REVIEWS DEALS BIKESHOPS TRAILS

fenders for an mtb?

12563 Views 18 Replies 14 Participants Last post by Gary the No-Trash Cougar, Jan 6, 2010

reptilezs

Discussion Starter · Dec 23, 2009

looking to commute with my hardtail for the winter. mostly for slushy/snowy roads. need recommendations on a set of fenders with good coverage. the front fork is a manitou so it has a reverse arch. the rear end has disc brakes so it might interfere with mounting

1 - 19 of 19 Posts

highdelll

· #2 · Dec 23, 2009

I like my SKS Shockblade/X-Blade - But I dunno if that's the coverage you're looking for

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yetirich

· #3 · Dec 23, 2009

I went with these on my hardtail. I have v brakes and they work great. Easy on/off and adjustable.

http://www.crudusa.com/product/11
http://www.crudusa.com/product/14

wiggy

· #4 · Dec 23, 2009

i just purchased a set of planet bike freddy fenders in the 60mm flavor for my mountain bike. (http://www.rei.com/product/723105) they work pretty good and i haven't had any issues with the studded tires rubbing or catching on the inside of the fenders (i credit this to a decent initial setup on my part which took a little more time than normal but is well worth it now)

only catch with these fenders are they work substantially better IF your bike has eyelets for fenders or racks. i have the eyelets on the rear triangle but my front lacks eyelets so you can either fabricate some or as in my case i simply used the sks shockboard (http://www.rei.com/product/697814) i purchased this in the spring and it seems to work well for most things

those are my suggestions. i will say that fenders are a must have for any wet/bad weather commute

joe

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nony

· #5 · Dec 23, 2009 (Edited)

Over time, I've discovered that full fenders are a trade-off for commuting. Initially, they were wonderful, kept water and grime off me and my bike, BUT if you work on your bike, they are a PITA. Fenders collect dirt and are hard to clean off. In addition, it is critical that I inspect my tires for glass debris, but with full fenders, they are covered by the fenders.

My solution was full flat-profile fenders. They throw off water on the sides, so you get a little wet, but they are easy to clean and inspect your tires. On my other commuter, I do use mtn. bike fenders like the first poster which works well, too.

Otherwise, I don't think I'll go back to full rounded fenders again for commuting.

shimano4

· #6 · Dec 23, 2009

nony said:
Over time, I've discovered that full fenders are a trade-off for commuting. Initially, they were wonderful, kept water and grime off me and my bike, BUT if you work on your bike, they are a PITA. Fenders collect dirt and are hard to clean off. In addition, it is critical that I inspect my tires for glass debris, but with full fenders, they are covered by the fenders.

My solution was flat fenders. They throw off water on the sides, so you get a little wet, but they are easy to clean and inspect your tires. On my other commuter, I do use mtn. bike fenders like the first poster which works well, too.

Otherwise, I don't think I'll go back to full rounded fenders again for commuting.

Full round fender are really good at keeping water and dirt off from u. Yes, what u say is correct that they did keep dirt. But its a trade off thing. U can't have the best of both world.

I am a pure commuter and I will prefer a full round fender.

Gary the No-Trash Cougar

· #7 · Dec 23, 2009

I have full fenders and have them set kind of high for clearance because I try to take the commuter off onto dirt, any chance I get. They do still obscure the tire for the most part, making tire inspection harder. But then again, you probably have QR skewers, just pull the wheel off and have a look if you need to.

Audiofyl

· #8 · Dec 25, 2009

This was the beginning of building this up as a winter commuter. picked it up cheap off of craigslist. The planet bike fenders fit perfectly on the rear and almost perfectly on the front despite the LBS telling me that they wouldn't work on a suspension fork. The fork is now gone and replaced with a Surly rigid. I used a couple wire ties on the fork bottom, one through the eyelet and around the fork post. another over that wire tie like an X and over the fender rod tying it tightly to the fork tube.

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nony

· #9 · Dec 25, 2009

Audiofyl, well done! how did you mount the front fender struts to the fork? Also, how did you mount the fender at the fork brace?

Audiofyl

· #10 · Dec 25, 2009

The upper metal mount that comes on the fender was wire tied to the fork bridge since there was no hole through it like a fixed fork would have.

