Anyone know the efficacy of full fenders hacked onto a road bike? - Cycling Mob: Road Cycling, Mountain Biking and More

01-18-2005, 11:32 AM

So my adventure in trying to get a winter bike didn't work out. I ended up
with a fair deal. Out around $400, but still with something to show for
it, and the relationship with the shop is still good. Anyway, that's the
side story and really not my question.

My question is this. Now that I'm healing form the injuries sustained on
the ill-fitting bike (at least, I think I'm healing, I feel better in my
back/knees), I need to get through this winter. I'm thinking of getting
full fenders put on my Trek 1000. I've had this setup once before. Maybe
it was just the shop that did it, but it didn't do that great of a job of
keeping mud off the rim/gears as previous full fenders on hybrids and
mountain bikes I've owned. So I'm trying to figure this out before I go
spend $100 on this. Is it possible the shop that did the full fenders
split and braced around my road brakes did something wrong? Or is the
efficacy of that kind of arrangement that much worse than regular full
fenders on a bike that can accept full fenders?

Any opinions/thoughts on this?

Preston

01-18-2005, 12:10 PM

In article <slrncuqp4n.kvt.me@serpentor.cobrala>,
Preston Crawford <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:

> So I'm trying to figure this out before I go
> spend $100 on this. Is it possible the shop that did the full fenders
> split and braced around my road brakes did something wrong? Or is the
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> efficacy of that kind of arrangement that much worse than regular full
> fenders on a bike that can accept full fenders?
>
> Any opinions/thoughts on this?

Fenders shouldn't have any leaks in them.
Do you have a mudflap on the front fender?
And fenders don't really do all that much to
protect rims, drivetrains and brakes. Great
for rider comfort, tho'.

Maybe skinnier tires put their rims closer to
the road than fatter 26-inchers, thereby rendering
the rims more prone to accumulating gunk?
And maybe bikes with higher BBs (and drivetrains)
might be similarly benefited? Just a shot-in-the-
dark guess as to why your fender-equipped MTBs and
hybrids stayed somewhat cleaner.

cheers,
Tom

--
-- Nothing is safe from me.
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca

01-18-2005, 12:10 PM

In article <slrncuqp4n.kvt.me@serpentor.cobrala>,
Preston Crawford <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:

> So I'm trying to figure this out before I go
> spend $100 on this. Is it possible the shop that did the full fenders
> split and braced around my road brakes did something wrong? Or is the
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> efficacy of that kind of arrangement that much worse than regular full
> fenders on a bike that can accept full fenders?
>
> Any opinions/thoughts on this?

Fenders shouldn't have any leaks in them.
Do you have a mudflap on the front fender?
And fenders don't really do all that much to
protect rims, drivetrains and brakes. Great
for rider comfort, tho'.

Maybe skinnier tires put their rims closer to
the road than fatter 26-inchers, thereby rendering
the rims more prone to accumulating gunk?
And maybe bikes with higher BBs (and drivetrains)
might be similarly benefited? Just a shot-in-the-
dark guess as to why your fender-equipped MTBs and
hybrids stayed somewhat cleaner.

cheers,
Tom

--
-- Nothing is safe from me.
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca

01-18-2005, 12:10 PM

In article <slrncuqp4n.kvt.me@serpentor.cobrala>,
Preston Crawford <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:

> So I'm trying to figure this out before I go
> spend $100 on this. Is it possible the shop that did the full fenders
> split and braced around my road brakes did something wrong? Or is the
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> efficacy of that kind of arrangement that much worse than regular full
> fenders on a bike that can accept full fenders?
>
> Any opinions/thoughts on this?

Fenders shouldn't have any leaks in them.
Do you have a mudflap on the front fender?
And fenders don't really do all that much to
protect rims, drivetrains and brakes. Great
for rider comfort, tho'.

