Guests at this yr’s RAPID + TCT occasion in Detroit obtained to see an surprising showstopper at Farsoon’s sales space: a superbly restored, vintage-inspired bike often called the Pennsylvania 8. Nestled amongst industrial-grade printers and high-tech shows, this traditional magnificence stood out not just for its design, but additionally for the high-tech improve behind its restoration, all because of metallic 3D printing.
The mission is the results of a collaboration between Farsoon and Competitors Distributing, a Pennsylvania-based firm that makes a speciality of vintage, pre-war (Nineteen Thirties and earlier) Harley-Davidson and Indian bike components. It’s now utilizing metallic 3D printing to restore hard-to-find elements for its bikes.
However the Pennsylvania 8 isn’t a restored bike; it’s a brand-new construct that was made to appear and feel like a Nineteen Twenties board monitor racer. It’s based mostly on the model of early Harley-Davidson 8-valve racing bikes, which have been highly effective and uncommon of their time. Every part was constructed from scratch, aside from one unique piece: the 1926 engine case. Utilizing that actual classic half as a place to begin, they recreated the remaining utilizing conventional craftsmanship and instruments like metallic 3D printing, staying true to the design and spirit of the unique machines with out copying anyone particular bike.
The Pennsylvania 8 bike.
From Out of date to On-the-Highway
For the workforce behind Competitors Distributing, preserving these bikes is a ardour. These bikes, some courting again over a century, are extra than simply collector’s gadgets; they’re items of historical past. However restoring them isn’t straightforward, and the most important problem is at all times discovering the components.
“A few of these bikes are over 100 years previous and too helpful to experience—even when museums allow you to take them out,” defined Sean Jackson, who leads operations at Competitors Distributing. “One of many greatest challenges in classic bike restoration is sourcing body elements, significantly forged components, that are extremely uncommon and tough to search out.”
Cylinder element for a motorbike engine.
That’s the place 3D printing is available in. Jackson turned to additive manufacturing (AM) and Farsoon to bridge the hole. Working with Farsoon’s laser powder mattress fusion (LPBF) FS200M metallic printer, Jackson, together with engineer and inventor Kevin O’Neal and his workforce, can now scan unique components (some cracked, rusted, or bent with age) and recreate precise replicas of irreplaceable elements. It restores these bikes for the street once more with out erasing the small print that make them historic.
Classic Bikes, Fashionable Instruments
For Competitors Distributing, this meant they might replicate hard-to-find components like cylinder heads, connecting rods, and exhaust pipes rapidly and precisely. Even higher, the workforce isn’t excited about preserving these bikes behind glass—they need them out on the street, operating at full pace.
“These components aren’t only for museum bikes. We need to make them accessible to the common fanatic who desires to construct, experience and expertise early bikes like they did 100 years in the past,” stated Jackson.
The classic bike group is a smaller a part of the general bike world within the U.S., but it surely’s nonetheless fairly huge. The Vintage Motorbike Membership of America has over 12,000 members who give attention to bikes which might be no less than 35 years previous. And occasions just like the AMA Classic Motorbike Days usher in round 40,000 folks yearly. Nonetheless, one of many greatest challenges for followers is discovering the appropriate components to repair their bikes up. That is the place metallic 3D printing makes an enormous distinction. It helps recreate hard-to-find components with nice accuracy, in order that these previous bikes will be loved on the street once more.
The Pennsylvania 8 bike.
A Printer That Doesn’t Cease
The workforce introduced metallic 3D printing in-house in late 2024. Since then, Farsoon’s FS200M machine hasn’t stopped. It’s now operating virtually continuous, serving to them serve clients world wide.
“We’ve had it since October 2024 and actually, time flies when the machine is consistently operating. With it, we are able to now ship high-quality, end-use components in days as a substitute of months—and most significantly, our clients love the outcomes,” famous Jackson.
The workforce has taken on tasks like re-creating elements from a 1928 Rudge bike (an iconic British bike identified for its racing legacy) and producing customized forged frames—components that may in any other case have been almost inconceivable to supply utilizing conventional strategies.
They primarily print in 316 stainless-steel, though they’re additionally exploring aluminum, 17-4 stainless, and even titanium. In the long run, they hope to scale up manufacturing and dedicate particular machines to designated supplies, guaranteeing even larger effectivity and consistency in manufacturing.
The Pennsylvania 8 bike.
One shocking perk is Farsoon’s software program, which permits customers to examine in on the printer from their telephones. They will alter powder settings, or take away components from a construct, with out canceling the entire job.
“The Farsoon software program has been an enormous bonus. I can monitor and management prints remotely from my cellphone. That flexibility has saved us loads of time and supplies,” explains Jackson, whose workforce of engineers and mechanics tailored rapidly, mastering the challenges of working with the irregular, non-symmetrical shapes typical of vintage bike components in only a few weeks.
The Pennsylvania 8 bike.
This work is a nod to tinkerers, who worth machines not only for how they run however for what they characterize. By combining metallic 3D printing with early Twentieth-century bike design, Competitors Distributing is making it potential for a brand new technology to expertise the craftsmanship of the previous.
All photos courtesy of Competitors Distributing and Farsoon.
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