# Splitboards, the poorman's heli



## krashhadley (Mar 13, 2008)

I got tired of snowshoing up whenever I go b////////////////ackcountry snowboarding, so this year I'm building a splitboard. 
]This will be an as dinero allows kind of project, since I work as a snowboard instructor. So it could take a little while. But check out the pics attached, I'm planning on cutting it tonight, so if anyone has experience in building these crazy contraptions drop me some wisdom. merry christXmas to me!!!


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## krashhadley (Mar 13, 2008)

BTW: This is an early-mid 90's Burton Air, and it has a thin but wide (about 1"" inch) aluminum plate on the nose as well as a thinner one on the tail. I guess I'm planning on just cutting it w/ a hack saw, but if anyone has any better ideas let me know.


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## caspermike (Mar 9, 2007)

buy an already made split board from a board shop


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## FLOWTORCH (Mar 5, 2004)

Hell no dont use a hacksaw. You'll never get a straight cut. Skilsaw with a new blade would be better. 

Just listen to the man....

The Essentials: Backcountry Builds with Basich - ESPN Video


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## freexbiker (Jul 18, 2005)

If I may hijack this thread I Have a question to ask all you splitboard nut jobs...
What Kind of poles do you use and where do you put em when you are decending? Do you get something like the BD flicklocks or something?


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## FLOWTORCH (Mar 5, 2004)

You guessed it. Black diamond expedition poles. They easily fit in a pack.


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## BarryDingle (Mar 13, 2008)

Yup,the BD Expeditions break-down to pack size

Edit; And don't use a hacksaw!!


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## krashhadley (Mar 13, 2008)

*home-mades are cheap and fun*

Caspermike, I think you're missing the point, I want to build this thing myself for two reasons, 1st- pre-made splitboards are muy expensive, and 2nd- it will be a ton of fun. besides most companies that make split boards don't have the design and production down as well, except burton and venture who both make their own versions of Voile's design. But once agin they are really expensive. because I already own the board this set up will cost me about $310 vs $850+ for a brand new complete split board set-up.


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## raftus (Jul 20, 2005)

Great video. This is a cool idea, I might just have to hack up one of my old boards for this.


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## nmalozzi (Jun 19, 2007)

What do you do about protecting the core? Seems like a wood core board would not fair well with it's gutty-warts exposed.


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## ManuelHung (Jul 28, 2005)

I hate my split board! I would much rather snowshoe! You'll see!


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## BarryDingle (Mar 13, 2008)

ManuelHung said:


> I hate my split board! I would much rather snowshoe! You'll see!


 
Wow. First time i've ever heard that.


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## crane (Oct 25, 2006)

after watching him cut that board with the skil saw, i would definitely pre cut the edging on both front and back of the board with a hack saw to avoid so much of the edging getting pulled off.


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## fishbowl (Feb 15, 2007)

Couple of answers: Used to ride homemade splits years ago(now ride the Burton). 1. DO NOT use a hacksaw. Skil saw is simplest. You can even clamp a 1x4 guide to the board. Seal it with a couple of coats of a Spar Varnish. It is an exterior varnish that remains flexible. Also. I always cut 4x4 boards. I would almost consider cutting the Burton just off center to avoid blasting through the inserts for a cleaner edge and cut.
.......Sure splits aren't the same as your everyday board but they work killer. Fvck snowshoeing. Now that sucks.


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## ZGjethro (Apr 10, 2008)

I'm not a snowboarder but I have skinned and skied with boarders on many occasions. I Know one guy who was our guide on a Canadian hut trip who skied and rode. He built a jig so he could get a perfect cut on a tablesaw. In softer snow it did not matter that he did not have an inner edge on his homemade setup. He climbs around a million vert feet a year, seriously! We did 40,000+ in the week we were up there. The only negative for the board is the slow changover from skinning to skiing, but a practiced rider gets it down pretty quickly. They are heavier than one's mtn board, but way faster than snowshoeing. I am always impressed with a good riders ability to make crappy snow look good. They seem like great bc tools.


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## FLOWTORCH (Mar 5, 2004)

fishbowl said:


> .......Sure splits aren't the same as your everyday board but they work killer. Fvck snowshoeing. Now that sucks.





> ...In softer snow it did not matter that he did not have an inner edge on his homemade setup. He climbs around a million vert feet a year, seriously! We did 40,000+ in the week we were up there. The only negative for the board is the....


Amen. It seems so many people still question splitboards and DIY splitboards as a legitimate BC weapon. Bullocks. Your a total f'in noob if you do. It may not look aesthetically right when cut, it may seem sacriligious to cut a board like it ruins the boards riding character, it may sound heavy, whatever but all in all it comes down to who is riding it. 

