Trentkln27

Hi everyone I'm putting sks blumels on my rim brake Fuji sportif. The plan is to also mount a rear rack and bags for taking week or two long trips. Currently the bike has the stock size 28c tires and the rear tire is only a millimeter to two from rubbing the rear seat stay fender mount. Even the slightest bit out of true and the tire will rub. Should I ditch the fenders in favor of 30 or 32c tires or should I keep the fenders and maybe go down a tire size. Still waiting on Sheldon nuts to finalize the fender mounting locations.

DeadGrandpa

I recommend against having only a millimeter or two tire clearance. I did that once, and a hot road in New Mexico made the tire expand and rub against the chain stay. But if you have to choose between having no fender or using a narrower tire on a touring bike, I vote for finding another bike with more tire and fender clearance. Tough choice either way.

roadcrankr

The rack & bags combo will likely prevent water from spraying on your butt.
Personally, I would find the larger tire providing a plusher ride, considering the added weight back there.
I own those same fenders and put gorilla tape at the bottom of the front one to keep water at bay.

HelpSingularity 

I had the same issue.
I built up some 650b wheels and was able to go to 32 mm wide tires.
This is where 650b rims really shine since I was able to use fenders and wide tires on the same, older bicycle.
I also had to go with some new brakes that had longer brake arms.
Totally satisfied, would recommend.

Trentkln27

I wish a new bike was in the budget. Right now I'm just trying to work with what I have and see if I even like touring. Otherwise it would be a no brainer to find another bike

FBinNY 

If you can't raise the bridge, lower the water.

The point is that you may not have to make a choice here. I can't say for sure based on the photo, but you're there. So, start thinking.

Can you modify the bracket and pull it higher on the bridge? Would that help?

Can you flare the fender there, and would that help?

If the issue isn't only local, is there a wider fender that would solve it?

So, before choosing between two options, check whether there's another.

Trentkln27

I thought about grinding the slot on the bracket bigger but I am waiting on the Sheldon nuts. The issue is only around the brake bridge and I'm hoping with the new hardware I can push the bracket back enough to resolve the problem. Also a wider fender would not fit under my current calipers. I will update when the Sheldon nuts arrive

FBinNY 

So you already have Plan B in the works. Hopefully, you won't need Plan C.

But if you should need to, you can test to see if the fender is flexy enough to squeeze into the brake, and not offer enough resistance to impede the brakes function.

Bike Gremlin

If it helps, SKS used to make some "road bike" mudguards that have a sort of a cutout in the rim brake section.
Found them:
https://www.bike24.com/p2159612.html

Relja

delbiker1 

Putting fenders on a bike like the OP's is almost always a matter of figuring out how one is going to do the attachment, and what to use on the set up. As stated above, give it a good look, think about what you like for end results, and trial and error is sometimes the best way to get there, sometimes the only way. It certainly looks like the fender and struts could use some adjustment in lengths, especially the front. The fork crown area is quite often the hardest area to get clearance. The smaller tires may be the best all around solution.
BTW, the latest version of the Zaffiro Pro tire is pretty darn good.

choddo

If this is only for your benefit and not the person on your wheel, maybe just get an Ass Saver / win wing? Doesn’t protect the seat tube but with full fenders the chain / front mech and stays still take a beating.

79pmooney

A trick you can do that will bring fender clearance to the same clearance as the current tire-seatpost clearance is to cut a narrow ellipse out of the fender. To do this, put the fender on (no wheel needed) and notice where it hits the seatpost. Notice how big the gap is between fender and seatpost 3" above that contact and 3" below. (Should be nearly the same.) Find a good feeler. (2 quarters, perhaps?) Now use the feeler to mark the fender beside the contact point on both sides.

Remove the fender. Draw a narrow ellipse from the lower contact point to the upper at the width of the two marks at the contact point. Dremel the fender to the ellipse. (I'd dremel to a narrower, shorter ellipse, trial fit and expand to what works best, putting in the wheel periodically to get the clearance off the tire consistent with what I want at the brake and behind.)

End result - a nice, snug fitting fender that looks perfect. And fits so snug there is no wobble at all until well behind the brake.

Edit: You may need to dremel out for the front derailleur as you do this. And you may find you have little material left at the FD. You can epoxy a fiberglass to the fender inside from a couple of inches above the FD to the same below. Perhaps 1/2" strips pf fiberglass. Since these will be right out at the edges of the fender, a clean job wouldn't affect the tire clearance and being inside the fender, no one sees it. (Use two part epoxy resin. WEST System or the like from West Marine. I bet Tap Plastics has an equivalent. (You want lots of working time. An hour or more. The stuff you mix up and need to tidy the end of the job will set up faster in the mixing container than the resin you are working with. Does mean you will not be trimming the tape edges until quite a few hours later. Probably not ready to use the next day.) Smallest bristle brush or largish artist's brush. Remove as much excess resin as you can. Fiberglass will "float up" on thick epoxy and leave a wavy surface you didn't plan on when you finished the job. And DON'T go back and try to correct that!! At the semi-set up stage, the resin is impossibly sticky and completely impossible to work with. Epoxy and lacquer thinner for cleanup. Masking tape or painter's tape to protect everything you do not want to epoxy. A very sharp trim knife to cut to the tape edge when the epoxy is 90% set.)

