Kanegon

I'm dumping my hardtail MTB and going back to a flat bar road bike for city riding. Here's the photoshop teaser. The tires in the pic are 23s, the 28s are a tighter fit. I know it's hard to judge from pictures, but there's only 4-5mm of space in there with these 28Cs. So should I play it safe and go with Raceblade type fenders that avoid the brake area, or you reckon there's enough space in there for full 45mm fenders? Full is better, keeps crud out of the brakes. There's also some confusion as to whether SKS 35s can accommodate 28Cs... Anyone pull it off with full fenders on the Racing USA models?

with 23C


with 28C

cudak888 

Good luck getting the rear to clear without major fiddling - and perhaps modification of the fender to clear the brake arms when applied. There is a remote chance you could get 37mm VO fenders to fit in front.

At any rate, I wouldn't have picked an '84/5 Raleigh USA Grand Prix to do this with. It may have eyelets, but it's the only model of the Japanese/Taiwanese-made racing series (Grand Prix/Super Course/Competition/Prestige; I'm excluding the Team Pro and Team Pro 555 Replica framesets) to have them. Hence, the Grand Prix has very little clearance to speak of, like its higher-end cousins.

The Raleigh USA sport/touring models of that year featured ample tire clearance. They'd be a better choice, and they're not expensive when you find them.

-Kurt

Puget Pounder

I would go with full coverage, but only if you are willing to do modifications. This includes cutting your rear fender in half and attaching it on both sides of the brake as well as cutting your front fender in half and having it end at the back of your crown.

Quick attach fenders don't cut it for me.

https://blog.harriscyclery.com/low-cl...e-rear-fender/

Kanegon

Nah, the bike picked me. After getting the Centurion Facet, I decided I didn't need two racing bikes, so I decided the GP was the better choice for street conversion. The city bike has to have panniers and be lockable, so I can go shopping, have dim sum and what not, as well as plain fun, beating around town. I've used full fenders before, and they're great. When you wash the back of the fenders off, you realize how much stuff they catch, stuff that otherwise end up in your brakes or your face. But I think DIY-ing this is probably an overkill. And it doesn't look that hot. SKS is putting out a full length version of the Raceblade, but it's 23C only.

It seems the consensus is that standard plastic laminate fenders would not fit the Raleigh with 28C. I was thinking I might pull it off if I substituted the rear bridge with a zip tie. I mean how much clearance do you need, vertical and lateral? 5mm? 3mm?

chi-james

I've used these road race mk2 with pretty good results.

Kanegon

Hmmm, intriguing suggestion. What kind of bike do you use them with? How often do you have to tweak it to keep from rubbing?

chi-james

Cannondale sr 500, Team Miyata. The biggest tires I've used them with were 25c, but they say that about 4-5mm of clearance is all you need regardless of tire size. How often do I have to tweak? Some, but not much is about the best answer I can give.

rat fink

I have a set on my Fuji Opus III. It's a criterium geometry bike. I follow the tips and tricks video on Crud's page, and never get any rub. One thing that makes a big difference is using a slice of inner tube in between the brake and the zip tie. The front tip of my front fender sometimes goes off-center when I'm carrying the bike around. It doesn't rub when it does this, and a gentle nudge or slight twist from near the fork. I really like these fenders and have no intention of buying any other type. I use 23c tires (what I prefer) and haven't tried anything larger.

Kanegon

The Opus... that's a classic frame, right? I've only seen the Cruds on modern aero frames, how do they jive with vintage?

abarth

I love them and riders behind me love them too. They do break, specially the front fender from toe overlap. At least Crud will sell you spare parts for £6 including shipping. Totally happy with the way they look and function. Once adjusted, I never have to readjust them. Them only work for 23s. They rub with my 25s.

TimmyT 

The mk2's are kind of interesting. Glad to learn they're out there. I'm surprised that they are roughly the same price as regular fenders with tougher stays.

The OP must have a light touch on the bike. I'm not sure I could get away with 23s or even 25s in NYC. The streets are too rough. Brooklyn IS more bike-friendly than Manhattan, however.

