Flexible "metamaterials" with precision holes

I imagine that some experimentation on laser safe plastics will be taking up some of my time in the future to make rigid materials flexible. Much like the living hinge.
http://makezine.com/2016/09/14/3d-printed-metamaterials-create-flexible-machines/

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These have been discussed a bit already here (how dare you have a life outside these forums :stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes:):

The main question is how well the plastics hold up to repeated usage.

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Having made simple hinges and stuff with my 3D printer before… not well…

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Dang it! Here I thought I was being original.
I think that plastics in the PE family would do good, like HDPE or UHMWPE, maybe nylon? There are some plastics you can’t 3D print, but can laser cut, that would be fun to experiment with. That is, assuming they are safe to laser cut. Thanks to whoever posted about the copper wire test!

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was it PLA or ABS?

I’ve done both!
PLA tends to be more brittle and will shatter easier.
ABS worked better for anything that I wanted to flex a little more

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