Maybe skinnier tires put their rims closer to
the road than fatter 26-inchers, thereby rendering
the rims more prone to accumulating gunk?
And maybe bikes with higher BBs (and drivetrains)
might be similarly benefited? Just a shot-in-the-
dark guess as to why your fender-equipped MTBs and
hybrids stayed somewhat cleaner.

cheers,
Tom

--
-- Nothing is safe from me.
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca

01-18-2005, 12:28 PM

On 2005-01-18, Tom Keats <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote:
> In article <slrncuqp4n.kvt.me@serpentor.cobrala>,
> Preston Crawford <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:
>
>> So I'm trying to figure this out before I go
>> spend $100 on this. Is it possible the shop that did the full fenders
>> split and braced around my road brakes did something wrong? Or is the
> ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>> efficacy of that kind of arrangement that much worse than regular full
>> fenders on a bike that can accept full fenders?
>>
>> Any opinions/thoughts on this?
>
> Fenders shouldn't have any leaks in them.
> Do you have a mudflap on the front fender?
> And fenders don't really do all that much to
> protect rims, drivetrains and brakes. Great
> for rider comfort, tho'.

The problem is, I hear differing opinions on this. Some people say what
you say. Others say that the mechanic I just talked to says, that they do
work for this. I just don't know. All I know is I have a few experiences
with this. In some cases it worked, in other cases it didn't.

> Maybe skinnier tires put their rims closer to
> the road than fatter 26-inchers, thereby rendering
> the rims more prone to accumulating gunk?
> And maybe bikes with higher BBs (and drivetrains)
> might be similarly benefited? Just a shot-in-the-
> dark guess as to why your fender-equipped MTBs and
> hybrids stayed somewhat cleaner.

Maybe. The puzzling thing is that the Volpe, with the full fenders,
basically never gathered any mud on the brakes, rims or gears. So I just
don't know what to make of it, frankly. Because that bike seems somewhat
similar to mine, in that it's more roadish, had skinny tires, etc.

Preston

01-18-2005, 12:28 PM

On 2005-01-18, Tom Keats <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote:
> In article <slrncuqp4n.kvt.me@serpentor.cobrala>,
> Preston Crawford <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:
>
>> So I'm trying to figure this out before I go
>> spend $100 on this. Is it possible the shop that did the full fenders
>> split and braced around my road brakes did something wrong? Or is the
> ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>> efficacy of that kind of arrangement that much worse than regular full
>> fenders on a bike that can accept full fenders?
>>
>> Any opinions/thoughts on this?
>
> Fenders shouldn't have any leaks in them.
> Do you have a mudflap on the front fender?
> And fenders don't really do all that much to
> protect rims, drivetrains and brakes. Great
> for rider comfort, tho'.

The problem is, I hear differing opinions on this. Some people say what
you say. Others say that the mechanic I just talked to says, that they do
work for this. I just don't know. All I know is I have a few experiences
with this. In some cases it worked, in other cases it didn't.

> Maybe skinnier tires put their rims closer to
> the road than fatter 26-inchers, thereby rendering
> the rims more prone to accumulating gunk?
> And maybe bikes with higher BBs (and drivetrains)
> might be similarly benefited? Just a shot-in-the-
> dark guess as to why your fender-equipped MTBs and
> hybrids stayed somewhat cleaner.

Maybe. The puzzling thing is that the Volpe, with the full fenders,
basically never gathered any mud on the brakes, rims or gears. So I just
don't know what to make of it, frankly. Because that bike seems somewhat
similar to mine, in that it's more roadish, had skinny tires, etc.

Preston

01-18-2005, 12:28 PM

On 2005-01-18, Tom Keats <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote:
> In article <slrncuqp4n.kvt.me@serpentor.cobrala>,
> Preston Crawford <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:
>
>> So I'm trying to figure this out before I go
>> spend $100 on this. Is it possible the shop that did the full fenders
>> split and braced around my road brakes did something wrong? Or is the
> ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>> efficacy of that kind of arrangement that much worse than regular full
>> fenders on a bike that can accept full fenders?
>>
>> Any opinions/thoughts on this?
>
> Fenders shouldn't have any leaks in them.
> Do you have a mudflap on the front fender?
> And fenders don't really do all that much to
> protect rims, drivetrains and brakes. Great
> for rider comfort, tho'.

