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Can mudguards be silent?

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  • September 27, 2017 at 10:14 am #27682
    sergius

    I’ve a new winter bike for this year, and finally gave in and bought one with mudguards 🙁

    I took it out for a spin in the rain on Monday, they worked wonderfully but my main take away from the experience was the rattling of the guards over poor road surfaces.

    The bike has 28mm tyres fitted so there isn’t a ton of clearance between guards and tyres (maybe 2-3mm on each side.  The guards are SKS raceblades I think (2017 Canyon Inflite with their recommended guards) so they are meant to be pretty reasonable ones.  

    From an engineering perspective, the materials involved and the method via which they are fixed to the frame would suggest to me that you are never going to be able to make guards that won’t flex a bit under vibration/bumps.  Am I right in assuming that some rattling is the price you pay for running mudguards and saving the rest of the bike from getting covered in crap?

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  • October 8, 2017 at 8:17 am #903167
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    Spangly Shiny

    Raceblades like the ones in

    Raceblades like the ones in the pic are specced up to 25mm tyres. OP is running 28mm tyres, of course they are goint to rattle and rub.

    October 7, 2017 at 4:32 pm #903165
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    Ratfink

    barbarus wrote:

    barbarus wrote:
    SKS chromoplasts here… No rattling even though front disc clearance means I only use 3/4 struts. LOTS of swearing required to fit them.

    Mine came with spacers and longer bolts for disc clearance.

    October 1, 2017 at 8:44 am #903163
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    BarryBianchi

    I’ve got Raceblades, which I

    I’ve got Raceblades, which I zip-tie on in winter, on the training bike, and full “proper” ones on my cummuter – neither make any noise unless/till I get a leaf jammed up them.

    September 30, 2017 at 5:44 pm #903161
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    srchar
    Shades wrote:
    Just don’t get the ‘aesthetic’, ‘not-cool’ aspect of not fitting them.

    Mudguards are cool. I certainly find being schooled by a grizzled old chap riding something with mudguards a far more humbling experience than being dropped by someone on even a modest road bike without guards. Not sure why. Just do.

    September 30, 2017 at 5:05 pm #903159
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    Shades

    Mudguards; wish more people

    Mudguards; wish more people fitted them for commuting in the winter. Sick of having people in front of me spraying water into my face. If the road’s wet, but it’s not actually raining, full mudguards KEEP YOU DRY and the sh*t off the bike. It’s a ‘no brainer’ as far as I’m concerned. Just don’t get the ‘aesthetic’, ‘not-cool’ aspect of not fitting them. Clip-on are at least better than nothing if clearance is an issue. The thing that makes me laugh is fitting a rack and no mudguards!

    September 28, 2017 at 1:47 pm #903157
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    TypeVertigo
    sergius wrote:
    This is what the internet is for 🙂

     

    There wasn’t really any guidance on fitting them, so I just did what I thought was appropriate (see pic). 

    So what is the best way to eliminate lateral play in the guards?  Increase tension in the plastic by moving the guards further way from the wheels?  It seemed to be mostly coming from the rear, which are bolted to the frame on the seat tube and at the brake arch on the seat stays.  There’s a fair bit of play at the far end though where the thin metal rods are the only thing keeping them aligned.

     

     

    The mudguards you run look a lot like my matte black SKS Bluemels. I run the 53 mm version on my TCX; yours might be narrower.

    September 28, 2017 at 12:11 pm #903155
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    sergius

    A further ride this morning

    A further ride this morning showed it is actually the front which is rattling – they seem much looser than the rear.  I think a little bit of adjustment this weekend will do the trick 🙂

    September 28, 2017 at 11:11 am #903153
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    TypeVertigo

    I’ve used SKS Longboards, now

    I’ve used SKS Longboards, now on SKS Bluemels. The rattling doesn’t really show up unless I’m riding on lots of road acne.

    My custom bodge to mitigate the vibrations is a set of rubber washers on the central mounting points. Primarily this was done to combat the crosswise cracking my Longboards got over time. They helped.

    September 27, 2017 at 9:51 pm #903151
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    barbarus

    SKS chromoplasts here… No
    SKS chromoplasts here… No rattling even though front disc clearance means I only use 3/4 struts. LOTS of swearing required to fit them.

    September 27, 2017 at 9:36 pm #903149
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    ktache

    I intend to fit my being

    I intend to fit my being built Ultimate Commuter with sykes wooden fenders.  Fiddleback maple.  I’m hoping the solidness of them means no rattleing.

    http://www.sykeswoodfenders.com/sykeswoodfenders/sykeswoodfenders.html

    Go on, have a little look.  

    September 27, 2017 at 9:26 pm #903147
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    sergius
    Leviathan wrote:
    What is a winter bike?

    A luxury 🙂

     

    But I definately seem to wear through components far more quickly on my (previous) winter bike than I ever do on my best bike.  

    September 27, 2017 at 9:21 pm #903145
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    sergius

    This is what the internet is

    This is what the internet is for 🙂

     

    There wasn’t really any guidance on fitting them, so I just did what I thought was appropriate (see pic). 

    So what is the best way to eliminate lateral play in the guards?  Increase tension in the plastic by moving the guards further way from the wheels?  It seemed to be mostly coming from the rear, which are bolted to the frame on the seat tube and at the brake arch on the seat stays.  There’s a fair bit of play at the far end though where the thin metal rods are the only thing keeping them aligned.

     

     

    September 27, 2017 at 8:22 pm #903143
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    srchar

    Kinesis T3 with SKS

    Kinesis T3 with SKS longboards here… no rattles at all. If you have full mudguards (rather than clip-ons) on a frame with all the proper mounts, they shouldn’t make a sound.

    September 27, 2017 at 8:02 pm #903141
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    CXR94Di2

    Use rubber tap washers
    Use rubber tap washers between frame and eyelets, metal washers to spread load. Also use thread lock nuts on other side of bolts to stop anything working loose. My guards never rattle or came loose.

    September 27, 2017 at 7:58 pm #903139
    0
    Leviathan

    What is a winter bike?

    What is a winter bike?

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