How To Make A Splitboard
anniefast
- January 08 2009
- 9,016 views
- 29 comments
[This article originated with a letter from a reader, the info was too good to wait on for the Mail column, so here it is.]
Hey TransWorld,
I thought I would just drop a quick line to tell you that the most recent issue is absolutely killer. You said it, an interview, splitboarding and travel issue all together. Much appreciation for featuring the Mt. Whitney article. As a backcountry enthusiast, it’s pretty awesome to have you guys give some attention to alternate methods of backcountry travel. Quick question though, you quoted Josh Dirksen talking about his ‘homemade’ splitboard and that it ripped pretty well. Could you hook some information about the homemade-ness of his setup and how he did it? Thanks alot. Keep up the good work.
Cheers,
Andrew C.
North BC
Josh’s Answer:
Hello Andrew.
Glad to hear that you liked the new issue of TransWorld, the idea of splitboarding, and the idea of making your own splitboard. My friends and I all had a great time contributing to the issue as well as personally making all of our splitboards. The splitboards we made opened up a lot of new terrain for us last year. There’s no doubt that cutting a perfectly good snowboard in half is a bit scary, but keep in mind it’s much easier than you think. So far, I have seen about 20 homemade splitboards, and in the end all of them rode really well and held together just fine. Of course, some of them came out prettier than others, but luckily it is not a beauty contest.
To make a splitboard you will need a board and bindings, the Volle kit ($150) and a set of skins ($100).
If you plan on making your own splitboard, I think it’s important to find a board that is durable and rides well in the pow (longer length, big nose, solid contruction). Once you drill all of the holes for your splitboard bindings there’s no real way to change your stance so make sure you have the correct stance locked in before you start cutting. The board that I rode on the cover of TWS was a 6 month old Salomon Sick Stick 163. I already had the perfect stance setup and I knew that board liked to rally in the pow.
The next step is cutting the board in half from the tip to tail, which is done using a circular saw and a steady hand. Feel free to get some help on this step if needed. All of the other steps you can confidently do by yourself, but the slicing seems to be the most important step. You just want to make sure it’s pretty much a straight line. So, just clamp the board securely on a table, draw an even line down the center of the base with a magic marker and get ready to chop. I personally start out by sawing a small 1/4 inch swallow tail through the edge on the tail and nose with a hack saw because it looks cool and it gives the circular saw a cleaner cut.
The next step is purchasing the Volle homemade splitboard kit. There are instruction in the box with everything you need to get the job done. My advice for putting the board back together is finding a quality epoxy that stays flexible in cold conditions. If you pick some up at the local hardware store, it will most likely slowly chip off over the season. No harm done, but it just looks bad. The best idea is to go down to your local snowboard or ski shop and see if they have an idea of a durable and flexible epoxy that you could purchase from them or order online. You don’t need much, just a thin layer of epoxy over all the exposed wood.
The final step, is taking your fresh new splitboard into the backcountry to get all of the blower pow that nobody else seems to want. There’s plenty to go around. Just make sure you choose areas that are closed to motor vehicles, there’s no reason trying to outrun a couple of your buddies on their snowmobiles. Also remember to bring a friend, avalanche tranciever, probe, shovel and most importantly the knowledge to use them all. Have fun and stay safe.
See you out there,
Josh
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January 8th, 2009 at 2:15 pm
you guys should posted this video on making a splitboard too. http://smokinsnowboards.com/ scroll down and Mike Basich takes you through the whole process.
January 8th, 2009 at 6:23 pm
ok ive heard alot about splitboards lately…whats the deal why are they so good for powder?
January 8th, 2009 at 6:42 pm
WICKED!!
the question I have is what bindings will be used for this split board. in the video Mike has a binding, but will my traditional bindings work find and mount properly to use both ways? or is there a specific binding I should purchase?
January 8th, 2009 at 6:52 pm
Because you can hike in powder easily with the ski’s. Then put it together and slash pow.
January 9th, 2009 at 8:26 am
ill second that!
