.

Everything About The Best Touring Bike Fenders & Mudguards

Have you ever had a brown backside after a ride? Have you tried fenders/mudguards?

Every time I ride a bike without mudguards I remember exactly why I love them. Fenders/mudguards keep me and my bike both cleaner and dryer than without.

Mudguards and fenders are easy to dislike, I get that. They can be fragile, they can bend. Some will bounce and rattle around making lots of noise, while others have the tendency to rub on the side of your tyres. Even after lots of adjustment they somehow always continue their rubbing ways…

I am here to tell you that good quality guards will NOT rattle, they will NOT rub, they will NOT be fragile and they will NOT bend. You will have to invest some time customising them to your bike properly (this is a great job to palm off to a pro mechanic) but the rewards will be plentiful, I promise.

And just to clear up the terminology: fenders, mudguards and guards refer to the same thing. Most people from the North American continent tend to use ‘fender’ while the rest of the world seems to have settled on ‘mudguard’.

Why Use Mudguards And Fenders?

Horse Cycle randonneur bike with colour-matching fenders
Horse Cycle randonneur bike with colour-matching fenders

They keep you dry and clean
Fenders stop water, grime and mud spraying into your face and all over your clothes. Even if you never plan to ride in the rain, a fenders job will continue long after the clouds leave as water loves to sit on the road. On bike trips, fenders make walking into shops, pubs and hotels a much more pleasurable experience for everyone involved. Oh, and if you wear glasses, you can expect far less scratches on your lenses.

They save you money
Fenders reduce the amount of grit that sprays onto your chains, cogs, bearings, rims, pads, brake calipers and cables – prematurely wearing them out. By keeping your components cleaner, they will simply last longer. Another bonus; you can now clean your bike less frequently!

They keep others dry and clean
If you’re riding in a group, fenders will put the water back on the ground rather than all over your friends.

What To Look Out For In A Good Fender Set?

Travelling in wet weather conditions in NE Thailand
Travelling in wet weather conditions in NE Thailand

Please note that more than 50% of what makes a good fender is simply how it is set up…

Coverage – The longer the fender, the more effective it is at keeping water and grit off you and your bike.
Rigid –
Rigid fenders are quiet and will not rub on your tyres. Metal fenders are often stiffer and more rigid than their plastic friends, but some plastic fenders use a metal core, double-struts and good-quality mounting hardware to keep them in place.
Deep –
A fender with a deeper profile will direct water flow out the bottom rather than the sides.
Adjustable –
To get the most out of your fenders, you need them as close to your wheel as possible. Adjustable length struts and fittings are essential.
Stainless steel hard wear –
You don’t want rusty struts and bolts. Make sure the mounting kit is 100% stainless.
Double struts on plastic guards –
 More struts equals less movement with plastic fenders.
Nothing sharp – Good quality fenders will have covers for any exposed sharp surfaces which will stop you scratching your skin and tearing your clothes.
Quick-release clips – ‘Securi-clips’ are a good idea for a touring bicycle as they allow the mudguard to open up if debris gets caught in them.

Mudflaps

Image Source: http://danmitch.typepad.com/
Image: DanMitch

Fenders don’t always come with mudflaps, but they’re easy to fit. These flexible flaps at the end of your fenders will give you and your bike extra protection from water and grime; they shoot the water back down to the ground where it belongs.

Will Full-Length Fenders Fit Your Bike?

Bicycle Touring Fender Compatibility
Chainstay bridge, seatstay bridge, fork crown, eyelets.

You will need to consider the following:

Clearance – Do you have more than 15mm between your tyres and the fork crown, chainstay bridge and seatstay bridge
Chainstay bridge – Is there a small tube attaching your two chain stays? (Not essential)
Seatstay bridge – Is there a small tube attaching your two seatstays?
Drilled fork crown – Can you run a bolt through your fork crown?
Frame eyelets – Do you have eyelets on the bottom of your fork and at the frame dropouts? (Both not essential)

Touring bikes and many cyclocross bikes will have all of these things, and will fit full-length fenders rather easily. Road bikes very rarely have eyelets, but the biggest issue they face is too little clearance, making ‘clip-on’ guards almost always required. There’s one exception though: the excellent SKS Raceblade Longs. Again, modern mountain bikes won’t have any provision for guards, so clip-on guards (seatpost and fork crown) are a popular option.

