Using traditional fabrication techniques, the folks at Signal Snowboards have made decks from all kinds of crazy materials, including glass. But, this month, they’re trying out a radically different fabrication technique to see if you really can make a usable snowboard with a 3D printer.
Given the size limitations of 3D printers, the snowboard they designed is actually more like a puzzle assembled from smaller segments, which is then permanently adhered together using resin. Unfortunately, the flexible nature of the plastic produced by the printer meant the team had to add several steel-reinforcing rails to keep the board rigid enough to ride. And given the rough finish of most 3D printed objects, the snowboard wasn’t the fastest thing to hit the slopes.
But there’s certainly potential, particularly if Signal Snowboards can find a happy medium between traditional and more modern fabrication techniques. [Signal Snowboards]