January 9th, 2009 at 10:45 am
probably because you live on the east coast where there is no pow to be had. more for the rest of us. stay put shreddin ice, son.
January 9th, 2009 at 11:28 am
yep, that’s my concern as well. If I can adjust any binding to this system, I’ll order that kit right away even though I’m from Germany. But I need to know that there’s not another 200 bucks for special bindings coming up
January 9th, 2009 at 1:23 pm
I second that…
January 9th, 2009 at 9:45 pm
amen to that. haha all the kids on the east dont even know what powder is thats why they dont get the split board.
January 11th, 2009 at 8:45 pm
you can get 0 (f) rated bags at target for 14 bucks. i have one and it sucks because you basicly cant use it unless you are outside its so hot.
January 19th, 2009 at 7:03 pm
i love making manifold quesodias!
January 20th, 2009 at 4:52 pm
We shred pow in the midwest, theres pow, just not a shitload, so im sure its better than here
February 3rd, 2009 at 4:23 pm
you can use any type of binder that has 4 hole pattern. they mount directly to binder plates that come with the voile kit via normal binding screws and uncluded t/nuts. easy.
February 5th, 2009 at 11:34 am
is it just me or does hiking that high just for a minute of riding down not really seem that worth it?
it would be fun, but it doesnt really seem like you’d get more than one or two runs for a whole day out there.
February 5th, 2009 at 1:15 pm
man, whats with hatin on the east? theres been plenty of fresh riders that have come out of the east. and i was waist deep at smuggs just the other day… we just dont get fresh, wide open lines like the west, we actually need to have skill to avoid trees. dont hate, riding is riding, no matter where you are!
February 17th, 2009 at 2:04 pm
split boards are so stupid
i think it kind of goes against snowboarding
February 19th, 2009 at 4:18 pm
Well i think the idea of the split board is great.. To think of hiking up a mountain to a point that you can choose to ride down is just brilliant. Don’t slag it off unless you have tried it first…..
February 27th, 2009 at 3:18 pm
Hay Random,
When snowboarding started, we were baned from the resorts and groomed trails, pipes and jibs wernt even thought of yet and riders were forced to ride in the backcountry. So actualy, resort riding goes against snowboardings roots and splitboarding to ride epic runs in the BC is getting back to them (roots).
March 1st, 2009 at 12:27 am
random is a straight hater
March 1st, 2009 at 12:29 am
split boards are tight and doin a bit of cross country is way better then hikin it carryin your board
March 5th, 2009 at 6:32 pm
wow that
March 15th, 2009 at 8:45 pm
he should write a cookbook and start his own cooking show
March 15th, 2009 at 8:46 pm
i like to ski, skiing is dope!
April 14th, 2009 at 10:23 am
Kyle,
You’re missing the point. It’s not about how many runs you get, its about the quality of those runs and the adventure, camaraderie, challenge, untracked snow, accountability, etc…
Chris,
You can use any 4-hole binding with the Voile system and they work fine. The Spark bindings (splitboard specific) just take it as step further by being lighter, more responsive, closer to the board, and increasing torsional rigidity.
August 4th, 2009 at 2:25 pm
Ive been riding resort for a couple of year, started BC 2 years ago.You can’t compare resort to BC, 4 runs un BC can beat a whole season in a resort. Just for an example, you’ll never or at least almost never have the feeling that if you fail your dead. Hiking up is a challenge in BC sometime, like hiking the top of a couloir at 50 degrees, with a bootpack of only 1 inch.
August 19th, 2009 at 7:58 am
Duuude! Thanks so much, I’ve been looking all day for what kind of binding was required for the Voile system! I found information on everything else about the system which is amazing for afficionado shredders that want to get a little creative with their old gear! Thanks
September 30th, 2009 at 3:57 am
Great article, am thinkign of throwing together a split board for the backcountry stashs in Alberta/ BC Canada. Maybes with my old forum board, hopefully it has enough nose float though
Cheers
October 8th, 2009 at 4:22 pm
So true…