SPEED
It is a pity that with all the advancement of cycling products over the recent years, the most common attachment system of a bicycle saddle bag still comes down to something that was invented back in 1950's - Velcro. Although there are several quick release saddle bag solutions in the market today but they are either limited to certain saddle brands or required additional attachment mount on the saddle. These limitations making swapping one saddle bag across multiple bikes a hassle.
SNAP.B is powered by VOUEL's patent pending innovative F.A.S.T. (Full Adaptive Snap Technology) attachment system. It is blazing fast, mind-blowing fast, world's fastest fast.
With SNAP.B, attachment or removal of saddle bag can be done in a snap, literally.
STORAGE
One of SNAP.B design goals is to have the best in class storage space and yet remains unobtrusively compact. Or in other words, it needs to be spaciously compact.
This was a huge challenge as compactness and spaciousness are two completely opposite requirements. The shape of SNAP.B was revised many times in order to achieve absolute best storage capacity to form factor ratio. A lot of creative thoughts have been put in to utilize every available white space underneath the saddle. Every shapes and curves serve a functional purpose to maximize storage. The ability of SNAP.B to attach snug to the saddle and extend its storage into spaces between saddle rails maximizes its storage capacity while maintaining its compact form factor.
This meticulous pursue of absolute storage space makes a difference between packing a full size tire level vs a flimsy one, a CO2 inflator with flow control vs one without, a full function multi-tool with chain tool vs a compact one with limited tools, spare tube as is vs having to repackage it to squeeze into the saddle bag.
SNAP.B also has an innovative Flexi-Frame + Sleeve concept that creates flexible storage. Its Flexi-Frame design allows users to decide the storage capacity that they need by opening or closing the Flexi-Frame. Users can choose between compact mode or extended mode with matching sleeves to determine SNAP.B storage space.
A quick glance of what SNAP.B is able to carry in its compact mode vs extended mode.
SNAP.B compact mode (Flexi-Frame closed + compact sleeve)
- 1x road spare tube
- 2x 16g CO2 canister
- 1x CO2 dispenser with flow control
- 2x full size tire levers
- 1x multi-tools with chain tool
- 1x patch kit
- Misc items like rubber gloves, energy gel, zip ties, and spare dollar bill.
SNAP.B extended mode (Flexi-Frame opened + extended sleeve)
- 2x road spare tube OR 1x mountain spare tube
- 2x 25g CO2 canister
- 1x CO2 dispenser with flow control
- 2x full size tire levers
- 1x multi-tools with chain tool
- 1x patch kit
- Misc items like rubber gloves, energy gel, zip ties and spare dollar bill.
VERSATILE
SNAP.B versatility is second to none.
It doesn't need specific saddle to work. It is widely compatible to most saddles without needing any additional mounting hardware to be installed. As long as the saddle has two rails with typical saddle shell, whether it is round metal rails or oversize oval carbon rails, cut-out or non cut-out saddles, SNAP.B will just snap on to them without fail. Its tool-less installation paired with its amazing F.A.S.T. attachment speed elevate saddle bag ease of use to the next level.
Oh, we haven't even mention about SNAP.B amazing X-Port.
X-Port is SNAP.B's accessory port that allows users to attach companion accessories to their SNAP.B saddle bag. The use of saddle bag typically prevents cyclists from attaching another bicycle accessories like rear light or mud guard to the saddle. That's not the case for SNAP.B.
The mud-guard and action camera mount companion accessories will be launched together with SNAP.B at Kickstarter as part of SNAP.B bundle package. Rear light like the See.Sense ICON that has a GoPro mount would be able to attach to SNAP.B X-Port as well via SNAP.B action camera mount.
With X-Port the possibilities of SNAP.B companion accessories are endless.
STYLISH
Some say saddle bags have no place on a bike. Saddle bags are known to be anything but stylish. They are typically dorky and boring. They just ruin the clean aesthetic of the bike.
We disagree.
It is undeniable that fashion has made its way to the cycling industry. The bling on cycling kits nowadays is comparable to major fashion wears on the runway. SNAP.B with its interchangeable sleeves pave the way for some creative styling ideas on saddle bag. Your imagination is the limit here!
Although only black color sleeve is being offered during this Kickstarter period, many colors and designs are in the pipeline to fulfill your wildest styling dream. This will be the very first time saddle bag is no longer boring!
SNAP.B is also designed to be unobtrusively compact. It sits high up and snug underneath the saddle thus has minimal impact to overall bike aesthetic. This also give the side benefits of avoiding any bib rub during cycling.
SNAP.B vs Others
An overview of how SNAP.B stacks up against other saddle bags that are in the market today.
SNAP.B F.A.S.T. Attachment System
SNAP.B patent pending F.A.S.T. attachment system primarily consist of three key components:
- First is the T-bar at the front. This is the stabilizing bar which also acts as a guide during the attachment to the saddle.
- Second are the attachment clips on the left and right that attach to the saddle rails.
- Third are the adaptive clips that provide upward force during the engagement. These adaptive clips also give SNAP.B its ability to adapt to different saddle rail sizes.
Rattling Noise Elimination
We understand the concern regarding rattling noise because we hate rattling noise too! Whether the rattling noise is coming from the attachment system or the cargo inside the saddle bag, it is not a pleasant noise to listen to during your ride. When we were developing SNAP.B, we knew rattling noise is one of the key issues that we must address. There are three ways we are tackling this issue:
- First, the F.A.S.T. attachment system T-bar and adaptive clips were designed to be springy. They absorb vibrations thus eliminate any rattling effects. They also minimize any vibration transfers to the cargo inside the saddle bag.
