Choice 1 – look “cool” and smell of dogshit
Choice 2 – mudguards

Choice 1 – look “cool” and smell of dogshit
Choice 2 – mudguards

choice 3 – stop riding in dog poo, that’s very dirty and you need help

I don’t really use them unless it’s really muddy. The only one I have is a crud downtube one which works ok. Was gonna get some for the road bike but can’t really be arsed.

crud guards all year round
cant be bothered to take em off.

and if you go for a pint or in a cafe when riding, it keeps the upholstry clean.

manners cost nowt……….. 8)

Mud is no problem. On my muddy local trails I just use some old inner tube ziptied to the forks to keep mud out my eyes.

Surface water is the real problem. After rain on the Qs, and at trail centres, the trails are hard/fast and run with water. Mudguards are a blessing.

tazzymtb – Member
choice 3 – stop riding in dog poo, that’s very dirty and you need help

But isn’t that the sealing layer on all mtb tracks?

hey Mod you missed one! but it was in a quote.

crud guards all year round
cant be bothered to take em off.

and if you go for a pint or in a cafe when riding, it keeps the upholstry clean.

manners cost nowt………..

Thanks Ton, just what I was thinking.
Can’t get my head round waterproof shorts, (or my big fat ar$e into any)I mean why? If it’s hoying it down, your’e gonna wet legs anyway & if youv’e got a guard on it keeps all the crap of your back.
Guards for me, even on a 5.

Can’t get my head round waterproof shorts

Me neither, then I got a pair. They are lovely when it’s too warm for full leg cover but not warm enough to bear being wet through. A bit like fingerless gloves – seem weird in theory but work well in practice.

Why is it a great debate? If you want them, stick them on? If you don’t, don’t?!

Well, I used to ride without mud guards and constantly got a wet ar$e. Unfortunately the friction between saddle and clothing caused a very nasty rash. Did the usual MTFU but eventually had to visit the GP, several times, as it wouldn’t clear. It cleared up after 1 year – I kid you not.

Waterproof shorts for me now and they are worn for about 6 months of the year.

Can’t have mud guards spoiling the good looks of my bikes. 😉

It’s hard to explain quite how awesome waterproof shorts are!

I love my Gore Alp X’s – so unobtrusive and being knee length is spot-on. Awesome bit of kit. 8)

That word again. 😉

Not got any on the trail bike, got the full set (crud catcher, fast fender, flappy rear guard) on the hardtail for all other riding duties. tbh I got fed up with going in the pub sh*t up after my training rides. Dont mind getting sh*t up on the trails though! 😆

I use a Neoguard or Bender Fender but the aesthetics of rear mudguards has always been a problem for me.

However I am now getting tired of my Camelbak, backside and jacket constantly being caked in slop. I think I might try a mudguard when it’s wet (but don’t tell anyone)

Mudguards all winter. I can get back to the car (my current favoured spot is mid way home from work so stop off on the way home) and not get crap all over the seats. Only other way is to undress in the street, and it’s too cold and the lady at number 6 was starting to scare me.

Wiredchops
I’ve just looked at the Decathlon rear guard V brake fixing. Looks interesting, but does it give sufficient clearance (similar to a Crud Guard) if not actually running V brakes i.e. attached to the fixings only? Have you a pic of the finished article? I always think the Crud Guard’s a faff if you want to lower the seat post.

badgerbaiter – it works just fine without the v brakes but you do need the v brake posts in the frame

Best mudguard I have used

Noisy, get in the way, make changing tubes difficult, rattle about a lot, foul certain kinds of brakes, foul the frame, foul the pedals, flimsy, annoying, look silly.

Saying that I have them on my commuter and they’re all those things but they do stop me needing to take a spare pair of shorts in with me.

On all my other bikes? Yep I get a bit muddy and wet sometimes. you know what? It’s not a problem. I like getting muddy and wet. I’m going mountain biking not crown green bowling.

I like em. I don’t like soggy nethers. The prospect of wearing Gore Tex shorts isn’t appealing – but to each their own.

No guards on the road summer bike – but all over the others. Apart from briefly in 2006 when it was all dusty and on team 24s when the ridicule from my team mates is too much to bear otherwise.

Does anyone really care?

