Winter mudguards for luddite with carbon bike?

amc · October 2012

Can people please recommend me some mudguards for my Storck Scenario race bike (which has v little tyre clearance and no eyelets for guards).
I don't mind a bit of mud and crud myself but I'm looking to keep the frame and rear mech protected as much as possible while i do some winter miles usually on my own rather than a group).
I'm also a clumsy mechanic so i'd like them to be as easy as possible to put on (and off).
I hear good things about Crud Roadracer guards and sks race blades but have no idea how easy they are to fit and if they do the job.
Many thanks.

ride_whenever · October 2012

The cruds are too fiddly IMO. I'd go for the sks raceblade xl (the qr ones not the band on ones) They don't touch the frame anywhere other than the dropouts and are relatively easy to fit and very quick to take on and off once fitted.

Peddle Up! · October 2012

Take a look at this thread.

geebee2 · October 2012

If you are riding in a group, the Crud guards are better, as they come down lower at the back.
They also keep junk off your chain much better - with the sks, the water hits the rear stay and gets deflected all over the front mech and chain ring. They also have pads that help keep you rims clean, so you don't get a horrible noise when braking, and I imagine it helps reduce rim wear.

The one advantage with the SKS is you can take them off and put them back on in a couple of minutes.
Fitting the Crud guards is a longer job - at least 10 minutes, even when you know what you are doing, I would say.

Having used both, I think the Cruds are significantly better overall.

amaferanga · October 2012

ride_whenever wrote:

The cruds are too fiddly IMO.

Fiddly? That's not been my experience. Raceblades aren't even close in terms of the protection to both bike and other riders.

smidsy · October 2012

Just finished fitting some Cruds to my CAAD5.

They are quite sensitive to small adjustments and it takes a fair bit of 'tweaking' to get them just so - I only hope they stay where they are after my first ride.

The clearance on my 54cm frame is very tight under the rear caliper and behind the seat tube and I expect I may have to trim some off the front mech/chainset area before it is totally correct.

They are very light and quite discrete when fitted though.

Update:
Just done 10 miles over varying terrain (some particularly rough roads) and can report that the cruds are OK. Not rattly and have stayed where I eventually put them before I started. So basically if you take time to fit them well before you go out there seems to be no problem with them. Checked all nuts etc and none have worked loose.

amc · October 2012

Thanks for the input. For me if anything is at all fiddly - it will end in mechanical disaster. Ideally want something that once fitted i can just forget about until Easter. Opinion seems to be a bit divided.
What will be the easiest to take off again entirely ready for the race season? And if i got the the lbs to fit it, what is the better mudguard?
Thanks

cougie · October 2012

I dont see that these guards will protect your rear mech at all.
Frame yeah - but you need full flaps to stop the spray - you could add a home made extension for the front - I find thats best even on full guards.

danowat · October 2012

Cruds can be a PITA to setup, I had issues on my Allez and had to trim the rear guard to stop it rubbing, but the offer much, much superior protection than the raceblades do, so it's worth the little extra setup time.

crankycrank · October 2012

Never tried these but look like another good option. http://www.wiggle.co.uk/sks-race-blade- ... guard-set/ One reviewer did mention that the stays don't extend far enough for clearance on most tyres larger than 25mm although it looks like it could be easily modified.

rsands · October 2012

Cruds in my opinion. protect the riders behind better and yourself! easy to setup if you follow the guide on their website in the tips part. Just cable tie loosely, tighten screws, grab guard and pull it up. then let go, tighten cable tie and jobs done - the key is not to try and undo screw and move it slightly and retighten. by pulling up and letting go the rubber bands adjust to a position to let the guards "float"

pipipi · October 2012

Do cruds work with 25mm?

Bobbinogs · October 2012

pipipi wrote:

Do cruds work with 25mm?

Depends on your clearance. I managed to get them on one bike with 25s but it was very tight and I ended up dropping back to 23s, although I removed the Cruds completely this year as I got fed up with them bouncing around all the blinking time. I have had both types and prefer the SKS (I reckon they are ok when group riding and stay much more rigid when riding...but that's just me).

Why not take a punt on either, you could always flog them to get some of your money back if you don't get on with them and the outlay isn't too great.

smidsy · October 2012

I got them on my CAAD with 25mm's...very tight between seat tube/wheel and caliper/wheel, but they do fit.

