This Artist 3D Printed a Ghostly, Life-Size Motorcycle

For artist Jonathan Brand, the dream of one day owning a motorcycle turned into a reality — just not quite the way he’d probably expected.

Using an original Ultimaker 3D printer and 18 rolls of clear 3mm PLA, Brand designed and 3D printed a life-size bike. “When I lived in Brooklyn, I was looking to buy a 1972 Honda CB500. It’s something I wanted, but that was completely impractical and unlikely for me to ever own.”

He based his design on a Honda bike he purchased online. Using Rhino3D, he traced parts or downloaded them from sites like TurboSquid. “In the end I redrew most of it to make sure all the parts fit and were water tight for 3D printing,” he says.

At about 1mm thick, the parts are very fragile and consist of smaller pieces that Brand logged many careful hours welding together. Transporting the piece from one art exhibit to the next seems tricky, but with the help of some “museum quality foam and some seriously overbuilt shipping crates,” Brand says the motorcycle may be stronger than he’d thought.