How do you fit mudguards and fenders to your bike?

Correct setup
Fender setup is absolutely paramount for both the effectiveness and durability of your guards. The longer they are, and closer they are fitted, the better they will perform. Try and get an even space between the tyre and fender (fender line).

Reduce stress
Some riders have their fenders break after 1000km, and others have the same fender last 100,000km. Fenders must be fitted with minimal stresses to their structure. If you can, use spacers to make up gaps rather than bending them to fit.

Sizing
26 and 650b wheels can often share the same fenders given their similar size. 700c wheels are significantly larger in radius and will likely require their own size. This is especially important for metal fenders, plastic fenders tend to tolerate a bit more.

Tyre clearance
You will need a 20mm gap between the top of your tyre and fender, and 5mm either side. Fenders are measured on the outside (not the inside), so subtract 10mm off the fender width to determine the maximum tyre clearance. Eg. A 45mm wide fender will fit a 35mm wide tyre.

Brake clearance
If you’re using road or v-brakes (rather than canti or disc), you’ll need to measure your brake clearance. Standard road calipers often clear 35mm wide fenders, long-reach calipers 45mm and XL-reach calipers 50mm wide fenders. V-brakes can have trouble with widths 50mm and up, that is one of the reasons why touring bikes still use cantilever brakes.

Axiom Axle Runner, P Clamps, Frame Using P Clamps, Velo Orange Fender Stay Mount
Axiom Axle Runner, P Clamps, Frame Using P Clamps, Velo Orange Fender Stay Mount

Don’t have eyelets on your frame and fork?
Have no fear, you have options to connect fender struts to your bike. Quick release axle runners by Axiom, Soma or Velo Orange are perhaps the most elegant option for creating eyelets. A more common option for those who have thru-axles or would prefer to use their frame as a support: universal p-clamps.

Mounting to the seatstay bridge
Sometimes seatstay bridges can have vertical or horizontal mounting holes. To use a vertical hole you will need to drill your fender. You can adapt a vertical hole to horizontal using an ‘L’ bracket. Axiom fenders use a seatstay bridge mount which is designed to be zip-tied if you don’t have a bridge at all!

L-Bracket, Single Shifter Mount, BB Shell Bracket, Presta Valve Solution
L Bracket, Single Shifter Mount, BB Shell Bracket, Presta Valve Solution

Connecting to the chainstay bridge
You will likely need to space out the bolt on the chainstay bridge to get a good ‘fender line’. If you don’t have a chainstay bridge you can connect your fender to your seat tube. The best way is often to drill a hole in the fender and attach it to a ‘single shifter clamp’. You can also make a bracket that connects from the BB shell. Or an even simpler way again is with a presta valve adapter, some rubber and tape.

Clearing and mounting to your fork crown
You fork crown may not be deep enough under the headset, so that’s where Sheldon Fender Nuts, Peter White Bolts or Gilles Berthoud Brake Nuts can come in handy by spacing your fender mount back a few millimetres. Metal fenders will often be designed to use ‘fork crown eye bolts’ so that they can connect vertically underneath the crown.

Sheldon Fender Nut, Peter White Bolt, Fork Crown Eye Bolt, Fender Flute
Sheldon Fender Nut, Peter White Bolt, Fork Crown Eye Bolt, Problem Solvers Fender Flute

Getting the front fender closer to your tyre
Problem Solvers Fender Flutes allow you to optimise your fender line if you need to, most commonly required on 29er adventure touring bikes.

Bending the struts around the disc caliper, using a fender spacer, mounting to the front rack eyelet
Bending the struts around the disc caliper, using a fender bolt and spacer, mounting to the front rack eyelet.

Clearing the disc brake calipers on the front
You can bend your struts around your brake caliper. The neatest way for single strut fenders is often under the caliper, and with double struts it’s out and around. Long bolts and spacers are available to clear brake calipers too. Another option is to mount directly to your front rack eyelets.

