Fenders, give me your opinions

[cvcalhoun]

@Steve O 135473 wrote:

If something goes between the fender and wheel, the fender will pull out of the release, preventing an endo. On the Cider Ride last fall this happened to me. A fat stick went right in there. Destroyed the fender (and made a terrifying noise), but turned out to be no big deal. If the fender had not broken away it’s possible the front wheel would have locked up at 24.8 mph (isn’t Strava great!?), and I might not be playing Freezing Saddles this year.

Hmm, I wonder whether this would have helped the day I did “snowiest ride” last year, and got ice that stuck to the fender on one side and the tire on the other, so that the wheel would not move. Of course, by that time, I was walking the bike anyway. But I ended up having to drag it the last half block. I’m too old to drag a 64-lb. bike!

[Raymo853]

@romandc 135513 wrote:

On my commuter bike I busted a pair of plastic fenders. I’ve upgraded to flat metal from Civia:

Looks like Civia is out of business and no one has their products in stock. Shame those look way cool.

[cvcalhoun]

@dkel 135453 wrote:

Another downside of long fenders of any brand: it’s very difficult to use wheelbender racks because the fenders often won’t let either of your wheels go through the slot. It’s worst with wide fenders and mudflaps, of course. Those are terrible racks anyway, though, so maybe it doesn’t matter.

When I see a wheelbender rack, I either lock my bike up to the very end of it or use something other than a rack (e.g., a parking sign) instead. They often make it impossible to lock the frame (as opposed to just a wheel) to the rack, with or without fenders.

[Raymo853]

@Raymo853 135533 wrote:

Looks like Civia is out of business and no one has their products in stock. Shame those look way cool.

Having your fender break off is great for saftey, but then you are faced with how to get the parts home. Yea you could just toss it, but I carted mine home for hours since I wanted to repair it.

My repair was to cut it much shorter and install it on my commuter.

[Raymo853]

In the end, I am living up to one of my nicknames, Capt Fickle. I am down to either the Portland Full Metal City of the Velo Orange. Two things are making my lean towards Portland, the gray color and they are having a sale on scratched and dented fenders. And another thing I just discovered, the Velo Orange fenders are missing safety stays. Hmmm, as someone who has broken a wrist due to fenders without safety tabs, I think that ends the fickleness.

I ruled out the removable fenders. Why? I forgot my plan, to have two road bikes one with fenders (this IF) and one without (my Salsa Colossal) That was one of the reason I bought the second bike. I just submitted the PDW order. Hope they’ll be on the IF for the lasy BAFS day ride at HP.

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[dkel]

@Raymo853 135915 wrote:

And another thing I just discovered, the Velo Orange fenders are missing safety stays.

As an owner of VO fenders—and having installed them myself, I have wondered about this. The ends of the fender stays are held in place by R-clips by the dropouts. The opening in those R-clips is about the same diameter as the stays, and though the clips tighten when you screw them to the frame, they don’t tighten by much. If something got caught in there, I suspect the stays might actually come right out of the clips. Not being an engineer or physicist, though, I don’t advise taking this post as conclusive evidence of any implied safety feature.

[Raymo853]

I noticed those clips and wondered. Their website had no info I could find either way.

[ginacico]

I asked the guys at the VO shop whether the zeppelins have a quick release (before I’d seen them), and they said no. So at the very least, they don’t describe them as such.

In my minimal clearance situation, I cranked mine down pretty tightly at all points so they wouldn’t move or rattle, and occasionally I’ve tugged on the stays pretty hard to micro-adjust. I wouldn’t bet on those R-clips releasing to avoid a disaster. They might, if you were able to leave them loose and chop the ends of the stays off. It’s a doubtful maybe.

[dkel]

I definitely cut the excess off my stays. The clips also rotate when you yank on the stays, which wouldn’t help them let go in a pinch. As I said, I don’t think the design is a safety feature, but it could be better than bolting the stays directly to the frame. So I tell myself.

[Raymo853]

For those wondering, the photo below is how Velo Orange fender struts mount to the fork eyelets. The method simply scare me.

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[dplasters]

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My preferred fender. Mostly just to troll at this point. No quick release would terrify me… dry(ish) feet are not worth that possibility…..

[hozn]

@dplasters 135981 wrote:

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My preferred fender. Mostly just to troll at this point. No quick release would terrify me… dry(ish) feet are not worth that possibility…..

I think all of the SKS and PB fenders have quick releases. You don’t need to choose between quick release and dry feet.

The downside to quick releases is that they may rattle after awhile. Depends on implementation, I’m sure, but mine are rattling now after two years. (And the quick releases have been used a couple of times, though never in a situation where I would have gone over the bars.)

[dkel]

I think there is a safety issue in not having quick release fender mounts, but to say it warrants persistent and nagging terror is to place the issue out of proportion with all of the other inherent safety issues in riding; there are a zillion other things that will cause you to crash before you crush your fender and do a header off the bike.

@hozn 135985 wrote:

The downside to quick releases is that they may rattle after awhile. Depends on implementation, I’m sure, but mine are rattling now after two years.

Uncle Sheldon suggests squirting silicone caulk into the quick release to keep the rattling down.

[Raymo853]

@dplasters 135981 wrote:

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My preferred fender. Mostly just to troll at this point. No quick release would terrify me… dry(ish) feet are not worth that possibility…..

I have such fenders. They are great for keeping your butt and back dry, but not your legs, feet, nor riding partner’s various parts. And simular fenders on the front have the same failings.

[hozn]

@dkel 135993 wrote:

Uncle Sheldon suggests squirting silicone caulk into the quick release to keep the rattling down.

Awesome — I am proud to say I had actually considered this exact solution! I’m glad to have it validated. — My fenders have become fairly “DIY” with gorilla tape wrapping the stay-fender friction point (started with innertubes, but they were hard to glue permanently) and eventually drilled holes and held stay to fender with zip ties when the plastic clip started waring out on the rear fender.

[Author]

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