from Rookie’s keyboard,

Hello, friends

Yersterday, I made a post on the importance of mudguards in the world of road cycling.

I realize that there are many people out there who would like to add a set of full fenders to their road machines but don’t know how due to the lack of clearance and the absence of mounting holes a.k.a. eyelets.

I was in the same situation 2-3 years ago when I got my retro road bike (1987 Centurion Futura -[I repainted it btw]).

In this post, I will share the system that I came up with.

Installing The Front Fender

The fork of my road bike offered very little clearance for a front fender. If I wanted one, I had to downsize to something like 23mm tires – not ideal for a commuter bike.

So, I had to find another way and preserve my wide tires as well.

I split the front fender into two parts – one short and one long.

The short section goes at the front and prevents water, debris, and dirt from being thrown into your face.

The longer part protects your torso and legs as well as the downtube.

I made a thin bridge under the fork’s crown to connect the two pieces.

Initially, I connected the two parts with a small furniture bracket mounted to each of the elements with a short bolt and nut.

This method got the job done, but “ate” too much clearance.

To fix this, I used piece of steel spoke as a connection bridge.

I cut the spoke with a set of gear/brake cable cutters, but you could also use a hacksaw, a rotary tool…etc.

If you’re using pliers/cutters, cover the spoke in a piece of clothing when cutting it so that the cut end doesn’t fly away.

The cut spoke should be long enough to position the front part of the fender in front of the brake and the rear section right behind the fork.

The purpose of this “high-tech” mod is to narrow the profile of the fender under the brake and fork.

Once the spoke is cut, use a set of pliers to close the ends as shown in the pictures above. Attach the spoke piece to the cut fender parts via bolts, washers, and nuts.

Use a bolt with a short flat head and position the head towards the tire. This method maximally increases the tire clearance and allows the use of longer bolts. Also, you can easily see if the nut is untightened.

I recommend nylon nuts because fenders bounce around a lot and a regular set of nuts may get loose quickly.

The spoke piece dramatically reduces the clearance needed to install a fender while simultaneously increasing the length of the fender. Thus, if you have a fairly short front fender, this method will provide an opportunity to extend it.

I wrapped the spoke connector in insulation or duct tape to prevent corrosion and reduce vibration noise.

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Connecting Front The Fender

My fork didn’t have a single set of eyelets.

I used the clamps оf a cheap set of bike mirrors to mount the fender struts to the fork’s blade.

You could also use a clamp from a reflector. If you have neither, there’s a third option that I will explain in greater detail when presenting the mounting process for the rear fender.

I chose the mid-section of the fork for aesthetic purposes and to avoid conflict with the quick-release lever when removing the front wheel.

To secure the upper part of the fender to the fork, I used two zip-ties. One zip-tie goes behind the brake, the other is at the front.

Use a thick zip-tie for the main connection because a small one could easily tear when carrying the bike. The second/front one is more of a stabilizer so that the front part of the fender doesn’t bounce and hit the tire.

The Rear Fender

Most fenders for road bikes are secured in the middle by sliding a bracket between the brake bolt and the brake or frame. My fenders came with such a bracket, but it “ate” too much clearance/real estate.

And the brake bolt of this particular bike was a bit too short for this mounting method.

So, I decided to make an improvised mounting system for the mid-connection.

In the first version, I made 4 holes. 2 on each side of the fender. Then I slid two zip ties through the holes and used a third zip tie to connect the fender to the brake bolt.

Later, I decided to use electrical wire instead of the two zip-ties. The electrical wire is not affected by the sun and will simply be deformed rather than torn on impact.

I also had to make a new set of holes because the original ones didn’t position the fender where I wanted it.

You have to shape the wire as a “U”, insert the ends through holes and then bend them upward.

This method gives more clearance than the standard bracket or the zip-tie approach.

• Connecting The Support Struts to Seat Stays

My frame didn’t have seat stay mounts either so I had to improvise.

I couldn’t use the clamps from the mirrors because they were way too big to wrap securely around the seat stays.

I guess I could have used them by wrapping thick rubber around the seat stays first, but the solution didn’t appear aesthetic. So, I decided to make a bracket.

I used strips cut from a bike water bottle. I am not joking. At first, I made the strips a lot longer than necessary, then wrapped them around the bike seat stays and made a hole with an awl.

I wrapped isolation tape around the mounting zone and used two water bottle strips for each mount. One strip would suffice, but I wanted extra security. The next step is to secure the struts to the bolts via a set of nuts and washers.

At first, this approach may appear silly, but if you try it, you will see that it’s pretty secure. The water bottle strips are pretty tough and do not corrode.

Also, the fender is light and doesn’t need a ton of support.

I did this installation 3 years ago, and I’d never had to adjust or re-tighten those connection points.

Do not skip the isolation tape around the seat stays, because the bolt will come in contact with the frame and will more than likely scratch it.

The Chainstay Connection

The rear fender has three attachment points. The third one is at the chainstay bridge. I had one problem with that attachment point – my fender was too wide to fit between the chainstays and was hitting the front derailleur.

The solution was simple. I tapered the end of the fender and made a cutout specifically for the front derailleur. Then I used a zip-tie to secure the fender to the chainstay bridge. If the chainstay bridge has a hole in it, you can also use a bolt.

To cut the fender, I used a pair of fairly tough scissors, but you can also use a rotary tool.

Conclusions

Apart from a couple of zip-ties failing here and there, I’ve had no issues with it. To reduce the chance of zip-tie failure, use thick, UV-resistant models. (The zip-ties that failed were a bit too slim.)

If you’re going on a big tour, replace all zip-ties with new ones beforehand.

Alternatively, you could also use some sort of metal hoses or a ring. However, I found the zip-ties, adequate for my needs and haven’t bothered to look for an alternative solution.

The front part of my fender was rubbing too when I initially put it on the bike. The solution was simple. I just bent the front part upward. The spoke piece is very flexible and yet holds its shape well after bending it (it’s a spoke after all.) Thus, it allows you to do some customization as needed for your setup.

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Until next time,

Rookie