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Shelter Road is a transparent shock and scratch-resistant adhesive tape. It provides reliable protection to the carbon fiber or metal structures it’s applied to. “Road” is perfect for lighter off-road riding or gravel/cyclocross applications.
How it works
Shelter Road has a 0,2 mm scratch-resistant upper layer with a gummy (viscoelastic) 0,4 mm layer underneath. This unique, composite construction allows Shelter to spread impact energy within its structure, without transmitting it.
Shelter Road (0,6 mm thick) is best for lighter off-road riding or gravel/cyclocross applications. Shelter Off-Road (1,2 mm thick) is the thickest Shelter, and it’s perfect for heavier duty off-road riding. Shelter ZeroDue (0,2 mm thick) is great for the protection of road bikes or surfaces mostly subject to wear and friction, like crank arms.
With a weight of 0,077 g per square centimeter, Shelter Road generates the following results:
(*) tolerance +/- 10% on width and length
Adhesion of Shelter is defined as “semi-structural”, so very strong but not permanent. After being applied, it takes Shelter 8 hours before developing its optimal bonding. After that, normal bicycle use or washing won’t affect it, but it can be removed – if needed – without damaging the underlying paint.
Application of Shelter doesn’t require special tools or procedures, just normal skills and patience:
1. after removing cables or other interfering elements, clean the area where you want to apply the Shelter with alcohol and a clean cloth. Remove traces of dried-up alcohol with another clean, dry cloth;
2. take the suitable pre-cut Shelter element or cut a custom made Shelter piece, without removing the backing paper;
3. make sure the element fits the area you want to protect and make sure your hands are clean. After that, completely remove the backing paper, freeing the adhesive surface (try not to touch the adhesive surface with your fingers, or do it as little as possible: being transparent, fingerprints might show);
4. gently position the Shelter on the area to protect, without applying pressure and without stretching the material. Re-position it if necessary, until it sits exactly where you want it. At this point, start applying even pressure, working from the center and going towards the sides, to avoid trapping air bubbles and making wrinkles;
5. work on the whole Shelter element to make it stick to the surface. Insist on the edges and on tightly curved sections to make sure the adhesion is even.
You can use your bicycle immediately after applying the Shelter, remembering that the full adhesion is achieved after 8 hours.
To remove the Shelter, peel it off slowly, making sure not to delaminate it. Doing so, Shelter won’t leave any trace of glue on the surface it was formerly attached to, even after several years.
The shelter is transparent but won’t turn yellowish over time, thanks to its UV protection. It will even protect the underlaying frame paint from UV degradation.
IMPORTANT: after the removal of the Shelter, there may be differences in color between protected areas and not, in the case of fluorescent paints or bright colors.
The transmission of vibrational energy through any structure can be reduced by introducing visco-elastic materials at discrete points. It’s exactly what Shelter does, providing stiff carbon frames with protection but also contributing to reducing vibrations. An example of that is Shelter Wheel Kit.
There are watermark “Shelter Effetto Mariposa” logos inside the Shelter structure, impossible to remove. Both “Effetto Mariposa” and “Shelter” are registered trademarks.
Effetto Mariposa's Shelter family provides the widest range of frame protections available.
Choosing the best Shelter version for a specific bicycle is important, as each cycling practice requires a different protection level.
It’s great to have multiple choices, as long as we also possess enough information for a correct decision: this also applies to our Shelter family.
Shelter Off-Road on the top tube (for brake lever impacts) and downtube
This family of frame protections offers different sizes, different thicknesses… but we realized we hadn’t quite explained our idea behind it.
Basically, there are three types of Shelter:
The first two consist of an abrasion-resistant layer on top of a viscoelastic base (to absorb impacts). The last, ZeroDue, is just abrasion-resistant. Let’s have a closer look at what they do.
Off-Road (the original “Shelter”, 1,2 mm thick) is ideal for general off-road riding.
From downhill racing to XC on technical trails – with enduro in between – Off-Road is the go-to protection. Chainstays, downtube…, and any area where the bike could take a hit, are great places to stick a piece of Shelter Off-Road. Easy to apply, very stable adhesion, it doesn’t become yellow over time. No wonder this product is an all-time favorite in the bicycle protection market.
Shelter Road downtube protection on a gravel bike
Road (0,6 mm thick) is a misleading name for a great version of Shelter.
Initially targeted at road bikes, it’s the protection of choice for cyclocross, gravel bikes… and weight-conscious cross-country racers. It provides the ideal scratch and shock protection level for most dirt-road bikes (eventually used in conjunction with Off-Road on specific areas, if riding on difficult terrains).
ZeroDue is an (almost) weightless protection.
Just against scratches… some bicycles are never ridden on-road, they just fly at low altitude on smooth asphalt, thanks to their low weight and refined aerodynamics. We still want those bikes to enjoy some shielding against the occasional less-than-perfect road stretch, or the cable housing abrasion on their immaculate paint job.
Being so thin, ZeroDue easily adapts, for example, to crank arms… and in general, provides the invisible protection several road cyclists are looking for on their exotic machines.
First-ever in the Shelter family, ZeroDue adopts an invisible branding (to direct light): ‘Shelter Effetto Mariposa’ logo is laser-etched on the surface, for the most subtle branding effect ever.
Shelter ZeroDue on a crankset
Laser-etched logo on ZeroDue
What makes ZeroDue unique is the fact that it allows easy and unprecedented personalization. Avoiding to offer different pre-cut options, we decided to add a “sacrifice” printable paper on ZeroDue: the desired shape can be drawn by hand or printed ***, cut with normal scissors, and put on the frame. “Shelter ZeroDue A4” kit is made of two A4 sheets.
Our viscoelastic Shelters (Off-Road and Road) come in several versions.
We are big fans of Rolls, as they’re the best for the DIY cyclist (1 m roll, width of 54 mm) and the professional shop mechanic (5 m roll, width of 54 mm).
Our traditional Pack (2 flat elements of 50 cm, width of 54 mm) has a loyal customer base, that’s why it’s still there… popular demand.
Pre-cut Kits are preferred in some markets (Japan, for example) as their ready-to-use format is very practical.
As anticipated above, ZeroDue follows a different approach. We introduced this new version as two A4 sheets: we think the innovative approach to DIY cut elements is a good solution for customers, who can decide the shape and size of each protective element (or just use our templates***).
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