I didn't take a close up picture of the fender struts, but it involved two wire ties per side, one through the hole and around the fork tube, and a second one over the top of the strut bar and over the first tie in an "X" pattern, also fully around the fork tube.

Everything was solid and I never had any vibration issues or rubbing despite going up and down city height curbs and hitting man hole covers and mild pot holes.

Audiofyl

· #11 · Dec 26, 2009 (Edited)

here's the finished modifications and how it looks after 15 miles to the store and back in 4"+ of the white stuff. only got a little snow on my feet and around the toe clips. legs were pretty dry except for the snow that fell directly on my thighs and melted.

you can't see it very well, but the struts for the front fender don't run straight to the eyelets on the new fork since it's now disc. I bent the left one so it goes nearly to the caliper then bends under it and goes nearly horizontal to the eyelet. the right side needed no modification. I also had to extend the upper mount as it kept the fender too far away from the tire for my liking. I just used a short piece of plumber's strap for now. I'll upgrade that to a short piece of aluminum bar soon.

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mtbxplorer

· #12 · Jan 5, 2010

Has anyone noticed their mtb front fender catching the wind? First ride with them today & wasn't sure how much was my imagination, how much was the fender & how much was the rest of me & bike catching the wind gusts. Last week in snow (before fenders) there were some nice spots windblown of snow, but the gusts tried to push me into the drifted areas. I felt a little too much like the person I saw in the paper learning to kiteboard - she forgot to let go & got blown up in a tree near a power line until the F.D. rescued her.

highdelll

· #13 · Jan 5, 2010

mtbxplorer said:
...she forgot to let go & got blown up in a tree near a power line until the F.D. rescued her.

MEOW?
here pu$$y!

AndrwSwitch

· #14 · Jan 5, 2010

mtbxplorer said:
Has anyone noticed their mtb front fender catching the wind?

I think mine do.

And for the OP:

The front fender is an SKS shockblade, but I had to order it because the reverse arch model is less common. The rear is also an SKS fender because I wanted a cosmetic match. I'm quite happy with both for mountain biking purposes - I don't expect to finish clean anyway - but they're not really enough for commuting. I think you're stuck with the front fender or some sort of homebrew solution, but you could combine it with a dirtboard. If I wasn't also trying to save money and disinclined to buy a set of full fenders to throw out the front one, I'd stick a full fender on the back.

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CommuterBoy

· #15 · Jan 5, 2010

I have the Planet Bike Freddy's... running them with disc brakes with no issues, you just have to bend one of the supports around the caliper. Easy cheesy. Full coverage is where it's at for me...I have found that even with the fenders mounted, my bike will still sit upside down on the seat and handlebars so that I can inspect the tires.

I have used the beaver tails also, and they were decent. Not as full coverage as the PB's, but they worked pretty well. Definitely a beefier "MTB" look with the beaver tails.

JChasse

· #16 · Jan 5, 2010

I've got Topeak DeFenders on my winter commuter, and like them a lot. Decent coverage, super easy to install / remove, pretty solid on the bike, and reasonably priced.

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dillboy

· #17 · Jan 6, 2010

I will try not to poach this thread but I came across it while trying to install my planet bike clip on fenders on my MTB. I don't have an eyelet in the front to mount it on... any suggestions? Thanks!

electrik

· #18 · Jan 6, 2010

You can use a zip-tie with molded piece for mounting screw or bolt/nut on the head.

You can also use a rubberized P-clamp.

Both are in the electrical section of your hardware store

Gary the No-Trash Cougar

· #19 · Jan 6, 2010

mtbxplorer said:
Has anyone noticed their mtb front fender catching the wind? First ride with them today & wasn't sure how much was my imagination, how much was the fender & how much was the rest of me & bike catching the wind gusts. Last week in snow (before fenders) there were some nice spots windblown of snow, but the gusts tried to push me into the drifted areas. I felt a little too much like the person I saw in the paper learning to kiteboard - she forgot to let go & got blown up in a tree near a power line until the F.D. rescued her.

I'll notice my front fender shimmy in a strong crosswind.

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