The invisiFRAME Protective Coating is easy to apply and particulary effective on matt, satin and polished surfaces, though it's also good on more regular paint finishes. It's not the cheapest of its kind, however.
This is a water-based ceramic formula, which is compatible with all the usual materials and finishes of typical contemporary bikes. Obviously, you should shy away from braking surfaces, bar tapes, and saddles though....
> Buy Protective Coating from invisiFRAME for £15 now
Like most sealants, it's there to stop sticky stuff from sticking - energy gels, drinks, road salt, and of course mud and similar organic spatter. You still need to wash your bike, of course, but it's good at resisting the degreasing properties of bike cleaners and stayed the course during the test.
Oily finger marks
My fixed gear winter trainer and rough stuff tourer serve year-round, and in all weathers, so were obvious candidates for this test. Both have a mix of carbon, satin, anodised and gloss finishes, and the powder coating doesn't feature a lacquer topcoat. Consequently, its more prone to collecting oily finger marks and mucky spatter, even when treated to high quality waxes. I also tried this on matt helmet shells, titanium and polished aluminium components for good measure.
The test period was wet, salty, icy and with a smattering of snow. Perfect conditions for it.
A thin but crucially even coating is what you're aiming for. I typically left it curing for between six and eight hours, with no discernible difference in performance. The effects have been generally excellent on most matt, satin and gloss surfaces, and it's restored the lustre to some carbon cages that had dulled a bit.
Buffing my stem
Running a finger along both bikes confirmed a tangible, slippery coat. While I was particularly pleased by the results on my tubby tourer's unsealed finish, some stainless and Ti components proved trickier – matt grey was fine, but those with a mid-sheen tended to show every finger mark and imperfection. I've had to buff a stem repeatedly to remove some oily residue - the sort you typically find when droplets of silicone settle on matt paintwork.
Moderate spatter
Minor moans aside, overall performance impressed me. Expect to find only light to moderate spatter peppered along the down tube, chainstay and bottom bracket area.
Speeding along some very mulchy lanes, I was astonished to discover only three small specks of gloop clinging to my tubby tourer's down tube - nothing along the chainstays either. The fixed gear bike's frameset was cleaner still, thanks presumably to a generous lacquer topcoat.
The lighter stuff is easily dismissed with a microfibre cloth, with no need to apply more liquid. I've returned on several occasions astonished at how well the invisiFRAME has coped, even with a single coating. It gathered no oily finger marks either, even around the seat tube when I've been removing it from the work stand, which was nice.
A double layer around the down tube, rear triangle and fork legs proved an even more effective barrier to gunk. Left muddy for a couple of days, what hadn't dropped off was easily washed away with bike cleaner and a garden hose. Minimal effort needed. Again, dried with a clean cloth, the invisible barrier was still apparent.
Reapplied to my tubby
It's claimed to to last up to six months, and applied to a bike in seasonal storage, maybe. I've reapplied ours to my tubby tourer twice in 600 wintry miles and four washes. Even though the bike was predominantly clean, I wanted to see what impact bike washes and similar detergents might have. Staying prowess is comparable with another brand's ceramic coating I've used long term.
Value
On the face of things, £15 for 100ml is quite steep. The Weldtite Rapid Ceramic Shield Kit is £20.99 and includes 250ml alongside two cloths and, in my experience, is similarly effective on all surface types.
Then of course, there's the Fenwick's Professional Protective Coating which I reviewed five years ago, which is now £15 for 100ml, or £27 for 250ml. I've had positive results on all sorts of surfaces, matt, satin, and gloss – and even on shoes and helmets.
You can spend more, though. Wax is Dead Bike is a single-layer, semi-permanent ceramic coating and costs £45 for 15ml, though it claims to protect two bikes (from dirt, UV light and corrosion) for up to two years. It takes a full 24-hours to cure, though.
Overall
I've been impressed with this stuff. Sealant products are not magic bullets, and you're still going to need to wash bikes down after a week of wintry roads, let alone boggy trails. I would be inclined to use a high-quality wax as a main defence against road salt before applying this, but that's true of every sealant I've tried. As a final barrier against the elements, or for protecting pretty bikes in dry storage, invisiFRAME holds up well.
Verdict
Effective and convenient to use, with good results on all surfaces
Make and model: invisiFRAME Protective Coating
Tell us what the product is for and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?
invisiFRAME says: "The all-new invisiFRAME Protective Coating has been developed in partnership with Fenwick's and will make bike frames and components resistant to surface contaminants like energy drinks or gels, and even mud, dirt and grime.
"Hydrophobic properties in Protective Coating means cleaning your bike just got a whole lot easier - the mud and dirt just falls away when you rinse off or gently hose down after a ride! This invisible, protective coat lasts up to 6 months and is suitable for gloss, matte and carbon frames with no smearing or greasiness. The 100ml bottle contains enough Protective Coating for approx.15 applications! Additionally, on bikes with an invisiFRAME protection kit installed, Protective Coating actively bonds to the PPF refreshing and enhancing the XPEL film.
"Fenwick's are well known for their exceptional cleaning, care and workshop products and the new water-based formula has been developed without the use of corrosive or irritant petrochemicals that can damage delicate finishes and materials, and even change the appearance of the surface."
This is a genuinely effective sealant coating that works well across different finishes, though it's most effective on matt, satin or polished surfaces.
Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?
invisiFRAME says:
Water based
Provides invisible protection for gloss, matte and carbon finishes
One application of Protective Coating lasts up to 6 months (real-world testing)
Hydrophobic properties make frames and components resistant to surface contaminants
No white marks, smearing or greasiness.
Use as a stand-alone product or as a perfect accompaniment to invisiFRAME Protective Kits (PPF)
Quick and simple to apply
No corrosive/toxic/irritant chemicals
Rate the product for quality of construction:
8/10
Rate the product for performance:
8/10
Genuinely effective on painted, polished and gloss surfaces, and best on matt and satin finishes that can be trickier to keep clean.
Rate the product for durability:
8/10
Held up convincingly through a wet, cold and generally mucky January.
Rate the product for value:
4/10
Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose
Very effective, and bike wash solutions haven't made any obvious impression on the barrier.
Tell us what you particularly liked about the product
Quick, economical, and convenient to apply. Particularly effective on rough surfaces.
Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product
Nothing.
How does the price compare to that of similar products in the market, including ones recently tested on road.cc?
There are cheaper alternatives that do a similar job, but it's not the most expensive option either.
Did you enjoy using the product? Yes
Would you consider buying the product? Yes
Would you recommend the product to a friend? Yes
Use this box to explain your overall score
This is economical to apply and seemingly very effective.
Age: 50 Height: 1m 81cm Weight: 70kg
I usually ride: Rough Stuff Tourer Based around 4130 Univega mtb Frameset My best bike is: 1955 Holdsworth Road Path and several others including cross & traditional road
I've been riding for: Over 20 years I ride: Most days I would class myself as: Experienced
I regularly do the following types of riding: cyclo cross, commuting, touring, fixed/singlespeed, mtb,
Read it again. You seem to have missed what this is all about.
Christ, I didn't realise I had to be English to cycle. As I'm not, I'd better stop cycling immediately.
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