If you accept gun control you accept that the existence of tools and ability to own and use tools are not morally neutral. And in any society you might want to live in, you probably don't want people coming into your hangouts and places of work swinging around a weapon and showing off how you've managed to improve the guns destructive output 45%. Sure it makes it better at target shooting or something, but it makes it a ton better at other things too. Doing it out of academic interest doesn't make it less true. Especially if you licensed tech from Raytheon to do it, and they burned a few rainforest down in the process. Academic interest is not morally neutral. Tools are not morally neutral. And who you're really empowering won't care why.