Clearing the disc brake caliper on the rear
If you have a rear rack that will allow it, connect the fender directly to your rack to overcome this problem. Option B is would be to use Axiom Disc Runners (or long bolts and spacers) which space your struts out and around your caliper.

Axiom Disc Runner, Fender Mount on Rack, Velo Orange Spring Thing, Suspension Fork P-Clamp
Axiom Disc Runner, Fender Direct Mount on Rack, Velo Orange Spring Thing, Suspension Fork P-Clamp.

Using horizontal dropouts
You may need a Velo Orange Spring Thing to get your wheel in and out easily with your well-fitted fenders.

Suspension forks
You will likely require p-clamps at the fork legs (especially for thru-axle forks) and zip ties at the crown if there is no bolt hole.

Metal or Plastic Fenders?

Metal vs Plastic FendersSettled Metal
Metal fenders look amazing and are often more effective than plastic options. Their effectiveness can be attributed to their longer and deeper design than most plastic options. If set up correctly, aluminium and stainless fenders should last a lifetime, but keep in mind that setting up a metal fender is not a simple task; it’s laborious and will almost always require lots of measuring and drilling. I’ve found that if you force metal fenders into place at setup, they will stress and eventually fail. Make sure you take your time, get the washers right and space them out nicely. In terms of weight, aluminium guards are often around 450g, while stainless steel is closer to 600g for a set.

Plastic Fantastic
Plastic fenders are easy to fit (30mins max) and you won’t need much more than wire cutters, spanners and Allen keys to complete the job. The most durable plastic fenders have a metal core which helps them maintain stiffness and durability. You can increase the effectiveness of plastic fenders by attaching long mud flaps. I’ve found that plastic fenders travel far better than any other option because they tolerate more flex; I simply undo the lower mounting bolts and leave the fenders attached to my bike when I fly. Plastic fenders often tip the scales at around 500g including hardware.

Fender and Mudguard Recommendations

The SKS Bluemels are a very reliable bicycle touring fender
The SKS Bluemels are a very reliable bicycle touring fender.

My preferred manufacturer: SKS. Why? They travel extremely well. They’re durable, easy to fit and quiet. I have four sets: one of them has done over 40,000km of touring around the world including 10+ flights, lots of trains, buses and cars, and it’s still going strong. My other sets have been on other touring/city bikes for close to 10 years, without failure.

Plastic
SKS Bluemels – Stiff metal core, double strut arms, securi-clips, quiet, stainless hardwear, neat mounting kit.
SKS Longboard – Stiff metal core, the longest plastic guards available, suitable for tyres narrower than 35c only.
Bontrager NCS – No cutting required which makes them the easiest to fit full-length guards.
Planet Bike Cascadia – Longer than SKS, these all-plastic guards are another popular touring option.

Metal
Gilles Berthoud Stainless Steel – Very well made and with excellent fittings.
Honjo Aluminium – These are some of the lightest and best quality full-length guards around.
Velo Orange – Lower price than GB and Honjo, but still very neat.

Plastic Fender and Mudguard Manufacturers

Planet Bike Cascadia fenders are popular due to their longish coverage
Planet Bike Cascadia fenders are popular due to their longish coverage.

***Tyre sizes listed are the maximum width that will fit into each fender model.

Axiom
Rainrunner 360 Reflex (700×40, 26×2.0)
Roadrunner LX Reflex (700×28, 700×45, 26×2.2, 29×2.2)

Blackburn
Central Full Fender (700×35, 700×45, 26×2.35, 29×2.35)
Cloudburst Full Cover (700×28, 700×37, 26×1.75)

Bontrager
NCS (700×25, 700×35, 26×2.25)

Contec
Plastic (700×35, 700×42, 700×45, 700×48, 700×54)

Curana
C-Lite Composite (700×30, 700×35, 700×40, 700×45, 700×55, 26×2.2, 26×2.35)

Hebie
Stadtmeister (700×35)

