Inside Exceed Fabrication's SD1 Tube Door Mesh Product Development

This thread records our SD1 mesh development process.
I know it's not the season for selling these tube doors anymore, but I still want to keep our tradition and share the product development process, maybe it can help some people who want to DIY mesh, no matter what brand of tube door you are using, it should be able to give you some inspiration!
We have received many requests for the JK version, thank you very much for your love! If you have friends who are interested, we started developing it in October this year and it is expected to be available on the website next spring!

Update: We have started pre-sale of the JK version! If you have friends who are interested in the JK version: https://exceedfab.com/products/exdfab-4wd-sd1-tube-door-for-wrangler-jk

After research, I summarized the following points for these meshes:

1. It should fit tightly with the tube door so that it will not swing randomly in the wind

2. It should expose our PU handrails as much as possible, bringing a unique appearance while also ensuring that customers will not give up the touch of these PU because of the installation of mesh.

3. Keep the overall appearance simple, without excessive logos to ruin the appearance

This is our initial design, we left mesh cutouts for all the latches, PU and mirrors, and we added a grey edging to add some detail.

This is our first version of the sample. The factory only realized 50% of our idea, skipped all the most difficult corners, covered it with a piece of simply cut fabric, and fixed it with very thin Velcro.

I was a little annoyed when I got such a sample. If I were a customer, I would not think this was a mesh dedicated to SD1. The cutting was too rough. We would not sell such a product to customers. I can already guess that many parts cannot withstand a year of use, and it will definitely swing in the wind.

But to be honest, if you plan to make mesh in the garage and don’t have too many special tools, this is indeed a very low-cost solution. After all, it still covers most of the tube door.

If you want to know what material it is, you can try to search for Teslin mesh, which is made of PVC+Polyester and is widely used in making products such as beach chairs. Many Jeep sunshades are also made of it.

Looks like you guys need extra R&D - Hit me up

I like the fact that you said they are 'universal'. I already have tube doors but could certainly be interested in mesh.

Your design is top notch ! What you got from the manufacturer looks like shit not even close .

We guessed the factory didn't quite understand what we meant, as they hadn't made anything like this before, so we found a small textile shop and made a DIY reference template out of scrap fabric.
Honestly, I think this step is pretty easy too! If you're confident in your textile skills, I think you can do this step too!
Here are some photos to help you see the structure more clearly

What if you go on the inside of the center bar allowing to show the bar on the outside and not have that bulge in the middle you would have a more sleek looking product .

abe57 said:

What if you go on the inside of the center bar allowing to show the bar on the outside and not have that bulge in the middle you would have a more sleek looking product .

Click to expand...

This is an interesting option!

We thought about it but gave up. This would require additional holes in the mesh, which would cost extra and would further complicate the structure.

So we gave up the idea because we felt that this small change might not be liked by many people and would further increase the price.

Good evening!

Let me continue to update our process
We changed the factory we cooperate with, and this is the second version of the sample.






Improvements this time include:
1. Replace the small Velcro strips with large Velcro
2. Integrated storage pocket for temporary storage of small items
3. More fitting corner cuts, closer to our drawings!

We drove out to test the mesh and took some photos, unfortunately it was raining, but it basically met our ideas!






Btw you may have noticed that we made a PU armrest mesh cover, so that we can develop various colors of covers to match the body color in the future! You know, just some low-cost, personalized decorations to add some details to your tube door.

That looks like it does fit a lot better !

After some testing and thinking, and after discussing with partners, the third version of the sample:

1. Added additional straps to the top opening to further prevent the mesh from swinging in the wind
2. Added a removable waterproof cloth to the outside, secured by three zippers. Provides an optional more closed feeling while ensuring that it will not fall off accidentally
3. Added reflective fabric to the edge sealing to provide more details for the mesh.
4. Made the storage bag out of waterproof fabric (later we gave up this idea because we didn’t want to guide customers to put their phones and wallets here, which would be easier to miss. And it may inevitably get water in during heavy rain, so we simply don’t give customers such a hint)
5. Divided the front pockets into 1 large and 2 small instead of four of the same size (the factory missed this point)









We also tried the motorcycle + DJI pocket 3 during the test, but the vibration was too strong. Next time we will try to use the newly purchased shock absorber. Looking forward to it!

This is the sixth version of the sample.

After half a year of repeated revisions, we are finally going to complete the mesh of SD1, which is expected to be available in March!

Beyond excited to see these come to life!!!! A "simple" yet thoughtfully executed accessory for the SD1 tube doors! All the functionality these add is going to be awesome! Setting the bar high for other companies that offer tube doors!