The R-C-M-P say that despite the increasing prevalence of 3-D-printed firearms, they don't have a database on the weapons also known as ghost guns.
They say they are aware of several seizures of ghost guns in Canada, but don't collect statistics.
The Mounties also say they are aware of a range of available 3-D print files used to create different types of firearms, including assault rifles.
Blake Brown, a historian at Saint Mary's University in Halifax, says a database is needed to help keep track of privately made ghost guns, which are easy to make and hard to trace.
Possession of an unlicensed ghost gun is illegal in Canada, but there is nothing in the law that prohibits a person from possessing a digital blueprint to make a 3-D firearm.
Brown suggests ghost-gun manufacturers and distributors might be discouraged if they faced stiffer criminal penalties.
A.J. Somerset, the Ontario-based author of ``Arms: The Culture and Credo of the Gun,'' says it's only a matter of time before they are used more often in crimes ranging from gas station robberies to murder.
And because they are easy to make and dispose of, he says they can be manufactured for a specific crime.