A project, yes. Bu the result is sweet! (I don't know how well this would work with the "slippery" Planet Bike fenders. Works really well for the SKS ones.

79pmooney

I hadn't read all the posts when I wrote the above. Never occurred to me that no one mentioned the River City "Reacharounds"

https://www.rivercitybicycles.com/pr...ckets-4486.htm

Brackets so you can simply cut the fender at the brake bridge and fork crown and "delete" the fender for those inches. They work very well and are standard fare here in Portland where we have wet much of the year.

With my "ellipse" of the post above and Reacharounds, plus perhaps a little trimming at the outboard lower corners of the rear fender at the chainstays, you can put fenders on virtually any bike with all the clearance that frame will give you so you do not need to change the tires. (I rode a winter with full SKS fenders on a Univega Competition and 23c tires. (25s simple didn't fit, anytime, anywhere. Early '80s race.)

And a trick at the lower rear - often you can attach the fender in front of the chainstay bridge instead of behind it. Might have to drill out the rivets for the attachment on the fender and reinstall it on the inside or make/fudge a different attachment. Depends on whether the bridge has a fender hole and whether that hole goes through. (Do this BEFORE you cut out that ellipse as this will move where it wants to be.)

GamblerGORD53

With steel fenders, there could be a dent at the brace. If yours is stiff plastic, maybe just melt a flat spot or cut a small hole.
All the mounts on 2 of my bikes fenders are home made. I even made eye hole bolts from 2 1/2" x 5/16" bolts. LOL.

3alarmer 

.
...where are your trips planned ? In California, during the dry season, touring for a week or two on a bike without fenders is easily done.
I honestly cannot tell much from your pictures, but from those, it looks like those fenders are too narrow for the tires you have on there.

But I wouldn't go buying new tires unless and until you have a better idea of where the fenders will end up, mounted.

As said above by someone else, all ender mounting on bikes is a custom job. On some cycles, I've had to drill out the rivets on Blumels to remove and/or modify the mounting bracket in front.

3alarmer 

...on a plastic fender, you can (very, very slowly and carefully) modify that section narrower with a heat gun, and a pair of heavy leather gloves to prevent burning your hand as you squeeze. Metal fenders, like those of aluminum alloy, are easier to do, because you don't need to heat them to bend them.

The Blumels plastic goes pretty fast on the heating, and it's very easy to overdo it, so proceed carefully, squeezing as you gradually heat the section. Not for the faint of heart.

grumpus

Hah, earlier today I was thinking the front mudguard on one of my bikes looks too short, and a few days ago I was using black Gorilla tape - coincidence or synchronicity?

roadcrankr

Yesiree. I got a little tired of gooey grime kicking up on my shoes, cranks, and pretty much everything behind it.
Tough tape. Same four-inch (8" folded) from a few years ago. No idea why those fenders did not come with a flap!

Trentkln27

I mostly plan on trips close to home in WI where the weather man is after wrong about rain. Also these fenders were stated as being for tires up to 28c which is exactly what I have. Definitely a tight fit but I think it will look great once I get the position correct

pdlamb

Looks to me like the tightest fit is forward of the fork on the front wheel. After you've extended the slot on that mount, you might pull the rear of the front fender in a half a cm or so. The fender will pivot around the fork mount which should give you a bit more clearance in front.

Fitting fenders can be a PITA. One of the posters here noted they charged time and material to install them, because they go on one bike in 20 minutes and the next time it's a 2-3 hour struggle.

squirtdad

you might consider the sks raceblade.....https://www.biketiresdirect.com/prod...RoCFrwQAvD_BwE

there work well, little less coverage and will likely give you more clearnace.

IMHO 1) you do not want to go lower tire size for touring for sake of having fenders 2) you do not want to get fenders so close that something will jam the wheels up (small stick, lots of mud)(

Trentkln27

Haven't actually got the mount at the fork bridge done yet because I don't have a way to mount there until I get the Sheldon nuts. I suppose I could remove the caliper and mount it with the bolt running though the caliper and fork. The Sheldon nuts should finally arrive this afternoon so I will finish the Sunday morning and update what I did to make the fenders fit

biker128pedal

+1. I have these for my Domane. Front and rear fit with 32 mm tires. Rear fit with 38 mm tire.

Here is my 38 mm tire set up for gravel.

rumrunn6

my 2 cents, tires have priority over fenders. meaning use the tires you want, then figure out what fenders work on the bike. it may not be the fenders you bought. on a cpl of my bikes, I cut the fenders so each wheel had 2 fender parts, so 4 fender parts altogether. then I was free to mount them any way I wanted. but yeah, fenders can be a hassle. right now I only have them on 1 of my 4 bikes. another note, rear racks can keep you drier, but not as dry as a rear fender. I like to keep my rear rack dry, because it's carrying my stuff, which I also like to keep dry. meaning, just because I have a rear rack, doesn't mean I don't want a rear fender. good luck in your quest!

Trentkln27

Finally got the Sheldon nuts and have the fenders where I want. Front fender was a lot easier than the rear. The bracket for the rear caliper isn't as good as the front. I might fabricate a bracket like the fronts and rivet to the fender to improve fitment at the rear brake. Otherwise I'm happy with how the fenders look. Huge pain to get the position correct and I probably won't ever do this again 😂