Crud MK2 (again)

seanorawe

The kids got me the MK2 guards from Christmas. I also saw on another post, somebody got some stick about getting the LBS to fit them? Well, the instructions in the box are pure manure, and the video on you tube is also not the most clear (to me). I am therefore going to get my LBS or CRC to fit them. Fair play to everyone saying give it a go etc etc. But I am the worlds most useless fixer DIY type person. I know I will do it @rse about face.

paul_mck

not sure you can do it wrong man.

what was wrong with the other thread btw?

Tom_UK

Are you fitting them to the Allez in your sig? I have a 2012 Allez and the guards fit absolutely perfectly with no cutting needed so which bit are you having trouble with?

p1tse

i'm thinking these and like you useless at DIY

but looking at the quick youtube clip, it looks like you feed the guard under the brakes, cable tie type thing to the brake area and then loop the holding parts like a figure of 8 to the frame and then adjust by pushing or pulling the legs of the holding parts?

also i read on one of the reviews they had electrical tape around the frame to prevent marks so might be worth doing that too.

paul_mck

defo tape the frame/forks up first.

tiredofwhiners

Yup, tape the frame, turn the bike upside down and fit them with no wheels fitted (saves a lot of hassle0 but don;t do up the seatpost cable tie tight - leave it loose and the guard will find its best non-rubbing position on its own.

I cannot understand what is unclear about the instructions though - fiddly, yes, and occasionally you'll need to trim a bit (as it says in the guide) but they fit fine and mine is a Tarmac Pro with SFA clearance.

chrisaonabike

seanorawe wrote:

Well, the instructions in the box are pure manure, and the video on you tube is also not the most clear (to me).

I agree.

I'm not brilliant at DIY either, and I'm also extremely impatient. Not the best recipe for performing a fiddly installation. However, I wanted it done right, and all my experience in life tells me that paying people to do anything gets it done quick, but not necessarily right, anything fiddly all the more so.

So I took it slow, I listened to music, I drank wine. I watched the youtube instruction vid several times (even in small bits, as I made gradual progress). I stopped frequently and did other things when it was frustrating and I wanted to throw the cruds and the bike through the window.

I got the back one on in an evening. The front one took an hour or so the next day. And they're fine.

Measure twice, cut once, man up and do it yourself. Don't rush, and don't put up with 'not quite right'.

Otherwise, I wouldn't bet against you ending up in the same place as Raffles.

The bloke in the LBS will have lots of other work to do, and will attempt to do it as quickly as possible. Are you going to check that all the short screws and long screws are in their respective right places? That the tape has been put on right, so that no part of the attachments is rubbing against the frame? That the little brushes are lined up right, and rub on the rim and not the tyre? By the time you've done all that, you may as well have done the actual installation yourself.

seanorawe

Tom_UK wrote:

Are you fitting them to the Allez in your sig? I have a 2012 Allez and the guards fit absolutely perfectly with no cutting needed so which bit are you having trouble with?

I am indeed. I have not had any trouble, as I have not tried to put them on myself. I did put mud guards on to my hybrid and messed that up. I also tripped the electrics in my house when changing a plug I suppose I could give it a go under some supervision. If that fails ill tag said supervisor to take over.

seanorawe

paul_mck wrote:

defo tape the frame/forks up first.

Cellotape?

paul_mck

I used one wrap of duct tape, but electrical tape would do too. It has to stand up to the elements too so cellotape wouldnt be great imo.

seanorawe

Ill have a look for some clear leccy tape. My forks have white and black running through it and im a bit funny about how it looks lol

paul_mck

its on my beater so I dont care lol

gloomyandy

Just use black tape, it will look fine.

mustgettaller

paul_mck wrote:

I used one wrap of duct tape, but electrical tape would do too. It has to stand up to the elements too so cellotape wouldnt be great imo.

I really wouldn't recommend duct tape, as it tends to leave dried glue and fibres behind when you try to remove it after any significant time (i.e. more than 1 day or so). I'd really recommend electrical (insulating) tape.

chrisaonabike

seanorawe wrote:

paul_mck wrote:

defo tape the frame/forks up first.

Cellotape?

Sellotape gets sticky and horrible after a while, it's vile stuff.

I used black electrical insulating tape - half inch wide approx, 60p for a roll from Wickes. It's sticky but not too sticky (so it comes off reasonably easily too - though not on its own IME), and stretchy, which makes it good to get on tight. It comes in other colours too.

stinger53

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

Sellotape gets sticky and horrible after a while, it's vile stuff.

I used black electrical insulating tape -

Same here, defo helps and on my bike it cant be seen anyway as black tape on black carbon

p1tse

I was thinking same about duct tape as its strong adhesive

Mikey41

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

I got the back one on in an evening. The front one took an hour or so the next day. And they're fine.