M-Part
Primoplastic (700×35, 700×45, 700×55, 26×2.35)

Planet Bike
Cascadia (700×28, 700×35, 700×2.0)

SKS
Bluemels Chromoplastic (25c, 32c, 35c, 42c, 2.0″, 2.2”)
Bluemels Chromoplastic Primus (700×28)
Raceblade Long (700×25)
Longboard (700×25, 700×35)

Soma
Rain Dog 26/650b/700c (28c, 35c, 2.00”)

Stronglight
Plastic (700×25, 700×32, 700×38, 700×44, 26×1.7, 26×2.0)

Tor Tec
Reflective (26×1.5, 26×2.1, 700×26, 700×35, 700×44)

Vavert
Plastic 26/650b/700c (28c, 38c, 1.5”)

Zefal
Paragon (700×32, 700×40)

Metal Fender and Mudguard Manufacturers

Velo Orange Facette aluminium fenders have a nice retro shape
Velo Orange Facette aluminium fenders have a nice retro shape.

***Tyre sizes listed are the maximum width that will fit into each fender model.

Brave
Classic Aluminium (700×32, 700×42)

Contec
Aluminium (700×32, 700×42)

Dia Compe
ENE Aluminium (700×28, 700×35)

Electra
Aluminium (700×38, 26×2.0, 26×2.35)

Gilles Berthoud
Stainless Steel (26×1.6, 26×2.0, 650×40, 650×50, 700×2.0, 700×2.35)

Hebie
Fixed Guard (700×26, 700×39)

Honjo
Aluminium (700×25, 700×32, 700×35, 700×40, 650×34, 650×36, 650×38, 650×42, 650×52, 26×1.6)

PDW
Full Metal Fenders (700×23, 700×35)

Planet Bike
Cascadia ALX (700×35)

Pletscher
Aluminium Fender (26×2.0, 26×2.35, 700×2.0, 700×2.35)

Specialized
Plug n Play (700×30)
Globe Alloy (700×38)
Roll (650×2.3)

Stronglight
Guade Boule (700×32, 26×1.25)

Tanaka
Stainless Steel (700×40, 700×45)
Alloy (26×45, 26×60, 700×40, 700×45, 650×40, 650×45)
Hammered (700×36, 700×45)

Velo Orange
Smooth Aluminium (700×27, 700×35, 26×2.0)
Hammered Aluminium (650×35, 700×25, 700×35)
Facette Aluminium (700×35)
Snakeskin Aluminium (650×42, 700×42)
Smooth Stainless Steel (700×35, 26×2.0)
Zeppelin Aluminium (650×42, 700×42)
Fluted Aluminium (700×2.1)

Wooden Fender and Mudguard Manufacturers

Woody's Fenders are a work of art!
Woody’s Fenders are a work of art!

***Tyre sizes listed are the maximum width that will fit into each fender model.

Brave
Classic Wooden (700×42)

Contec
Bamboo (700×32, 700×42)

Planet Bike
Grasshopper Bamboo (700×35)

Woodguards
Made to order

Woody’s Fenders
Made to order

Carbon Fender and Mudguard Manufacturers

Latt Carbon Fenders are super lightweight and will add a bit of bling to your ride
Latt Carbon Fenders are super lightweight and will add a bit of bling to your ride

***Tyre sizes listed are the maximum width that will fit into each fender model.

Latt
Carbon (700×32, 700×38)

Clip-On Fender and Mudguard Manufacturers

SKS Raceblade Long Fenders are the best option for road bikes
SKS Raceblade Long Fenders are the best option for road bikes (Image MTBR)

Clip-on guards that mount 10 or more centimetres from the wheel don’t protect your bike, but will certainly keep you cleaner.

Axiom
BBB
Blackburn
Contec
Crud
Curana
Procraft
SKS
Soma
Zefel

What Good and Bad Experiences Have You Had With Fenders?

31 comments
  1. Great article, great website!! I am a full time bike commuter with aspirations to go touring. I’ve spent hours on your site… very inspiring!

