Last Coal V4 vital stats: full 29, 180mm fork, 165mm rear, 63° head angle, 77.1° effective…
Mudguardmeisters Mudhugger recently came out with this new Mudhugger MK2 Rear Mudguard. What’s new? Three things. First, reusable quick release velcro straps. Second, rubber inserts where the ‘guard meets the stays to aid grip and improve ‘damping’. Third, all new push fit ‘BB extender’, to protect bearings and the BB area.
I loaned this ebike to Benji and it came back fitted with this mahoosive mudguard. Instantly I felt like I had transformed from a potential rad enduro-ist to a weekend warrior pack-dad. Or maybe one of those midweek retiree trail poaching gangs that gather in the town square. I’m just jealous…
Anyway. The mudguard may not ooze radness, but it does keep the ooze from your ass. When it’s just the ground that’s lightly splashy, it means you can get in a comfortable ride without having to opt for waterproofs. Once the rain starts throwing itself at you from the sky by the bucketful, the utility of the mudguard becomes a little less about keeping you dry. However I do think your waterproof trousers/shorts will last longer with this mudguard keeping a lot of the grit and mud off your saddle area.
Despite my aesthetic objections to the Mudhugger, in use it has been very reliable and low fuss. I did have to cut away a small portion of the front ‘extender’ flap to prevent it rubbing the chain (Mudhugger do say that some trimming is likely, so this expected) but, other than when the tyre has been especially clarted in mud, it has been fine for clearance.
There is scope to trim it even further if more clearance was required (do this when it’s not on the bike – you don’t want to slip and slash your tyres in the process). The hook-and-loop straps have held it in place securely, although the ends of the Velcro does stick out and brush against your wheel a little. Easily solved by trimming them shorter, which I didn’t do because I thought we might want to swap this onto another bike in future.
While the Velcro works, I’m not totally convinced it’s any better than cable ties would be. If you have to cut the Velcro off short, it’s limiting its reusability/swapability between frames with different sized seat stays. Is Velcro any more or less wasteful that cable ties? I’m not sure. But still, efforts at reducing plastic are always welcome even if they’re not 100% perfect.
The mudguard is big enough that it provides loads of protection from wet stuff on the ground, but not so long that it gets in the way if you need to wheel your bike upright on the back wheel – to get it into storage, for example. It’s stiff enough that it doesn’t flap annoyingly, but flexible enough that it hasn’t snapped, even in cold weather.
Benji’s 2p: “In terms of fitting, Mudhugger also supply a panel of clear frame protector tape for those who want to protect their bike’s paintwork. The other thing supplied, not obvious from these photos, is some strips of adhesive-backed rubber that press-adhere to the frame-end of the mudguard. This rubbery interface helps reduce scratching and also helps keep the ‘guard in place whilst riding rough stuff.
“Hannah tested the Medium size ‘guard. I tested the Large size. Which was just a bit too big in practice; I caught my leg on it when getting on/off the bike a few times and the long ‘guard also fouled the ground when wheelying the bike through a gate or in/out of the garage etc. I ended up taking a blade to the ‘guard and trimming it a couple of inches shorter.
“Like Hannah, I think that you can’t really fault the Mudhugger MK2 Rear from a doing-the-job point-of-view. If you’re prepared to commit to the rear mudguard way of life – comfy, warm, dry gussets ahoy! – then this product is totally great. I was particularly impressed/relieved by its lack of noise or ‘frame-creep’. Once trimmed, I was rarely reminded that it was there. Until I got home from rides and didn’t have to abuse my washing machine quite so badly.”
Overall
In short: fit it, fiddle with it a little after the first couple of rides to address any rubbing under compression, and ride. Then keep riding. And riding… If you don’t mind how it looks, or the extra bulk (who cares about this on an ebike, anyway?) then this Mudhugger MK2 Rear Mudguard might be the gold standard of mountain bike rear mudguards.
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Review Info
| Brand: | Mudhugger |
| Product: | MK2 Rear Mudguard |
| From: | themudhugger.co.uk |
| Price: | £34.99 |
| Tested: | by Hannah and Benji for 2 months |
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