Wilson introduces an SLS basketball for sale

One would like to say that “we have it”. A large consumer goods manufacturer introduces a product fully made using 3D printing technology to the general public. Wilson Sporting Goods Co. is a well-known American manufacturer of sports equipment.

Last year we wrote about the 3D Airless Prototype, a prototype version of what Wilson presents today under the name Wilson Airless Gen1. Sales of the new ball started on February 16 and, of course, it has already sold out, despite the staggering price of $2,500. Unfortunately, it was supposed to be a limited edition and it looks like Wilson kept his word.

However, it is worth writing a few words about the ball itself. Like the prototype, the ball does not need air, and the ball’s elasticity is ensured by the appropriate combination of material and geometry. Support in the development of this product was provided by EOS, the largest percentage of SLS printers in the world. We therefore assume that the ball was made using this technology, although Wilson does not indicate it directly. The exact material from which it was made is also not specified. We can only speculate whether it is PA12, PA11 or maybe TPU.

The sales version has also been improved in several areas:

1. Improved geometry for better resilience
2. For a more efficient production process, holes were added in the structure, which translates into shorter production time. It is probably a smaller surface requiring sintering
3. Each ball has a built-in label on which you could (was) put your own inscription
4. The ball was released in three color variants: white, black and brown.

Regarding this last point, the solution provider is DyeMansion. General Lattice provided the geometry optimization software solutions, and the ball itself was manufactured by SNL Creative in California.

Below is a promotional video:

Source: www.wilson.com, via www.eos.info