    Alee, do you have any specific recommendations for companies that make decent mud flaps? I am looking for ones that are wide up front to protect your shoes from dirt/water (kind of triangular shaped) and really long in the back. I’ve thought about making my own out a plastic milk carton, but am honestly hoping to find something a bit classier! I’m in Seattle and we have not lack of wet riding days.

  2. Hi Tim. I’m glad you’ve got a lot out of the site! The longest mudflaps are often plastic DIY-made, but the Gilles Berthoud and Brooks leather ones are quite long too. Bibia make a really wide rubber one called the ‘Classic’ also. Alee

  3. Hi Tim – A little late, but if you are still looking for something check out Buddy Flaps (http://www.buddyflaps.com/).

    I just installed Buddy Flaps on my Handsome Black Fenders (which are good other than their short coverage). So far, I’ve only installed the front flap as I wanted to protect my drive train and shoes, but it worked well on the first ride.

    I have them on a Salsa Vaya with 700×32 wheels and 45mm wide fenders. It took maybe 30 min to install as I had to drill holes into the fenders (wasn’t hard, just had to find my drill & bits, take the wheels off, etc).

    Here is a more indepth review here:
    https://thelazyrando.wordpress.com/tag/buddy-flaps/

    Hope that helps!

  4. Good article on a subject that divides most road riders.
    I’ve been using SKS race blade long 2 mudguards this winter, although here in Portugal most riders don’t even consider using fenders. To be honest, in my region most riders don’t even bother riding in the rain. Could not find them on sale here, had to buy through CRC. The experience is good until… You try to wreak havoc in the cobbles. its a nightmare! They come loose (not on the frame but on the fender itself) and rub the tires, both front and rear. I tried to change the position of the attachments with limited success. Nevertheless the benefits that they hold still make me wanna use them.
    So, here is my 2c.

  5. Many thanks, Alee, for this site & the fenders piece in particular. I just feel compelled to add a caveat to the advice about mounting fenders as close as possible to the tire: On BikeForums a few riders have written about debris getting caught under their fenders. Unfortunately, that was at times more than an inconvenience; the fenders crumpled up into the forks or seatstays, leading to accidents. This never happened to me, despite many years of touring with fenders, but the mere thought of it sends shivers up my spine. So, one probably wants to raise fenders out of the way a little more than what might otherwise be considered the minimum.

  6. Do you have the ‘new’ raceblades or the older ‘P25’ models? (my old P25 box had raceblades on it, iirc, but in the new SKS catalog, that is a whole new line of fenders now)

    I’ve had the P25s on my bike for at least 7 years and haven’t had a lick of problems. (rough streets and even some trail riding while the roads were resurfaced…) I have always wondered if the rivets would start rattling, but they haven’t on these (or my P45 versions on the CX bike) I like the sks attachment methods, and generally have had good luck with mud/debris shedding performance too…. but 23mm wide tires don’t really pickup that much gunk on the treads, more on the sidewalls as they tend to sink… so the P25 stays tend to ‘cut’ big chunks of mud off the tire/wheel well before they get to the fork. (something an externally bracket designed fender would not necessarily do) I like to think that I have pretty well abused these, and they’ve held up great.

    I also have had some P45 (longboards) on my CX bike (<1 year) and
    they've performed well. There is a weird shimmy+rub that the front fender does when I'm over 15MPH and I hold onto just one side of the handlebars… Right or left, doesn't matter… but that only happens when I'm drinking or pressing buttons on the Garmin or phone. There is also a small instability of the spoiler in the front at over 25MPH where the front fender spoiler will wiggle slightly into the tire at the bottom. However, I think if I back the fender a little further away from the tire those may resolve themselves. I think the P45 is about the limits of the SKS attachment methods… there is just too much surfaced area on these at high speed and the attachment has stiffness limits. I haven't trimmed the stays yet, so I may experiment with some bends to increase the stiffness of the stay-setup… Like the text says… sometimes getting a good install on fenders is a challenge, but it is worth it. (plus you can put stickers on them when the bike frame is covered up!)

    I don't like the newer designs on the sks website at all though. If the PXX series is no longer available, the PB models are really going to be the only game in town.

