Elastic straps are a great thing. Hardly any tool is better suited to fix bulky or objects. Whatever or whatever. A fabric-covered bundle of elastic strands. A hook at both ends. It couldn’t be simpler. Even with two left hands, the chances are not bad to get the fixed transport goods from A to B in one piece. Even when moving, in the garden or on the campsite, the versatile bungee cords should always be within reach.
The brothers Michii and Martin Kopp not only like to be out and about in nature. They are also self-confessed fans of bungee cords. Nevertheless, one day they were faced with an initially unsolvable problem, despite the elastic straps. The stand-up paddle board didn’t want to stay on the bike’s luggage trolley. Much too short, too inflexible and the plastic hooks useless. The search for a suitable alternative was unsuccessful. There has to be a better way, the siblings decided and worked on a flexible solution. They finally christened their idea ModulFix and are now venturing into “The Lion’s Den”. We took a look at the modular elastic band system before it appeared with the curious investors around Ralf Dümmel and Judith Williams.
The heart of ModulFix is the elastic band. And the black yarn-coated expander has a lot of pull on it. In the normal state, we measure a length of about 105 centimeters. With great effort, the rubber can be pulled apart by about 50 centimeters to more than one and a half meters. Rather expediently, the doubled ends were fixed with a metal clip around three centimeters long. That doesn’t look nice. But that’s not what ModulFix is about in the end. Threaded on the rubber strap: three adapters made of sturdy plastic. Two with an external thread, one has the thread inside. The latter is apparently the adapter that can be used to adjust the length of the bungee cord. But more on that later. In addition, the ModulFix Premium set comes with two additional adapters with metal hooks, one adapter with a Velcro fastener and one with an eyelet and carabiner. Practical: A small cotton bag is included so that the ModulFix and adapters do not end up in the next drawer with all sorts of other small tools, screws and hooks.
The basic set is a bit slimmed down. Two hooks are pre-assembled at the end of the elastic band. There is also an adapter with a Velcro fastener and one with a metal hook.
Interim conclusion: It is served. The elastic band is convincing and the various adapters make a stable and solidly manufactured impression. Small blemish: The somewhat unlovingly fixed rubber strap ends on the premium set.
First of all we are a bit on the line. Because without instructions you can’t do much with ModulFix at the beginning. But you can find out how easy it is in the booklet and via the sticker on the packaging. The dry run then worked as devised by the founders.
With the ModulFix basic set, the elastic strap is ready to use. In the Premium Edition, the two adapters on the rubber ends each have a matching adapter with metal hooks. Then you can happily relax here too. However, it quickly becomes clear that you won’t get very far with a bungee cord. For multiple clampings, as described in the instructions, you need at least two or better three to four ModulFix sets. After all, the simple version is doing very well. With the Velcro adapter and two metal hooks, ModulFix securely lashes a large backpack to the bike. Fasten the Velcro to the seat post, place the backpack or bag on the luggage carrier, fix it with the elastic strap, hang in the hook, done. No particular challenge for ModulFix. However, nothing that ordinary bungee cords cannot do either. Although not as elegant.
When unscrewing the Velcro adapter, we come across the first weak point of ModuFix. At the point where it was screwed onto the middle adapter, the sheathing of the bungee cord is slightly damaged. (see picture) Only superficially, but visible. The problem: In order to screw on the adapter firmly and securely, you inevitably catch the rubber strap that is stuck in the thread notch. And the tighter you turn it, the more you abuse the coated rubber. It is difficult to judge whether this will work out in the long term.
ModulFix is a well thought-out tool set that can find many followers. The individual parts and threads are cleanly processed (with the exception of the metal clips on the ends of the rubber straps). We also find the idea of using an adapter system to adapt and react to as many and complex packing and transport situations as possible convincing. The fact that you may need several ModulFix sets for this is okay from our point of view, also because of the fair price.
The endurance tests on the bike and in the trunk of a car also worked very well. The tension on the elastic band is extremely high. If ModulFix is used correctly, the luggage can hardly slip or even come loose.
The scratched coating of the bungee cord alone made us a bit uneasy after only three screwed on adapters. We fear that in the long run this will not only damage the bungee cord superficially and thus also impair its function.
Michii and Martin Kopp want to make it big with ModulFix. You are looking for investors for this. In the current season of “Die Höhle der Löwen” they meet four hungry entrepreneurs on May 8th. For a cash injection of 100,000 euros, the two would give up 20 percent of their start-up. You can find out whether the young founders can convince a lion of their modular elastic band system today from 8.15 p.m. on Vox.
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