How we designed, tested and created our mountain bike frame protection
When we got into mountain bike frame protection as a product, let’s just say we went to the end of the earth to do our research. Frame protection might seem simple, just throw some stickers on your bike or wrap it in some off the shelf tape but there’s a lot more to it and riders are spending their time researching products and companies so we wanted to get it right. So here’s how we did it to give you some insights on what goes on behind the scenes.
To start, we ordered pretty much any product related to mountain bike frame protection on the market. It wasn’t a cheap exercise. Some of them are a bit pricey but we needed to know what we were getting into. We got them all sent to our Australian HQ and got to work.
Next up, we applied all the types of frame protection to the bikes we ride most often and tested those products over a season or so and we beat the hell out of them. We ride a lot and the Australian environment can be unforgiving. Harsh outdoor conditions, blinding sun, smashing rain, super jagged rocks etc. A great place to test the limits of frame protection.
At the same time we were testing and bashing our bikes around, we sent the same products (in some cases just sections) to our friends in different parts around the world and they beat the hell out of them too and sent us their stories and feedback.
Next we did the nerdy thing and went to the depths of the internet. The other world we riders live. We trawled the web for peoples thoughts on products and brands. We dug deep into blogs, reviews, comments, YouTubers, you name it. We went hunting for the gaps. (Gaps as in products, not the ones you try to make on your bike). After we did the digital research, we went analog and spoke to loads of riders and local bike shops and also had some interesting conversations with the guys who service rental bikes at some busy trails. We'll save those stories for another blog post. Once we figured out what we needed to do, we got to work.
As we were starting we didn't have the big expensive equipment we needed up front so we went to numerous manufacturers (not easy as this was during that pandemic thing). We talked to chemical engineers / adhesive experts (nice people, like to drink a lot). We were amazed at how high tech and what some of these manufacturers can churn out. Looking back, it was a fun exercise and by the end of it we had a stack of materials. And some new friends too.
After all that, some poking, stretching and scratching we were finally set on our product and got it where it needed to be. So we ran some samples and got to testing, again. We beat the hell out of those prototypes too.
After 2 iterations we landed on what we think is the best mountain bike frame protection material you can find, DIAMONDFLEX™ (yes, slightly biased). We’re super happy with the results and the feedback has been great. We made a nice package explaining what it does. A little window on the front so you can touch the material and BAM! we're in the game.
So we were sitting there with a load of product but nobody knew about it (or us!) so we weren't going anywhere get us far so we embarked on the next part of the journey, getting it to market. We've been super busy doing that but that's the blog post that's coming next.
If you want to get some killer frame protection for your bike head to our store. As a small company we really appreciate the support and we'll do everything we can to make our customers 100% satisfied. You can message our founders any time here if you have questions.
So there you have it. Easy, eh? We plan to do more behind the scenes type posts so sign up to our Newsletter below 👇 (Friends, with Benefits?) or follow us on Facebook and Instagram. See you on the trails!
