Safety A safer (maybe) front fender mount.

bluegoatwoods

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I've remounted my front fender in a way that I think is an improvement. Maybe you can see (in these fairly poor photos) how I cut off the original fender mounting tab and replaced with two corner braces mounted back to back. Originally the vertical part of this new tab went up through the fender and bolted to the fender mount on the crown. I've turned it over and now the fender rides up over the fender mount. 017.jpg018.jpg

If this fender ever gets caught on the tire it might still be kinda ugly. But I don't think it'll end up under my wheel.
 
I just don't think fenders are worth it, mine got me thrown the other day and I took them both off. I'll just have to live with no fenders, better than getting thrown again.
 
Yes, I saw your post on that. And I thought something like, "Oh for crying out loud. We only just barely managed to warn him and then his fender bites him!"

It's a bummer. I am glad, though, that you weren't hurt more badly.

And I can't say that I blame you for swearing off fenders. There is a catch, though. When the weather turns wet that bike will fling dirty water all over you. And it's really filthy water, too. And plenty of it.

So some of us still insist on having fenders.

I had a rear fender come off once and roll down under my rear wheel. Just like you. In my case, though, I didn't skid sideways. I just slid straight to a stop. Even managed to save the fender.

But I also know that I got lucky. So now I ride with reinforced fenders and I still watch them like a hawk.
 
There's not much you can do for the front fender, but for the rear you can use a regular bicycle rack with a piece of metal or wood or cloth on it. It won't protect your frame, but it'll keep the dirt water off your backside.

I've considered making a fairing for the front that would hopefully catch most of the crap coming off the front tire, but I'm afraid it would hurt the engine's cooling capabilities.
 
I just don't think fenders are worth it, mine got me thrown the other day and I took them both off. I'll just have to live with no fenders, better than getting thrown again.

I don't understand the concept of not having fenders.

My bike is fitted with a set of cheap plastic fenders (shown in the photo), and they have been on the bike for 4 years without a hint of trouble. Fenders are especially useful when riding on wet roads; keeping the rider and the bike heck of a lot cleaner.



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(bump for no good raisin)

I have yet to have any issues with my fenders but I hear a lot of horror stories. My thought is that this simply needs a better design. One that will not only neglect to catch anything that moves while still keeping the rooster tail to a minimum, but preferably one that can bear a load (so basically a rack and pannier setup). A load of at least 25kg on the back and 10kg on the front would make me happy.. Not that I ever intend to carry that much, I just like overkill.

My initial thought is to use angle iron or similar material, and to use band steel to secure this to the frame in a few extra spots where said frame tends to lack mounts. This way you can build triangles into it for added strength, as well as spread out any pressure or weight.

For the fenders themselves, I am thinking.. old license plates. Roll the ends, bolt them on nicely... Should work well and give a unique aesthetic.

In my opinion, the true beauty of this is that the fenders, having used bolts instead of welds... Can be removed, folded, changed, added to.... All that fun stuff, with just a handful of loose hardware. Naturally you'd want to bush your connections and use lock washers on everything.

I don't know. This is a pipe dream for me as of this point. If I ever build it, I'll be sure to add pictures and poorly drawn drafts/diagrams to this thread right here.
 
Nutz and bolts instead of cheap rivets would go along way in making them safer. Red Loctite added too.
 
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