Kanegon

That's why I'm trying to keep the 28s on it, because there are cracks and potholes out there that would rip the guts out of a 23C tire, given the right angle and timing. On bike friendlier routes like bike paths, 23Cs are the way to go, but it's not hard to stray into gravel, dirt and broken glass, as I did a couple of weeks ago, looking for a more scenic route to the beach. BTW, I think Manhattan is making huge progress with bike paths; you can practically circle the island! Hell, there seems to be a cycling boom, I even read a bicycle fender review in the New York Times!



And you need the fenders to keep toxic sludge off your face when riding over puddles.

TimmyT 

If you really want to keep those 28s, you might consider getting a rain/snow bike if you have the space in your apartment. On the rain/snow bike, get a set of fatties, at least 32s and roll with it. My Fuji has 28s on it, and I even think that they are a bit small. I prefer my 32s on the Kona, but there's no way I'm parking that on the street in Manhattan ever again (handlebars were stolen around Labor Day). Both bikes have fenders and my Univega is waiting to get its upgrades too.

Manhattan is making huge progress with the bike paths. Now, if we could make some progress with the cops! One pulled up behind me and "wooped" (half a siren) the other day because he wanted to make an illegal right turn in the city.

The fender review in the NYT kills me. Who would ever go to the NYT for bike stuff**********?

rat fink

Yes it is. They work well. I can be tricky to get the fenders to mount tight enough on the seat stays and fork legs of vintage steel bikes since the tube diameters are so small, but the instructional video I mentioned, addresses this as well.

BluesDaddy

Even if you can jam some fenders, it looks like it would clog with snow pretty quickly.

Barchettaman

I couldn´t get standard race blades to work effectively with 700c/28 tyres, the mudguard shape had too tight a circumference for the bigger tyre (hope that makes sense).

Depending on the frame, road bikes seem to fall into a bit of a grey area as far as mudguard coverage is concerned - whilst you can get a 700c/28 tyre on there, there won´t be clearance for a full proper mudguard worthy of the name, and with a 700c/23 tyre you run a higher risk of rim damage from road debris.

Having said that there are some clever folks who cut mudguards in the middle and mount them over the top of the brake bridge.

There´s no way I´m going to commute another winter here without the best mudguards I can get. I´m currently building up an old Focus Crater Lake hybrid as a cyclocross/commuter/tourer/fast road bike for precisely this reason, and looking at the current Frankfurt weather (winter monsoon) I can´t get it finished quickly enough.

Here are some articles I have found useful:

https://bostonretrowheelmen.blogspot....-bike-not.html

https://www.cyclesdsalmon.com/gardebouesalmon2008+.htm

https://tinyurl.com/cupc94k (a Bike Forums discussion link)

Kanegon

They look great, but I won't be able to use them if they're as tight as you say thy are.

mazdaspeed

It all comes down to the particular bike. I have two bikes that are the same size and have racing geometry, one could easily clear fenders and one can't.

Kanegon

So which camp do you think my brake-tire clearance fall into? I don't want to get stuck with a pair that don't fit.

mazdaspeed

The crud roadracer fenders look like they would fit even with 28c, the site says they only need 4mm of clearance and based on the pics you probably have that. If not you'd have to downsize the tires which would be better than not having fenders. On my bike with fitment issues it's the front that won't fit even with 23c tires but yours looks good.

TimmyT 

You *might* be able to pull off the thin planet bike fenders (35 mm ?) on that bike. Call around to find a good price and then ask to see if they fit when you get to an LBS. It's a trial and error solution, but it will take the guesswork out of wondering if they fit.

tashi

I run 28's (tight fit), short-reach Dura-Ace 7402 brakes, and fenders on my early 90's Bianchi race bike. I made my own version of the River City Reacharounds out of rear rackt stays and set 'em up as split fenders. I've ridden them on snow-covered roads and MUP's, as well as on dry, wet and muddy paths. The only thing that's ever clogged 'em was a really wet, clay-soil trail that I had no business being on with a race bike. It was still fun though



Also, IMO anything but full coverage fenders (that include the front portion of the front fender) is pointless and frustrating on road bikes.