Measure twice, cut once, man up and do it yourself. Don't rush, and don't put up with 'not quite right'.

^^ this.

I did mine over about 3 hours, making damn sure I got things in the right places and so I was sure it was assembled correctly before tying it to the bike.

Trial fit to see where the fork attachments will go, wrap electrical tape around there to protect the paint. Trial-fit until you are sure it's right, attach them loosely at first, then tighten up into place. Once set, they will stay there remarkably well. The next time you put them on, it'll be a 10min job.

I made only one mistake which was to cut too much off the rear guard at the seat tube end. It is now about 5mm too short

rolf_f

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

seanorawe wrote:

paul_mck wrote:

defo tape the frame/forks up first.

Cellotape?

Sellotape gets sticky and horrible after a while, it's vile stuff.

And, more importantly, it isn't waterproof so it will only last if you only ride your Crud guard fitted bike in dry weather!

chrisaonabike

Mikey41 wrote:

I made only one mistake which was to cut too much off the rear guard at the seat tube end. It is now about 5mm too short

Yes, I did this too. Despite measuring about 6 times before cutting. Even now I can't work out what I did wrong, my gap is about 10mm :oops: :oops:

So I do have to get the crap out of the angle with an old toothbrush every few rides.

Still, they don't rub, and the rest of the bike stays remarkably clean.

MattC59

No disrespect to anyone, but I'm struggling to see how people an find installing these difficult. I fitted mine in about 30mins first time around. I took them off in the summer and they took about 20mins to install the pair the second time around, in the autumn.

p1tse

MattC59 wrote:

No disrespect to anyone, but I'm struggling to see how people an find installing these difficult. I fitted mine in about 30mins first time around. I took them off in the summer and they took about 20mins to install the pair the second time around, in the autumn.

On what bike and tyre size?
Did you need to do any trimming?

gloomyandy

They can be tricky on small frames especially ones that use a compact frame. The problem is that the compact frame means the seat stays are much lower than on other bikes which means the section that goes behind the seatpost is way too long and needs a lot of trimming.

iPete

Get the bike up on a stand, this makes things many times easier and take your time, it's not that hard. Managed to get mine on a track frame (see sig) and had to cut the rear down.

Some Lizard skin patches really help.

me-109

Couldn't get the back one fitted on mine because of clearance under the brake bridge, so they ended up on fleaBay. The SKS Raceblade Longs were really easy to fit and are a lot more sturdy.

rowlers

Got to admit I battled with mine - and I consider myself fairly handy DIY wise. Once I got it on my head that it can't be that difficult, I fitted them in about 20mins. I don't know what I was fussing about!
I have next to no clearance at the back, - they are literally skimming the tire.
The front mech/crank protector bit doesn't fit though, no enough clearence between tire and frame...
But they are OK so far...

The included instructions are complete garbage though!

rolf_f

MattC59 wrote:

No disrespect to anyone, but I'm struggling to see how people an find installing these difficult. I fitted mine in about 30mins first time around. I took them off in the summer and they took about 20mins to install the pair the second time around, in the autumn.

It depends on clearance. If it is tight, then it is pretty difficult to fit them without rubbing. You can be duly grateful that you have more clearance than others.

No idea why you bother removing them though - it still rains in the summer!

atakd

Tom_UK wrote:

Are you fitting them to the Allez in your sig? I have a 2012 Allez and the guards fit absolutely perfectly with no cutting needed so which bit are you having trouble with?

Also had them on my Allez without problem. Don't get hung up on the dos and dont's in the instructions. The idea is to keep the guard off the wheel - just tweak things till this happens, which I found very easy. If they touch one side of the tyrethen rotate the attachment point on the fork or seat stay to shorten the effective length of the supporting arm that side, pulling the guard away from the tyre, until the guard is central. You can also adjust effective length by moving the arms up and down the fork/ stay.

MattC59

p1tse wrote:

MattC59 wrote:

No disrespect to anyone, but I'm struggling to see how people an find installing these difficult. I fitted mine in about 30mins first time around. I took them off in the summer and they took about 20mins to install the pair the second time around, in the autumn.

On what bike and tyre size?
Did you need to do any trimming?

My Trek 1.9 with 25mm tyres.
Fitted them on my mates Boardman, with 25s, which is a little tight on clearance too, it took about the same time.

MattC59

Rolf F wrote:

MattC59 wrote:

No disrespect to anyone, but I'm struggling to see how people an find installing these difficult. I fitted mine in about 30mins first time around. I took them off in the summer and they took about 20mins to install the pair the second time around, in the autumn.

No idea why you bother removing them though - it still rains in the summer!

Fair point, I don't now though

p1tse

Are all the mk2 come boxed rather than cellophane bags and cardboard top?