  7. May want to check out Axiom Axle Runners.

    They are a polished version of a ‘hack’ that can add the attachment points needed for proper fenders to non-eyelet-equipped bikes. (I’ve no affiliation with the company, but I’ve fashioned similar devices from plate Aluminum in the past–the Axiom version are nice enough, and affordable enough, that I’ll probably stop hacking my own together)

    There are some obvious limits to using them.. .mainly clearance issues for the tire/fender… but should help out a lot of people. Should be noted though, you’ll likely have to re-jigger your fenders every time you remove a wheel.. .so you’ll need to carry a 10mm to help with your wheel changes. (It isn’t hard to find a multi-tool with a 10mm, but some lack it)

  8. A thumbs up for Woody’s Fenders. I’m running 26″ x 2.5″ tires on my Surly Troll so needed fenders slightly wider still. None available in plastic or metal so I turned to wood. Woody’s Fenders advertise their maximum width as 2.5″ but a quick email exchange and they were custom made at 2.75″ in less than a week at no extra cost. Also their international shipping costs are extremely reasonable – $23 from the States to Saudi Arabia.

    There is another company not on your list that also make beautiful custom wooden fenders – MK Fenders, however as well as being dearer than Woody’s their international shipping costs are prohibitively expensive. I was quoted $500 for shipping using the same carrier USPS. At more than 20x the cost of shipping the Woody’s I instantly ruled them out!

  9. Alee,
    GREAT website, an excellent source of information! I am a bike commuter in Washington, DC. There is a slight twist to my commute…I take my bike on the Metro (DC’s subway – bikes permitted before 7:00 AM) in the morning, and ride it home in the afternoon. Motorists are especially aggressive in the dark early morning hours, and my 13 mile afternoon bike ride is all I need – 26 would be a bit too much.
    That’s the set-up — here is the question.
    My fenders can get banged around on the Metro. And a crowded elevator means I have to stand the bike up on the back wheel. My plastic fenders are flexible enough to withstand that abuse. But I’d like to switch to metal. But I would think I would need the metal fenders to be shorter (so I can stand the bike on the back wheel, or wedge it to the train wall for support). I still want full coverage, so I would want really long flexible mud-flaps to make up the coverage.
    Any recommendations for metal? Or should I just stick to plastic?
    Thanks and apologies for the lengthy post,
    John

  10. i live and ride in NYC every workday and i have had

    (1) SKS raceblades – i have gone thru two pairs and they have broken on me one after the other. the roads aren’t great and sometimes there are pebbles that get kicked up which i think plays a part. SKS has been great about sending me replacement parts – mudflaps, a rear replacement after it broken in half, but i’ve had enough. these didn’t last a year and i ride about 2200 miles a year.

    (2) honjo fenders – this lasted 8 months before the vibrations caused the casing of the fender to detach from the mount. the fender ended up rolling forward and i skidded to a stop as my tire was on the fender which was on the ground. it was pretty scary and it would have been bad if i had been turning. i did not expect that at all. i wouldn’t recommend using these. when it did work, it was great at keeping the rain off.

    my next try will be planet cascadia – i will need fenders especially as we roll into winter and cold weather riding. some have told all 3rd party fenders are like this? also others ask me how did yours break so easily, mine have lasted years. i don’t know, i think the nyc riding environment is rough. i use gatorskin tires and won’t use anything else. i’m still trying to find a fender that will keep me dry plus won’t break on me.

  11. I’ve been using cascadia 35s on my 10 speed Raleigh for about 4 years now. Definitely a good fender. I just built up a Nashbar CX frame for touring and am probably going to get either VO smooth aluminum or SKS longboard 45 fenders for it.

  12. i ended up getting SKS chromoplastic 45 (not sure if they are longboards but i think no b/c they do not have a mudguard) b/c the cascadias i bought thru REI were re-sold. so far they have been standing up to the beating that is NYC.