The problem is, I hear differing opinions on this. Some people say what
you say. Others say that the mechanic I just talked to says, that they do
work for this. I just don't know. All I know is I have a few experiences
with this. In some cases it worked, in other cases it didn't.

> Maybe skinnier tires put their rims closer to
> the road than fatter 26-inchers, thereby rendering
> the rims more prone to accumulating gunk?
> And maybe bikes with higher BBs (and drivetrains)
> might be similarly benefited? Just a shot-in-the-
> dark guess as to why your fender-equipped MTBs and
> hybrids stayed somewhat cleaner.

Maybe. The puzzling thing is that the Volpe, with the full fenders,
basically never gathered any mud on the brakes, rims or gears. So I just
don't know what to make of it, frankly. Because that bike seems somewhat
similar to mine, in that it's more roadish, had skinny tires, etc.

Preston

01-18-2005, 12:29 PM

On Tue, 18 Jan 2005 12:10:29 -0800, Tom Keats wrote:

> Do you have a mudflap on the front fender?

Mudflaps are a must--front fenders are virtually pointless w/o them.

> And fenders don't really do all that much to
> protect rims, drivetrains and brakes.

They do a good job for my drivetrain, but only if they're fitted really
tightly down by the bb and there's not much gap between tire and fender.
Most "out of box" configurations will leave a cm of tire/fender clearance
down there, allowing spray to escape. Since I tightened the gap on my
bike--the fenders have indeed done a fabulous job protecting the
drivetrain. It still gets dirty but seems to stay reasonable 3x longer.

Brakes and rims--nothing you can do there except run good pads or a
fancier weatherproof braking system.

01-18-2005, 12:29 PM

On Tue, 18 Jan 2005 12:10:29 -0800, Tom Keats wrote:

> Do you have a mudflap on the front fender?

Mudflaps are a must--front fenders are virtually pointless w/o them.

> And fenders don't really do all that much to
> protect rims, drivetrains and brakes.

They do a good job for my drivetrain, but only if they're fitted really
tightly down by the bb and there's not much gap between tire and fender.
Most "out of box" configurations will leave a cm of tire/fender clearance
down there, allowing spray to escape. Since I tightened the gap on my
bike--the fenders have indeed done a fabulous job protecting the
drivetrain. It still gets dirty but seems to stay reasonable 3x longer.

Brakes and rims--nothing you can do there except run good pads or a
fancier weatherproof braking system.

01-18-2005, 12:35 PM

On 2005-01-18, maxo <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote:
>> And fenders don't really do all that much to
>> protect rims, drivetrains and brakes.
>
> They do a good job for my drivetrain, but only if they're fitted really
> tightly down by the bb and there's not much gap between tire and fender.
> Most "out of box" configurations will leave a cm of tire/fender clearance
> down there, allowing spray to escape. Since I tightened the gap on my
> bike--the fenders have indeed done a fabulous job protecting the
> drivetrain. It still gets dirty but seems to stay reasonable 3x longer.

Maybe that's the key. I just know I have had success with fenders helping
out in this regard in the past. My current bike, basically ends up a big
sand box down there. I would literally have to wash it every day, whereas
with fenders this isn't as necessary. That's a huge difference, in my
book. Not something I can quantify, but definitely something where, when
you see it, you can tell the difference.

> Brakes and rims--nothing you can do there except run good pads or a
> fancier weatherproof braking system.

I've had fenders help with that as well, actually. I think this is because
rather than all the water/mud splashing up into the brakes, and
haphazardly all over the bike, it hits the fender and mostly water falls
onto the wheel, the mud sticks to the fender. This definitely helps to
give the rim a break from being constantly ground down by silt, I've
found. But then again, I hadn't had that kind of luck with fenders on my
Trek 1000. Thus my query.

Preston