I also know people who simply could not fit them with 25's and had to go to 23mm's. e.g. Trek Madones are particularly stingey with the clearances.

amc · December 2012

A little update for anyone who cares - i went for the Mud Cruds, got them from the LBS who fitted them as too fiddly for me. Little bit of rub on first few rides but a little adjustment and now running very nicely. Would recommend.

pipipi · December 2012

And an update from me.

I just couldn't get them to fit on 25mm and gave up. Several punctures later I bought some 23mm and then tried the Cruds again which went on fine without much tweaking. So I do have mudguards which I am happy with, but perhaps the box could just recommend having 23mm?

Bit of a shame that in the season when you are most likely to be using mudguards you have to use thinner tyres! But I'll bear mudguards in mind when I get money for a second bike...

amaferanga · December 2012

pipipi wrote:

And an update from me.

I just couldn't get them to fit on 25mm and gave up. Several punctures later I bought some 23mm and then tried the Cruds again which went on fine without much tweaking. So I do have mudguards which I am happy with, but perhaps the box could just recommend having 23mm?

Bit of a shame that in the season when you are most likely to be using mudguards you have to use thinner tyres! But I'll bear mudguards in mind when I get money for a second bike...

Whether or not they fit with 25mm tyres (or with 23mm even) is down to the frame clearances. I've used mine with 25mm tyres without any issues.

ilm_zero7 · December 2012

mudguards ! no, if its that bad, use the turbo trainer

thegreatdivide · December 2012

I think I’ll be keeping the SKS Raceblade Long brackets fitted to the brakes of my all year bike permanently now. If we have another shi**y summer like this year they'll be needed.

MrSweary · December 2012

I can thoroughly recommend the fitting tips video on the Crud website.. followed it and mine fit like a dream. The little tips for adjustment really help, like how to get the guards to mould to a certain shape etc.

Btw my Felt has 25mm tires and about 5mm of clearance. Fitted no problem with no rub.

rich164h · December 2012

pipipi wrote:

Bit of a shame that in the season when you are most likely to be using mudguards you have to use thinner tyres!

Why? what's the problem with using 23mm tyres in winter?, or should I say, whats the advantage of using 25mm tyres?

I'm genuinely interested as I've been happy with 23mm P3R's all year round for the last two years but I'm likely to need some new ones shortly so perhaps I should consider 25mm tyres instead. I can see some advantages (i.e. comfort) from all year round use of 25s but I'm not sure I understand why it would be particularly advantageous in winter or in the wet.

pipipi · December 2012

I am not professing to have a technical answer to this, but I would imagine that there is more contact area. This ought to increase the grip, which in wet conditions is very important. Well, at least to me and my limited bike handling skills...

To extend the argument to a silly point, mtb go on mud and have very wide tyres compared to road tyres.

Thelittlesthobo · December 2012

Crud guard user here for the last 2 years. You have to be seriously pathetic if you can't fit them. My 5yr old daughter helped me this year with no instructions but she got it pretty easily. Once you lay all the pieces out it is actually pretty difficult to get it wrong.

On my bike it all fits without adjustments or modifications. I built them up off the bike and slid them in without any wheel removal. Hardest part was winding the Allen bolt out for the bottle cage so the cable tie could be nice and out of the way on the part near the BB . The part down there is a lot thicker so it protects the front mech and once fitted I can't understand the comments about adjustments. Really impressed with them.

Only thing I would say is don't do what my riding buddy did and go to put your bike away by wheeling it on the back wheel like a wheelie. Snapped the back section off but he has now sorted that with gaffa tape

edhornby · December 2012

I have cruds (and did the wheelie exit snapping... only half a rear but is still working)

I have a 25mm on the rear and it fits fine - if you've never fitted them before then do them in a warm dry well lit place as it takes a while to figure out which goes where and the like, but once they are on they do the job well

although if you have a winter bike with no mounts you may be better with P-clips and SKS proper guards

silverpigeon · December 2012

I've had the CCMk2s on my Principia for a couple of months now. PoP to fit although there was some rubbing to begin with when I stood on the pedals. Picked up a tip from this forum where I straightened the curve in the front attachment using a hairdryer. Worked a treat and no probs since.

Winter mudguards for luddite with carbon bike?

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