Touring mudguards, I despair please help

Lexman17

HI,

I bought a Dawes Clubman audax bike with the intention of doing some touring on it. Then I decided to get some bigger tyres on it so put Schwalbe Marathon 28s on it for comfort and going along canal towpaths etc. But can I get a mudguard to fit it now? Not at all, there's no way the forks and frame will accommodate anything larger than 23 or 25 tyres and leave space for mudguards. Are there any clip on mudguards or mudguards that don't rely on sitting right in the forks/stays that I could try? Otherwise I'll just have to send the 28 tyres back and get 25s...

thanks,
Alex

andymiller

There'll be howls of outrage but you can live without mudguards - especially if you carry something on top of your rack.

Hoopdriver

andymiller wrote:

There'll be howls of outrage but you can live without mudguards - especially if you carry something on top of your rack.

True, if you have stuff on your rack you can get by without getting too muddy, but mudguards are also useful for keeping your drive train free of grit and grime

andrewleck

Hoopdriver wrote:

andymiller wrote:

There'll be howls of outrage but you can live without mudguards - especially if you carry something on top of your rack.

True, if you have stuff on your rack you can get by without getting too muddy, but mudguards are also useful for keeping your drive train free of grit and grime

And water bottles.

andymiller

Give chain an occasional wipe with a baby wipe. If your water bottle gets some dirt on it just give it a quick rinse.

Mudguards are pretty much essential on a winter bike but for summer touring they're a nice to have - I'd trade mudguards for wider tyres any day.

Lexman17

thanks for that, the bike looks pretty good without mudguards too!

dilemna

I would have thought checking if there is sufficient clearance in your bike frame prior to purchasing larger tyres is pretty fundamental. I don't see why you should get a refund given that it was your error and not the retailer.

You'll just have to fit an after market mudguard or alternatively refit the smaller tyres and mudguards and write off the cost of your error or sell the tyres on.