You wouldn’t expect a big bike manufacturer to make its own knee pads, so when you find out that these are actually made for Cube by new-kids-on-the- block Bliss Protection, things make a lot more sense.
The Action Teams are made from low-profile neoprene, with a main ‘Armourgel’ pad and thin foam padding on each side. Velcro straps above and below the knee hold them in place, though we did find the upper strap almost too long, reaching beyond all but the far edge of the Velcro patch when strapped up tight.
Although on first fitting the pads don’t seem to conform particularly well to your legs, within five minutes of riding they mould themselves into position and stay put, even if there’s a lot of pedalling involved.
We were surprised at how warm they are, especially considering the Armourgel is perforated and the pads don’t cover a huge area, but that’s probably just a reflection of how closely they fit. One thing’s for sure – they handle crashes well, not twisting or moving even during sliding impacts. We were actually surprised by how well the Armourgel handled multiple impacts, especially considering its low profile.