Malozzi, wood core boards fair fine. You should be riding pow in the backcountry anyway. Honestly I havent epoxied mine since day one and after 4 pretty hard seasons on that board the core is just fine and will still hold an edge pretty well on icy traverses. 

As ZG said, the only real downside to splits is the transition. Even then it should take roughly a whoppin 2minutes. I've never skied with anyone where it's been a problem and if it was a problem I wouldnt be hangin out with em anyway. 

Snowshoes? Really.


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## krashhadley (Mar 13, 2008)

after cutting the board down the middle you have to seal the entire length of both the newly exposed edges with a flexible epoxy or wood veneer. from the research i've done it also seems like a good idea to seal all the holes you drill with epoxy as well.


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## nmalozzi (Jun 19, 2007)

Sweet. I have an old board sitting at home I might do this to over the course of the winter. Probably won't be ready until next season since I already have a bunch of other projects halfway done. 

Just to clarify. I was more concerned with the wood core post riding. IE sitting in the back of your car as any remaining powder turns to water. I guess that can be solved though by taking a lil extra time to get most of the snow off before heading home. Thanks for all the pointers, this is a great thread.


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## Phillips (Feb 19, 2004)

Learn how to ski and go AT. Believe me. . . I love to snowboard but nothing beats the efficiency of an AT setup in the BC. I only ride if I'm on a cat, hiking Berthoud/loveland Pass, lift service.



krashhadley said:


> I got tired of snowshoing up whenever I go b////////////////ackcountry snowboarding, so this year I'm building a splitboard.
> ]This will be an as dinero allows kind of project, since I work as a snowboard instructor. So it could take a little while. But check out the pics attached, I'm planning on cutting it tonight, so if anyone has experience in building these crazy contraptions drop me some wisdom. merry christXmas to me!!!


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## krashhadley (Mar 13, 2008)

Sure AT skiing is sick, but even the efficiency can't beat sweet pow turns on a board.


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## Phillips (Feb 19, 2004)

I agree with you. . . when I'm on my board in some sick pow there is no place I'd rather be. Fortunately I feel the same way on my skis. Its fun to be able to bounce around from the two "modalities" and know you can rip the same lines either way. Snowboarding has allowed me to see the hill differently. Instead of rippin the fall line you can sorta play with it more. The new wide skis (95mm and up) really allow for big carves and speed just like a board.

In order to be relevant, I guess I should address the topic. Snowshoeing definately limits your day to modest ascents, so splitting is the way to go if your deadset on riding. Voile makes a good product as I'm sure some of the other compainies do. I wouldn't mind having one for nice weather days when I don't have to be out of my gloves for 7 minutes smutzin with ice and metal. It's always a little hard and pretty painful watching your friends struggle with the transformation. Most you folk who have good equipment and experience can do it pretty quick though. 

Here's my perfect world: Sledding and snowboarding go together well. They are both kinda ******* and fun as hell. You get lots of vert with no touring. Of course sleds are dirty as hell and breakdown all the time so sometimes you gotta resort to car shuttling, the resorts or "earnin the turnin". I guess what I'm sayin is that instead of wasting precious energy on always having to ride, give skiing a shot. It's fun. You'll see parts of the hill that you may have never seen. 

I Still hate skiers though 

Kent



krashhadley said:


> Sure AT skiing is sick, but even the efficiency can't beat sweet pow turns on a board.


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## krashhadley (Mar 13, 2008)

For the record I am in fact trying to learn to tele, I did pretty good last season on blues, but I still can't ride powder on them. i skied for a long time, but when I discovered snowboarding my whole perspective on life changed, I felt like I was home. So I ride, a lot. It's why I work for hardly any pay. I don't get paid so much in dollars as in pow lines. At least that was the case last year.

Anyway, here's a pic of my board now. I'm committed, I have to buy the split kit or I just ruined my best pow board.


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## fishbowl (Feb 15, 2007)

Sweet. Did you split it just to the side of the center inserts? It looks like it in the pic.


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## krashhadley (Mar 13, 2008)

We actually cut right through the center inserts, you just have to go slow with a good sharp blade. It is slightly off center, but we're talkin millmeters here so I'd say it turned out pretty good. one side is at a slight angle in the pic making the other one look a little wider


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## fishbowl (Feb 15, 2007)

Glad it worked out. I have always been curious about ripping a Burton. You'll love it.


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## caspermike (Mar 9, 2007)

ive never skiied and i agree with krashhadley. surfing the white wave....


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## rm&p (Mar 24, 2007)

krashhadley you should go to voile-usa.com and check out the split your own board video they stole from Sports Illustrated or somewhere. It's relatively short but you might glean some info from it. The Voile pop pin poles have worked pretty well for me and they're relatively cheap too.


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