My hardtail has a low clamp – because that is what I had left over from the FS, it works fine, but does seem to be a nice effective mud shelf. thinking high clamp might shrug off mud better. Any thoughts?

Why not make a mudflap from old innertube to cover the moving parts/pivots, and ziptie it around the seat tube, i’ve been doing this for years and have no problems whilst others around me are suffering clogged and siezed mechs.

I have a high clamp XT on my hardtail. It gets in the way of the bottle cage bolts (which I don’t use – just looks a bit off) but doesn’t clog with mud half as badly as the low clamp Deore on my old bike.

Normal front mechs as opposed to Top Swing, also last longer