Sendhit Nock Handguards | Should you go full enduro?

Made in France and designed to protect your hands and your brake levers in the event of a crash, but are Nock Handguards worth it?

What is it?

Before I fitted the Sendhit Nock Handguards to my bike I believed that only Sam Hill or riders with Sam Hill levels of skill should use handguards, but now I quite like them.

Sendhit is a French company that makes the Nock handguards and a useful stanchion repair kit (check it out it’s pretty useful). The Nock Handguard is made in France using quality materials and the price reflects that! At £59.95 they’re hardly cheap, but they are cheaper than a broken brake lever, a broken pinky or even a broken hand. That’s not to say I’ve purposely ridden into trees to test their strength and the patience of the NHS, but the Polyamide-Nylon material used for the guard is extremely strong.

The cover that actually protects your hand seems very well made. It might look like simple plastic but it’s stiff where it needs to be, strong, yet flexible in places all the while never feeling brittle or flimsy.

Sendhit has obviously considered impact protection, but they’ve also included a foam-like material on the rear of the handguards to absorb shocks. This Micro Shock material also adds a little padding to the inside of the guard to further protect your hand in case you ever do strike something.

Each Polyamide-Nylon guard is bolted to alloy clamps via two bolts and nuts. There is reach adjustment at the guard/clamp interface to increase or decrease the distance from the lever, and riders can angle the guard how they like from the alloy clamp on the bar.

The length of each Nock handguard ensures you can fit them behind your grips, brake lever and shifter/dropper lever, but the single clamp design also means all of this has to come off to fit them.

What is it for?

The Nock Handguard is designed to do what you would expect it to: the main purpose is to protect your hands in the event of a crash or impact, but the design is also suitable for brake lever protection. This is especially useful for big mountain holidays, where the added protection could mean the difference between riding down a mountain with no brakes instead of both, not to mention the time saved hunting down spares in an Alpine resort.

Riding in the Peak District, I don’t have many trails where tree trunks get too close to the bars for comfort, but I expect riders who do ride on narrower, tree infested trails will enjoy the added protection on offer. What I have found though, which is rather nice, is that the Nock Handguard does a great job of deflecting nettles and thorny bushes.

What are the benefits?

Well as above, I’ve not hit any trees or rocks since fitting them… perhaps that’s a benefit? I have found riding along overgrown trails has been more comfortable thanks to the added hand coverage.

But handguards are a form of protection and by their nature, you’ll only see the benefit when you come away from a crash unscathed and without a broken brake lever. Oh, speaking of which, Sendhit offers a 2-year crash replacement policy, so if you did mangle a handguard in a crash you could replace them at a special price.

Any problems?

No problems whatsoever.

What we would like to see.

• The bolts which attached the handguards to the alloy arms are a little long and thread is exposed on the inside. I’ve not had an accident or caught myself on them, but I would prefer it not be there. Shorter bolts would do it.
• It would be great to see an open clamp design so you don’t need to remove half of your cockpit to fit them. This would also allow you to swap from bike to bike easier.
• The price, I am totally confident they will work but they are a little pricey.

What we love.

• So much adjustment, you can be sure to keep your hands protected.
• Features. It’s easy to dismiss these handguards as simple plastic, but have a look at the website and you’ll see a lot of thought has and effort has gone into them, even down to the custom graphics (not fitted as I wanted a stealth look).

Will you keep using it?

Yes, most likely, however, I will take them off my trail bike and fit them to my enduro bike. I feel there’s more chance of me actually needing them on the enduro bike, plus they’ll look way cooler.

Review Info

Brand:	Sendhit
Product:	Nock Handguards
From:	Windwave
Price:	£59.95
Tested:	by Andi Sykes for 2 months

---