Our Workshop

Our Workshop

Our products are designed and made by us, Adam and Val, in our small Colorado workshop. Most of our products are made using a combination of 3D printing and hand finishing to install mounting hardware before packing and shipping our products to you. The following explains some of the behind-the-scenes of how we design and make our products.

Our Process

Dreaming It

Our products often start as an idea during one of our adventures. We often say "we make the gear we wish we had", designing gear and tools to solve our own problems. And so ideas often start as an opportunity to make something better. Sometimes we'll start thinking about potential solutions, sketching, measuring, and maybe making a few prototypes with 3D printing, cardboard, wood, plastic, etc.

This part of our process isn't very structured and can take minutes to months. We find it helpful to have lots of time and space to let the problem and solution evolve naturally. But at some point, everything feels like it clicks and we start designing a product. 

Designing It

The next step is to design the product as a 3D model. This is when we also start getting into the details such as materials, fasteners, usability, etc.

Our products are mostly used outside, so we need to select materials that can stand up to the sun, rain, wind, heat, vibration, etc.  But some products have special needs like our Starlink Tripod Adapters which need to also be flexible to slide into Starlink's mounting system.

We also select fasteners if the product will be attached to another surface like a tripod, wall, etc. We consider the durability of fasteners in outdoor and high-vibration environments. We also consider how much work will be involved in adding the fasteners and how easy they are to replace or repair for our customers. 

This part of the process often involves designing, printing, finishing, and trying multiple prototypes. Each prototype hopefully helps us learn and iterate on the final design, letting us learn by using the product in real life. Depending on the product, we might go through 3 or 30 prototypes depending on the product.

Testing It

After finding a design we like (or at least a few designs) we take the product with us into the field to test it in real situations and environments. We travel with it, camp with it, and use it ourselves. We also often share prototypes with a few other field testers to get their feedback too. Just because it works for us doesn't mean it will work for them. Field testing can take minutes to months depending on the product. 

We often make a few small changes during field testing, but sometimes we go back to a full re-design or decide it's just not working right now and pause the project. 

Making It

Once we're happy with the design and field testing, we start making a small batch of the product, often 25-50 units. We share these with our customers via our store, especially those who have signed up as field testers. We ship the initial batch to customers and ask for their feedback after they've had a chance to use the product. In most cases, the feedback is great and we start making more or make adjustments if needed.

Sharing It

We share our products here in our store and on YouTube where we share videos showing how to use and get the most out of our products.