It’s not a problem. I like getting muddy and wet.

Then why not just roll around in a puddle.

I’ve had a front fender style guard for years – never had any problems with it in use, it clips in and out in seconds and keeps mud out of face. Simple but effective bit of kit if you want to drastically reduce the amount of mud and water hitting your face – no great debate from my perspective. Never got on with rear mudguards for some reason.

I have a mudguard on my Heckler FS and Whyte 19. I can sometimes go to the pub after a ride without changing my shorts and offending the landlord. People with mudguards are less vain and more practical than people without (they also prefer not to be hit with various trailside bits of dog eggs, horse manure, rotting corpses, puddles of cow urine etc) as from what I can see the only reason people don’t use them is because of looks!

samuri – Member
Noisy,

installation error

samuri – Member
get in the way,

installation error

samuri – Member
make changing tubes difficult,

installation error

samuri – Member
rattle about a lot,

installation error

samuri – Member
foul certain kinds of brakes, foul the frame,

possible, never had the problem personally but a individual frame issue, but could also be installation error too.

samuri – Member
foul the pedals,

sound like another user installation error.

samuri – Member flimsy,

never had that problem, maybe you use the wrong one

samuri – Member
annoying, look silly.

user snobbery

i don’t like other people judging the way my bike looks so i wear a full body condom whilst riding

I don’t use them because:

a) they don’t completely eliminate getting muddy, so whats the point?
b) they look awfull
c) I’ve been riding since I was 15 and have yet to get a disease simply because I was muddy, accidently rode through cow poo or, on occasion, dog muck. Maybe trust your immune system?

Their usefullness is overstated. But each to their own. I guess.

Jesus, you lot make mtb riders look like the big girly woofters of the outdoor sports world! You don’t see fell runners wearing a wet suit and a pair of waders in case they get a bit mud on them.

So to sum up, this is a debate between the clean people with uncool bikes and the dogpooey dungy smelling dirty people with cool bikes.

🙂

Had to have mudguards on my Pitch through Torridon last May, to compliment the visual feast of my riding gear co-ordination…

Note apparent lack of cosmetic awareness 🙂

You don’t see fell runners wearing a wet suit and a pair of waders in case they get a bit mud on them

They are freaks though, and look like gimps.

risk of being sprayed with someone else muck.

I knew roadies were supposed to be weird, but 😯 There’s liking bikes, and there’s that. *shudders*

A big part of my love of riding is getting home covered in mud. Maybe I’m just weird.

And I’ve not had any shite on me yet (I think…)

Jesus, you lot make mtb riders look like the big girly woofters of the outdoor sports world!

Watch it “big girly woofters” could be taken as Sizeist/Sexist/Homophobic, you might get a telling off email from the thought police too… 🙄

well considering I’m a little fat chap that likes other men, they can’t really get me for much can they?

Fat bikes need fat mudguards!

Gary if I had that fatbike, I would deffo put those mudguards on it.

I want one

That said, my own Bikes dont have mudguards ‘cos I cant be bothered to fit them . If they were already on, I wouldnt be bothered to take ’em off.

garybuckham – Member
Fat bikes need fat mudguards!

Too true!

I put a different fork on my fatbike the other day and seeing as the weather was warmer didn’t bother to fit a front mudguard. The next day it snowed which was fine, but then it turned to sleet…

Riding in sleet yesterday was one of the most miserable times I’ve spent on a bike. My trousers were sodden, boots full of freezing water, and my eyes blasted with all sorts of rubbish. I was wearing the same gear I usually wear in comfort for subzero conditions including the ‘Puffer.

It seems to me that if you’re not going to have a mudguard in winter conditions, you’re going to need to wear a lot of restrictive and sweat trapping clothing – or restrict yourself to riding very slowly to cut down the spray, which is what I ended up doing.

Crud guard no longer fits my seatpost. Get some waterproof shorts today for a ride tonight and the trails are bone dry !

garybuckham – Member
Fat bikes need fat mudguards!

Just sorted that 🙂

Front is an sks shockboard, rear a decathlon v mount. Both work well. Rear decathlon was my fourth attempt at finding a rear that actually works, recommended to me by helpful folks on this site and is the best I have tried and still performing well.