- Second, we chose to use the frame + sleeve concept and not a hard shell. The softer material property of sleeve minimize any rattling noise on contact.
- Third, the sleeve design has folded middle section. This design allows the sleeve to be compact and snug when lesser items are inside the saddle bag and slightly expand when it is in full load. When the listed items above are packed into the saddle bag, they fit snugly inside the saddle bag without any room for rattling.
SNAP.B F.A.S.T. attachment system robustness
SNAP.B F.A.S.T. attachment system robustness is one of the most common question we got. Is it secure? Would the saddle bag fall halfway through the ride? These are the exact questions we asked ourselves when developing SNAP.B and its F.A.S.T. attachment system.
In order for us to thoroughly test the F.A.S.T. attachment system robustness, on top of numerous testing done on actual outdoor riding, we created a test jig. It has the sole purpose of stress testing SNAP.B at the most extreme road conditions. It consists of a 3D printed miniature bike front triangle frame with a seat post and a saddle attached. A high torque AC motor drive a custom wheel with bumps spinning at 200 rpm. The bumps interact with the wheel underneath the frame as the motor spins to simulate extreme road surface bumpiness.
We have ran SNAP.B full load on the test jig for over 1000 hours now (and counting) and its F.A.S.T. attachment system remains strong and solid. We have not experienced any attachment mechanism failure both on the road and the repeated stress testing on the test jig.
Is SNAP.B and its F.A.S.T. attachment system robust? The answer is definitely YES!
Checkout SNAP.B and the test jig in action below.
Funding Allocation
A huge portion of the funding from this Kickstarter project will go into the injection mold tooling for SNAP.B frame and its companion accessories. We will leverage the remaining funding for the sleeves die cut design and fees associate to Kickstarter and rewards shipment fulfillment services.
We've also added risk mitigation factors to account for other variables like Kickstarter failed payments or unforeseen costs incur with fixing or remaking our injection mold tooling.
When Will I Get One?
We planned to ship our first SNAP.B production batch to our early bird backers on October 2019. Below is our key milestones timeline from Kickstarter launched to shipping SNAP.B to our backers.
Gallery
About Us
VOUEL is an old French word for vowel. A-E-I-O-U symbolizes an idea that we are pursuing:
Attain Exciting Innovations On Usability
It all started when its founder Chee was not able to find a saddle bag that fulfill his needs. He was building up his dream bike at that time. He hand picked all the components that went into that bike. When the bike was finally put together, he can't bare to see a dorky saddle bag hanging on his dream bike and ruins its clean aesthetics. He started looking for what's available out there. He tried many saddle bags but none of them is the worthy companion for his dream bike.
Being an engineer, solving problems is in his DNA. If a saddle bag for his dream bike doesn't exist then he is determined to create one. Starting from scratch, he conceptualized what a perfect saddle bag would be. He wasn't impressed by the saddle bag attachment system that exist today. That inspired him to invent the innovative F.A.S.T. attachment system and many hardworking days and nights after that, SNAP.B was born.
At VOUEL, we have a laser sharp focus on product usability. As cyclists, we create products that we would love to use ourselves. We do not settle for good enough, it has to be the best. We truly believe cyclists innovations pave the way for the ultimate cycling experience.
Risks and challenges
Realistically, here are the 4 most likely challenges to this project being successfully completed after funding:
1. Manufacturing problems
Manufacturing process involving injection molding can be complex and challenging, especially when we are creating something that have never been done before. Designing SNAP.B and its accessories for injection molding manufacturing process might have challenges that are beyond our anticipation. That's why we are engaging several experienced manufacturers with great track record to mitigate any problems with SNAP.B manufacturability proactively.
2. Design flaws
While we have gone to every effort to predict how SNAP.B will work in the real world, the reality is, unpredictable problems with the design might still come up. There is a risk, that one of these could be problematic. Having said that, SNAP.B prototypes were tested for robustness with actual outdoor cycling clocking more than 15,000 combined miles to date as well as stress testing on our test jig for >1000 combined hours now. We are confident of the F.A.S.T. attachment mechanism and the overall robustness of SNAP.B.
3. Schedule delay
Although there are buffers in our project timeline to anticipate any issues associate with manufacturing or design, we may experienced further delay longer than our anticipation should an unexpected major issue occurs. We believe this risk is low as we have done a thorough risk assessment when putting together our schedule. We are committed to provide timely updates to all backers if a delay like this were to happen.
4. Reward shipment
We want to make sure everyone in the world has access to SNAP.B. With that said, we understand that the logistics for worldwide shipment is a huge task not to be underestimated. Shipping and customs can be unpredictable. We plan to engage the world's leading fulfillment service to help us with the reward shipment and distribution to minimize any risk or delay reward shipment to our backers.
Is there some other potential issue you're wondering about?
If you're wondering, others probably are, too! We'd appreciate it if you'd email it to us at support@vouel.com right now and I'll personally make sure it gets answered for you.
We've worked tirelessly to make sure this project is a success. If you would like to see SNAP.B on your bike, as much as we would, then pick your reward level now and we look forward to making it happen with you. Thanks for your support!
Team VOUEL
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Funding period
- (30 days)