Review: Invisi Frame Bike protection

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Some products simply don’t or need or warrant a review, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that we don’t need to talk about them… This product is one of them and if you have any attachment to your bike and want to keep it looking good for as long as possible, then you’ll certainly find this article pretty interesting. What we are looking at here, is a company and the rather unique product in makes. We’ll also look at how it all started and show you how one man’s love of the sport started a growing business – I also got some hands on experience at fitting one of these kits and some top tips to help…

invisi finished 1

Words: Tom Shilvock | Photos: Tom Shilvock & Invisi Frame

Invisi Frame has only been around for three years and was started by Lee Reagan who, like many of us, did the typical thing of over spending on a new custom built bike, to only get back home where reality hit! Having just spent a small fortune on a bike to go and ride and abuse, he wanted to protect his investment and so the journey began… With his knowledge from working in the automotive trade, he hand cut and fitted his first kit. Of course all his mates saw this custom kit and wanted one too and with one of his mates being top “Shire Mon” Sandy Plenty – who has worked in the retail side of the cycle industry for many years – assured Lee that there was a market for this product and should certainly try and make a business out of it. Like any small start up company, Lee has had some lows and thought about giving up, but with help from his wife Vicky, Invisi frame have come out of that tricky first three years smiling and are now selling kits all over the world.

What is Invisi Frame?

What Invisi Frame offers, is a custom cut frame protection kit, that’s manufactured from rather special automotive vinyl film made by 3M called Venture Shield. This is not just some sticky back plastic, but a very high grade crystal clear protective film that has the same property as the paintwork it protects, so even if you do scuff or scratch the film, you can just buff it up with some T-cut and it will bring the film back to life – neat or what?

So the material Invisi frame use is of a very high standard, but there is a lot more to the company than just selling you some strips of clear plastic to slap onto your bike, oh no… Lee from Invisi makes templates for individual frames and what this means, is that every kit is designed specifically for your chosen frame. It is this attention to detail that really make Invisi Frame stand out from the crowd…

invisi finished 2 rs

Every time I see a custom kit, I am amazed at the level of detail that goes into each one, and you really have to run your hands over the frames just to find out where all the hidden bits of the kit are… Like all all things good and proper, it takes time and patience, taking Lee around 6-8 hours to design a template, program it into a computer, cut it and then finish it up by fitting the end product.

Adhesive frame protection is not new and there have been generic kits on the market for some time that do the job they are designed for, but I have also seen a lot of custom kits in my time that individuals have done; some have been very good and some horrific! The Invisi kits are the best and clearest ones I have ever seen and Invisi Frame is a very apt name as you could stand a meter away from a bike and not know that it has even got a kit on at all. Another unique feature of Invisi, is that they also do kits in a matte finish to cover your expensive carbon frame – which is pretty awesome – as if you were to put a gloss kit on a matte frame, it would completely change the look of the finish!

With every custom kit you get a “key sheet” which tells you where every piece goes on the frame and nothing is wasted in the space of the sheet – Lee will add duplicate sections and small cable rub patches out of any room that is left on the sheet. Lee has done all the hard work by making a custom kit and cut to perfection, leaving an end product, consisting of a sheet of high grade film for you to fit to your frame. The only weak link of this product is the fitter who doesn’t want to follow the instructions…

Installing Invisi Frame

I was keen to get Lee to show me the correct way to fit a kit so that it would hopefully take all the stress out of fitting it myself, and show that it can be relativity simple if you follow all the steps and be patient. I have got myself stressed in the past, fitting generic straight sections of protective vinyl to my bike frames thinking that I have only got one chance to put it on right, so seeing a sheet of custom cut shapes to fit to your new pride and joy looks like a very daunting task… So lets have a look at the correct way to fit an Invisi Frame kit, so that you can finish fitting one yourself feeling happy and proud of your work – that and not spending hours swearing and braking out into hot sweats because it isn’t going right!

Invisi set up

What you would need to fit the kit:

– Baby shampoo/bath or a similar Ph neutral liquid soap
Tar and glue remover
– 2x clean lint free rags
– Hair dryer
– Invisi frame 3m squeegee (which comes free with each custom kit)

– A small “squirty” bottle
– A sharp razor blade
– And lot of time!

Don’t try and rush fitting the kit – Lee recommend at least putting 2-4 hours aside to get the job done, so don’t rush it and have a break or do small bits at a time. It doesn’t have to be fitted all on the same day either and enjoy the process…

Preparation:

As with doing anything properly, correct preparation is the key to a good final result. The best/easiest way to fit a kit, is on a bare frame, but there is no reason why you can’t fit a kit to a complete bike – all you might need to do is remove the wheels, cables or simply just un-clip them from the frame.

It goes without saying that the bike should be as clean as you can get it before fitting the kit – Lee recommends that you rub/clean the frame down with Tar and Glue remover (using one of the rags). You could use the soap solution (see wetting the film and frame) but the Tar and glue remover will give you the best results. You might be tempted to use Disc Brake cleaner but this can damage and dull the paint work on the frame so don’t!

Again, make sure you have got plenty of time to fit the kit! Don’t rush it put some tunes on and just take it one step at a time. Lee also recommends that once the kit is fitted, that you need to let it dry out fully for at least 12 hours if not 24 hours. So don’t plan to go out riding your bike as soon as you have fitted the kit either.

Invisi wet1 rs

Wetting the film and frame:

– This stage of the process takes all the guess work out of fitting the kit and gives you the chance to remove the section you are fitting to start again.

– To make the solution, fill up your small squirty bottle with cold water then add a squirt of the baby shampoo/bath and shake it up to mix it together.

