I am finally in a place where I am happy with the Framework Laptop 13 protective bumper that I have been developing and now they are for sale! I made a few more tweaks to improve the manufacturing consistency and minimize the amount of post-printing-processing of each part. This frame around the lid of the screen protects the portion of the machine that, in my experience, gets beat up the most on a laptop. With the bumper installed I don’t have to worry about scratching up or dinging my laptop lid walking around the manufacturing plant with it or should I place it upside down on the table to work on it.
The Way It Started
You can read more about it here for the reason I started this but in short, I want to provide some protection against bumps and digs around the greatest laptop that I’ve ever owned. There aren’t any options out there and a vinyl skin just isn’t quite enough to protect it from the digs of life. The only reasonable course of action was to buy a large 3D printer and design something worth while, a real product, not a “good enough” thing. I adjusted the dimensions of the thicknesses of the edge to width of the frame and the taper to get just the right fit. I made 13 major revisions and have made many minor tweaks to get the fit just right.
Initially, I set out only to make black because it blends into the aluminum body or in my case, the carbon fiber skin. I found it to be absolutely perfect, it nicely blended in with the machine. I was quite content with the design, the fit and the finish of these protective bumpers.
Workplace Deployment
After showing them to the other members of my department at work and everyone liking the improvements, I decided to deploy them across the facilities. I’m not quite at 100% of all the Framework Laptop 13s but at least 43 of them have the bumpers installed. They don’t require an adhesive to stay on. It is enough of an interference fit to hold itself on quite securely. It doesn’t peel or roll away when opening up the lid on the Laptop. This was a key requirement for my own satisfaction of the thing.
As I was deploying these, I started to get asked for other colors, apparently, black wasn’t cutting it for some. I didn’t actually think people would care. I used that request as an excuse to get some more filament and produce more color variations. As such, I now have 7 color options:
- Black
- Red
- Orange
- Pink
- Blue
- Green
- Yellow
Some of these colors are made of the more rubbery TPU 95A while others with the slightly stiffer TPU 98A, both are good but I think I prefer the TPU 98A for the ease of manufacturing and the finish is nicer. I say that but I am currently rocking the Green TPU 95A. Blue printed poorly in 95A so I am exclusively making 98A bumpers. I went with 95A because of the color selection but since I started this whole project, there are more color options in 98A than previous. I will probably end up phasing out the 95A unless there is specific demand for it.
As it stands today, I have all but one of the color Framework Laptop 13 bezel variations (at time of writing) except for the lavender. If there is demand for it, I will gladly add that color.
How It’s Going
Looking at the development of this whole project, what I find kind of amusing is how I set out to make nothing more than a black protective bumper to give my computer just a bit of protection and now I find myself swapping colors for the fun of it. I started out only interested in black but now I am sporting green and yellow mostly with a serious desire to start rocking orange.
I do have some size variations too in the size of the frame. The difference here is the amount it covers the back of the lid. The thickness of the bumper is the same, just the width of the frame changes. The larger 10 mm frame pictured to the left below and the 6 mm to the right. I like them both but I tend to go for the wider frame. I am only happy with the 6 mm frame when it is made out of TPU 98A, it peels and rolls to easily when printed with the softer 95A.
One of my coworkers did a bit more customization with her laptop. She combined her pink bumper with a rather exciting looking skin for much improved protection of the lid. I thought it looked really cool so I had to share an picture of it here. I don’t sell skins (yet) but this one can be purchased from dbrand.
Get Your Own
After discussing this with some trusted friends and receiving some impartial feedback with people around the internet, Including Reddit, I have decided to sell these. So, you can get your very own protective bumper for your Framework Laptop 13
These are now for sale at CubicleNate.com/shop
I do make these to order but I have a small stock of each available so I should be able to ship fairly quickly. US shipping is reasonable, Canada is okay, Europe is a bit pricey and the rest of the world is down-right expensive but that is just the way it is.
Without advertising that my shop was open, I have already sold a few of these. Now, I’m ready to officially say they are ready for sale, for those that want to provide just a bit of protection for their lovely little laptops.
Coupon Code
As I was working on this article I decided that should someone order more than one, they can apply a coupon code: bumper30 to get 30 percent off the order. Since I like swapping colors from time to time, maybe others would too? So, if you want more than one and needed a nudge, there it is.
Final Thoughts
I very happy with the changes I have made to the design since December, they are very slight but significant for better fit and finish. It feels like a real product and I’m confident that others will like it too.
There are other ideas cooking for what I want to do with my Framework. I think this is the absolute coolest computer company ever. It’s like a return to that cool, creative and uniqueness from the 1980s & 90s but with modern sensibilities. There are a lot of real dystopian things in our world right now but Framework is one of the positive lights out there. I just want to protect that a little bit.
References
CubicleNate Shop
https://dbrand.com/shop/skins/framework-laptop-13-skins
Framework Laptop 13 Protective Bumper
dbrand Framework 13 Skin
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