  13. I love fenders. I’ve been running sks longboards for the last couple winters here in California. With the rain this year I’ve had a chance to dial in my rainproofing setup and i think I’ve narrowed down a weakness that happens at speed or when pedaling into a strong headwind. It seems to be coming from the water flying off the front of the front wheel and then hatching the wind only to fly back to my knee/shins and drain into by boots. I’ve been using gaiters and rain pants to minimize the symptoms but I’d rather address the root cause. Does anyone make a front fender that extends farther than the long boards to, say 2 oclock, when looking at the front wheel from the right? Maybe I need to splice two sets together? Other thoughts?

  14. They are all good, and so it really depends on your tyre width. The regular gloss black Bluemels come in sizes 35, 42, 45, 53, 60 and 65mm and are the fenders I have a long history with. The “matt” or “refl.” models are longer in length but are available in less sizes.

  15. Great article,

    I picked up Bontrager NCS Fenders for my FX with carbon fiber fork. Carbon
    forks have limited space and because of that most fenders either don’t
    fit or the work around requires cutting and, or, zip ties. In a word,
    unacceptable. There is a method to attach the front fender without
    cutting it so that it has near perfect tolerances, nothing after market
    about it. With little or no adjustment the fenders fit as well as the
    fenders on the Trek Lync, a near perfect factory finish. So what’s
    the gripe? Within days cracks developed everywhere. I was
    disappointed but I liked the look so much that I picked up a second set
    and started over. This time I tightened everything more lightly and
    used soft rubber washers between the connection points for shock
    absorption. The fit was spot so I know there was no load on the fender.
    Again, cracks developed out of nowhere, over night the the bottom of
    the rear fender shattered. Frankly they just cracked for no reason, no
    pressure nor impact, nothing. In the end, the ascetics, hardware and
    design are great but the material, the polycarbonate (thin hard plastic) is
    far, far, far too brittle.

  16. Hi, This is a great article. I would love some advice on what type of fenders to run on a Salsa Vaya GX with WTB Nano 700 x 40mm tires. I have been looking at the VO Zeppelin 52mm Fenders 700c, it says they will work with tires up to 42mm. I am specifically looking for metal and black. Thank you very much.

  17. One big issue with fenders that isn’t being discussed enough is the distance between the tire and the inside of the fender. Close looks cool but when you have 100s of miles of sticky heavy clay mud packing into the tread you want to be able to space the fender back or get ready for lots and lots of stops.

  18. SKS fenders are really not good if you don’t care about removing the fender. The front one have broken at the fixation in only two months. If you need commuter mudguard never go to SKS.

  19. i have bad exp with sks longboard, i received it bend , in functionality it’s still work but in aesthetic it’s not,
    then the front mudflaps constantly hit bumps and edge of pothole till my front fender broke, snap

  20. I just purchased my first bike ever and plan to ride to work. I could use a recommendation for a fender that will fit a 700c with disc brakes. Thank You

  21. Almost all of these options will be able to fit a bike with 700c wheels and disc brakes. You’ll possibly need to bend the fender struts to go around the disc calipers (check out the pictures in the article when I’m discussing disc brakes).

  22. Add a short length of old fender with a few stainless steel bolts (attach it to and on top of the short length of existing forward front fender). I found a used one at the local bike co-op (paid $5 for it) and cut it to the length I needed. Works great (extends down to the 2 o-clock position) and looks good too.

  23. Thanks for the tip, but I think I’ve falsely diagnosed the main cause of the problem. On the SKS fenders I have, there are stainless brackets on the inside of the fenders that bridge and connect to the fender stays. These bracket make for a clean look on the outside (since they are on the inside), but they also tend to interrupt the drainage on the inside during a full deluge. While the water flying off the front (my initial diagnosis) is still a factor, the bulk of the water is actually coming of the bracket on the trailing portion of the front wheel (right by my feet).
    I’m still dialing it in, but my plans are to modify the bracket to make it sit more flush/smooth along the inside of the fender… if that doesn’t work I’m going to go with a Honjo or VO that has the mounting hardware on the outside.
    Has anyone else observed this happening on the plastic fenders with internal brackets? https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/62675f9f277a5f257e6fab65da6e9247fc9b4d9e0caf96b6b7ffbc8333f69686.jpg

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