– If you are not in the know about fitting big sections of vinyl or graphics, it might seem a bit odd to wet a section of film that you want to stick to your frame, but trust me it works!

– Choose a nice simple flat section to fit first so that you can build up your confidence and get your technique right before tackling more complex sections.

– Spray some of the solution onto your finger tips (so that you don’t get fingerprints on the sticky film), then peal off the section of film that you want to fit. Spray the underneath sticky side of the film and also the top of the film (once both sides are wet you need to remember which side is the sticky one as they will look the same). You then need to squirt the frame with the solution, making sure that all the parts are completely wet…

invisi wet 2 rs

Offering up the Film to the Frame and Fitting It:

– First of all, you need to make sure the frame is at room temperature – if not you would need to warm it up with a hair dryer before you start the wetting process.

– Once you have ‘wetted’ the film and frame, offer the chosen section up to the frame making sure that it is sticky side down. Then you need to centre the section of film onto the frame. Lay the film down on the frame flat, but don’t press it down yet… As the film is wet, you will be able to move it around in order to get it centred. The kits are cut round the profiles of the tubes so it is quite easy to make sure that everything is lined up. Lee has found that with aluminium frames, not each one is exactly the same. On two identical frames of the same size, sometimes the welds can be in slightly different places or a bit fatter. As the kits are cut so precise to the frame you might sometimes find that you need to trim a little bit off the edges for these inconsistencies in the manufacturing. This is less/not a issue on carbon frames as they all come out of the same mould.

– So once you have stood back and are happy that the section of film is in the correct place and will fit without any issues, it is time to fix it down to the frame. Lee says that you have about 8-10 minuets to play about with a wet section of film before it starts to dry out. You can also completely remove it and start again if needed.

– A top tip I was shown by Lee, was to anchor down a point at the top of the section you are fitting – to do this, hold your thumb down with firm pressure for about 10 seconds at the point you want to anchor. The heat transfers from your thumb and the pressure will stick that section of film down onto the frame.

invisi fitting 2 rs

– Now it’s time to get out that squeegee… The idea is to use the squeegee to draw the solution underneath the film and out to the edges so that the adhesive on the film can stick down to the frame.

– As you have wetted the top of the film, this will help the squeegee glide over the top of the film. Whist still holding down the anchor point of the film, use your other hand to pull the squeegee down the length of the centre section of film you are fitting. The amount of pressure you want to be putting on the squeegee is just enough so the edges of the squeegee deform so that it can follow the contours of the frame. Too much pressure will pull the film out of place and to little won’t force the solution out.

– Once you are happy that you have got all the solution out of the top flat/centre section you are working on, it is then time to work the edges down. Again with the squeegee, but this time working from the centre to a outside edge. Keep working the squeegee around the frame until it starts to take. If the section you are fitting goes round a tight curve it will take longer for the film to adhere but just be patient and it will start to stick down.

invisi fitting 1

– Finally on the edges, use the second clean rag to absorb the excess solution and press the edges down. If there is a tricky part of the frame to get to with the squeegee or a uneven/curvy section of frame, you can use the rag in the same way as the squeegee to draw the water out.

– Use this technique for fitting all the major frame sections. Smaller simpler sections like the additional cable rub patches can be fitted dry.

Conclusion

I have seen Lee fit large sections of pre-cut kits dry, but that sort of confidence only comes with fitting so many kits and knowing that you can fit them first time and get them completely in-line and without any air bubbles – I would advise to not even thinking about doing that for your first go! Eventually with patience, you will have the kit fitted, but remember; you need to leave the bike/frame for at least 12 hours, if not 24 hours to make sure the film is completely dry and adhered to the frame… Yes this is time consuming to fit, but it is worth it for the end product and not only that, helping to keep that two wheeled investment looking great and when you go out riding and you hear rocks flying up and hitting your frame, or if you go out on a muddy ride and all you can hear in the noise of your shorts rubbing up against your top tube like you had strapped sand paper to your thighs, you will be glad that you have brought a kit and spent the time to fit it properly.

Invisi frame sell the kits direct from their web site and custom kits start from £50 for the gloss finish and £55.99 for the matte ones. They currently have over 100 kits listed and it’s an ever growing line up – if there isn’t a kit on the site for your frame, Lee will make one for you – it’s as simple as that. Well, almost – the only catch is, that you will need to deliver your frame to Invisi’s HQ and be prepared to leave your frame there for at least 48 hours and collect your bike after. Lee will only charge you for the price of the kit and not for fitting it (which isn’t bad seeing as it would take him about 8hr to do that work). What you get is a custom kit for your frame that’s kit fitted by the master and Invisi get another template to add to there line up. Not bad aye?

Along with their custom kits they also sell generic frame kits, fork lower kits, crank arm kits and dot sheets – all using the 3m Venture Shield film. Invisi frame also supply a number of shops with the kits and some of which offer a fitting service too. It’s also worth pointing out that Santa Cruz UK/Jungle have just stared to sell the kits for most of the Santa Cruz range. If you are still intrigued and want to see a kit in person, then Invisi are also supporting some key rides this year and I’m sure if you see them at the trails and ask them nicely, they will be more than happy to show off their protected frame.

Invisi Team Riders:

Scott Beaumont – Yeti Racing UK

Dave RichardsonYeti Racing UK

Neil DonoghueSPS/NDC

James Green The Trailhead

John-Adams MartinThe Trailhead

Dave SmithThe Trailhead

So there you go, a story about a small company that never really planned to make what they do, but when a product is this good, they didn’t really have much option but to offer us a unique solution to an age old problem. For more information, tap the logo below. Happy trails, Tom.

Invisiframe-Website-Logo-e1366837305398

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