Bike shop want to drill into my frame

I’ve just bought a Cyclocross bike (CAADX Cannondale) and want to fit some mudguards for commuting.

The guy in my LBS where I bought the bike is trying to flog me some Bontrager ones but says to fit them, he’ll need to drill out a hole in the frame on the bit that holds the seatstays together, probably where you’d attach a caliber brake (this bike has discs), sorry for my lack of technical jargon. This drilling would be to fit a spacer to hold the guards closer to the tyre as there is quite a big gap between frame and tyre.

Is this drilling really necessary? This is my brand new bike and the thought leaves me a little cold, to say the least.

The other thing is that this is a shop that has bunches of Trek on display, I asked about SKS guards and he poo poo’d them, bringing me back to Bontrager being the ONLY choice that’s suitable.

Am I being unreasonable? I’m new to cycling and definitely new to owning a nice bike. Any advice greatly appreciated

I’d say NO WAY! there must be mudguards that fit properly without drilling.

It wouldn’t bother me as its a non structural bit but I can see why someone might not be keen for it on a new bike. I’d look at an alternative in that case, maybe a P-Clip which would have the added bonus of moving the mounting hole down a bit which it sounds like you need.

This sort of thing

I’d probably go for a p-clip rather than drilling but it’s not as neat looking.

FWIW the Bonty mudguards are really nice. Certainly easier to fit than the SKS so I can see why they’d recommend them.

As for the drilling, if a seatstay bridge can be drilled in order to take caliper brakes I can’t see that a mudguard bracket will be a problem 🙂

Only pic I found looks like it has a thread to fit guards, your not have this?

It does have a thread, but I think the guy said it was too small for the bolt that the guards need. I’d post a pic but I can’t seem to get a link from Flickr. Here it is anyway https://flic.kr/p/FdtktU

Thanks for the replies.

I think the guy said it was too small for the bolt that the guards need

Haven’t heard of washers?

Tell him to use the correct sized bolt for the hole and then use a washer if needed. Guy sounds an idiot, unless I’ve really misunderstood.

but I think the guy said it was too small for the bolt that the guards need.

Use a different bolt with a washer. Sounds like he’s being lazy to me.

shop clearly has no pride in his work.

drilling the structural item to accept the non structural item is the wrong way to be thinking when there are many EASIER/NEATER/More correct solutions.

Yup, find another shop to help you.

Pretty sure drilling your frame will void any warranty!

To be fair to the guy the hole is not in the normal direction so 90% of guards come with brackets pointing the wrong way to just bolt on. To fit you would need to drill a hole in the guard at the right point and make up a spacer to fill the gap, pretty easy with SKS, not fitted any Bontrager ones tho.

Drilling the hole bigger is the lazy solution.

There is a better way – he just can’t be bothered to find it – I wouldn’t be letting anyone drill holes in my brand new bike 🙄

Compare the cost of the frame with the cost of the mudguards. That will tell you which you should be drilling holes in!

Drill (or melt) holes in the mudguards, then put zip ties through, and around the seatstay bridge.
I think this is better than the standard bracket, as it reduces rattling, and gives a bit more tyre clearance.

Threaten him with no pudding. That’ll get his creative juices flowing.

Drill the guard and use a spacer between the guard and the frame. Use a button head screw to attach the guard to the frame. easy.

Old v-brake washers is what I use between drilled guards and frame…

You need a new bike shop.

APF

To be fair to the guy the hole is not in the normal direction so 90% of guards come with brackets pointing the wrong way to just bolt on.

Whut? 100% of guards can be modified to fit using about 5 pence worth of spacers and a bolt.

Infact a good number of top end frames have a mounting thread/hole in that exact orientation as it’s much neater and eliminates the crappy pressed steel bracket, that regularly cracks.

I’d go to a shop that knows what it’s doing/has a bit more experience. Anyone suggesting drilling a hole in that would get laughed at round here.

I’ve got a Caad-x, SKS guards fitted no problem to the existing mounts. I’d avoid drilling nice new bike just for guards.

Drill two holes in the guard and cable tie it to the frame. Never underestimate cable ties.

Use a different bolt with a washer. Sounds like he’s being lazy a bodger to me.

Of course if it’s a proper shop, they’ll have one of the special tools for punching holes in mudguards.

If you ever have to warranty the frame and the shop owner doesn’t honour it himself you’ll be out of luck as I’m guessing Cannondale will reject any claim as you’ve modified the frame.

Ive fitted loads of SKS guards to CAAD X’s and synapse discs. It takes a tiny bit of ingenuity,a smidgen of thought and about 10 minutes extra work.
Tell them to go away and think again.

Buy the bike, take it home and buy some SKS guards and fit yourself. FFS. Bloke in shop is a pillock

Drill (or melt) holes in the mudguards, then put zip ties through, and around the seatstay bridge.
I think this is better than the standard bracket, as it reduces rattling, and gives a bit more tyre clearance.

This is the solution I use on my commuter which actually has the required hole in the right place, guards are cheaper and typically made from plastic, mod the guard to suit the frame…

The seatstay and chainstay bridges are a bit further away to allow clearance for cx tyres+mud.I just made neat spacers to bring the guards closer to the wheels when using road tyre so it’did’nt look sheety.

This what he needs to do (or a tidier job if you really insist). My CAADX, no frame drilling, SKS guards:

I fitted SKS to my CAADX – no drilling and I went the zip-tie* way. They’ve run all winter without problems.

(* I am a fully certified zip-tie engineer)

Thanks everyone. The SKS guards are almost half the price so I might become a “Trainee Zip-tie engineer” 🙂

Don’t forget to protect any contact points with tape first.Over a short time,even tiny movements can rub the life out of a frame .

Buy a suitable sized nylon spacer from Ebay and drill the guard.
Zip ties are still a bit of a bodge.

There is a little L shaped bracket by Kinesis available from Winstanleys that’s designed for exactly this job. I put one on my CAAD X to fit SKS Longboards.

http://www.winstanleysbikes.co.uk/product/75610/Kinesis_Fender_Mount

£1.79 well spent although a homemade bodge would be pretty easy to do without having to drill holes in a frame.

Hmmm, any ‘i just purchased this bike’ thread should come with photo of bike and garden for critique. I feel cheated.

This was a neat solution I spotted this morning:-

“I’d go to a shop that knows what it’s doing/has a bit more experience. Anyone suggesting drilling a hole in that would get laughed at round here.”

Amen. I wouldn’t let anyone suggesting such a bodge anywhere near my bike. Aside for the warranty and potential safety issue, if he’s not intelligent enough to be working out a better solution, should he really be working on people’s bikes? 😯

It’s your call, but I say name the shop, so that others can avoid it.