts are mostly purely mechanical, and digital elements are completely absent,” says Florian Tripaum.

“Our pistol is, in its basic version, a purely mechanical solution – with an especially low bore axis and rotary-barrel locking. But even now we are offering a vision module with live status display for ammunition level, safety status, battery charge and weapon temperature,” explains the OPOS managing director.

“Reliability is the most crucial criterion for a pistol. These functions contribute significantly to that.” In addition, electronics and mechanics are strictly separated, meaning “there can never be any mutual interference,” explains the OPOS founder.

Many of the function-critical metal parts are produced additively by Styrian specialist M&H. These include, for example, trigger assemblies and control elements that traditionally consist of several milled individual parts.

“In 3D metal printing, we are no longer bound to conventional tooling logic. We can rethink components. That is precisely an advantage in firearms engineering: it results in fewer parts, fewer weak points and, consequently, a longer service life,” explains M&H managing director Patrick Herzig.

“Traditionally, this is assembled from three CNC-manufactured individual parts plus a spring. A solution that breaks comparatively often. At OPOS, on the other hand, the component is created in 3D metal printing from a single piece. That’s more robust and also significantly more efficient for small series,” says Herzig.

“We were able to support this product idea from prototype development all the way to series maturity. In such cases, we can leverage our expertise to the fullest,” Herzig is convinced.

M&H was involved in component optimization from the prototype phase through to series production readiness. Material selection, wall thicknesses, post-processing and production sequence were defined jointly.

Tripaum also views the partnership strategically: “For us it was crucial to have partners like M&H at our side who not only supply, but also think along with us. Component optimization, material selection, manufacturing logic – we developed all of that together. Without this expertise, we could not have realized the project in this timeframe.”

“The defense market is highly regulated and demands absolute precision and reliability. If we can demonstrate here that additive manufacturing stands up in a safety-critical industry, it will open doors for many further applications,” emphasizes Herzig.

“The sport market is our springboard – small, highly specialized, perfect for testing. But our main target remains the defence market,” says Tripaum.

Venator is currently being tested in the sports market; in the medium term, OPOS is targeting applications with special forces and in the defense sector. For M&H, the project serves as a reference that 3D metal printing can also be used in safety-critical applications. Venator thus stands as an example of a development in which additive manufacturing is not only used for prototyping but increasingly for function-critical series components in the weapons and security sector.