SPECIALIST SPOTLIGHT: TCX

This month we’re bringing you the inside line on one of the biggest names in motorcycle footwear: TCX. Here’s what you need to know.

Nothing announces a new company more than hitting the ground running with a worldwide patent on its product. This is what TCX did in 1999 when, under its original name of Oxtar, the Torsion Control System (TCS) was used in its footwear – the first motorcycle footwear to gain such a patent.

The name change came about in 2007 when a rival claimed the Oxtar name was too similar to theirs; the decision was made to adopt the (easier to pronounce) TCX (an amalgam of the TCS system and the system used on their MX boots).

All TCX boots are made in-house. All raw materials are sourced and checked at the HQ in Montebelluna in Italy. The R&D Division (and a stitching team) is also based in Montelbelluna so designs are constructed with the materials to hand and prototypes are constructed there. The materials and designs are then sent to TCX’s own manufacturing plant in Romania for final assembly. All products then return to Montebelluna for final quality control before going on sale to the public.

TCX was the first company in this sector to introduce CE certification on all products; all boots carry the EN13634:2017 EU harmonised standard. Safety and comfort remain the top priorities when designing new products, both their self-designed systems and seeking licences with top-rated suppliers (like Michelin which supplies the rubber for a number of boots) and products such as Gore-Tex.

In 2020 TCX became part of the Dainese group. This move affords them the financial benefits of being partnered with a leader in the motorcycle clothing arena, who in turn understand the market.