Titans of CNC creates isogrid style skateboards using 6061 aluminium

Titans of CNC, the manufacturer and CNC educational institute, created an isogrid-style skateboard using a 50-pound slab of 6061 aluminium for aerospace-grade ollies. An isogrid is a solid metal construction with one face on which triangular sections have been machined away, leaving a thin skin on one side and a triangular lattice on the other.

The technique, developed by McDonnell Douglas, produces sturdy, stiff, and lightweight parts, but it is too costly and impractical for mass production.

The resident machinist, Barry Setzer, measured a typical laminated skateboard deck, entered the measurements into Solidworks, and then calculated how much material would need to be removed from the aluminium component to weigh the same as the 3.4-pound laminated one.

Setzer next used high-end equipment made by DN Solutions called the BVM 5700 vertical machining centre to CNC-machine the design using Mastercam. Technically speaking, it is true that the absence of both sides makes it different from a traditional isogrid.