Viewing 21 posts - 1 through 21 (of 21 total)
  • Singletrack ,can we have a mud special please?
  • zippykona
    Full Member

    Real life mudguard reviews with pictures of peoples backs after splashing through a control patch of mud.
    A timed loop using a cross bike,mtb with mud tyres and finally a fat bike.
    What’s more mud proof 8,9 or 10 speed?
    Brake pad life ,once again on a control loop.
    This train of thought was inspired by me cleaning mud out of my 8 speed cassette with a stick and remembering that I’ve never had to do it with 10 speed.

    FOG
    Full Member

    This current gloop fest has been putting me off riding lately. Not the actual riding, this is Britain and mud can be entertaining, but endlessly washing bikes and kit. You can almost hear the drive chain and brake pads grinding themselves to oblivion.
    And then there’s the washing machine police. ‘ You killed the last washer with your gritty clothes, you are not putting those in there!’
    So I have to hose clothes down outside along with the bike!
    So any mudguard or mud beating tips gratefully accepted, but not the one about don’t ride ’til June.

    wwaswas
    Full Member

    I read the ‘last ride of summer’ piece by Chipps again this morning.

    There was dust.

    I nearly wept.

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    BoardinBob
    Full Member

    Yeah it’s safe to say mother nature is getting full payback for the awesome summer we had 🙁

    tthew
    Full Member

    What’s more mud proof 8,9 or 10 speed?

    Singlespeed. 😀

    shortcut
    Full Member

    Do we have to?

    the answers are: lots of guards available bigger ones are better.
    narrower pointiers tyres are better.
    1 speed sounds better than 8,9,10 or 11 speed.
    1 ring is better than 2 or 3.
    Wash your bike and oil it after a ride.
    Purple extreme does a good job as chain lube.
    buy waterproof short or trousers.
    you want a lightweight waterproof jacket like the Endura MTR or the Pace one.
    If it is cold and wet wear a softshell.
    If the weather is rubbish and you wear glasses you have a problem.

    Summer is better and dusty singletrack is where it is at. If we could all live in a permanent summer we would.

    zippykona
    Full Member

    narrower pointiers tyres are better.

    Cue fat biker……
    1 speed is no doubt better but can you navigate up to the axle mud with a gear that high?
    How narrow do you go? My Bonty Muds provide more traction than cross tyres on a muddy climb I have to contend with every day.
    Is an under the fork arch guard better than one that fixes to the steerer tube?
    Jam potential versus coverage.

    creamegg
    Free Member

    If we could all live in a permanent summer we would.

    I wouldn’t. I like the seasons and the variety of riding conditions they bring. Last Mondays night ride could have been one of the muddiest rides I’ve ever been on, but was not far off one of the most fun rides I’ve ever had.

    How can you not enjoy sliding sideways down a trail?

    VanHalen
    Full Member

    The sliding thing is how I can’t understand how people can ride with a bar light. I spend so much time correcting slides and pointing in totally the wrong direction it creates like some dodgy strobe effect. Even with a head torch. I can only use a head light.

    Back on topic I find waterproof shorts a must when it’s goppin.

    Alex
    Full Member

    Last night’s ride was christened ‘the death of the washing machine’ 😉

    Muckynutz mudguard and crud guard up front, nothing on the back. Post ride summary: face:clean and free of mud, bike: brown, gears: still working (2×10) but making expensive grinding noises. Shorts: like an extended dirty protest. Waterproof option kept me mostly dry but mud was shooting up my legs on the downhills. Pads: weighing about 30lb each. Shoes: Just horrible. Socks: Ready the bin

    Still it felt like proper mountain biking. Roll on Spring eh?

    Good idea for a review tho, maybe a cheap/mid-range/deluxe winter set up for rider and bike?

    tenfoot
    Full Member

    I have a bike with a mucky nuts and one with a neo guard. Both work equally well and don’t clog up in the slimy slurry we have at the moment. It’s only when things start to dry up a little, and the mud gets less watery where I find the problem. EDIT: both are pointless without a crud catcher too

    Totally bored with the 15 minute cleaning up session after every ride (usually at 10pm after a night ride). However, the different seasons keep riding all year round fresh.

    superfli
    Free Member

    Yeah, last night was very bad for mud! Gut Fender and Bender Fender together works very well and only costs about £10 if you get the specials. My Xmas pressie waterproof shorts have been fantastic 🙂 5 rides in and I cant believe why I didnt buy them earlier!

    I wear my clothing (apart from Jacket and Shoes) into my shower (got one in my mancave 8) ), and then chuck into washer – else the missus would kill me. Shorts + jacket dont get washed, just rinsed off.
    It is hard trying to get the muddy shoes dry before my next ride though. Cant wait for summer in that respect!

    hammyuk
    Free Member

    Just get two pairs of shoes Dave 😉
    Pop into Columbia in gunwharf

    jameso
    Full Member

    Born in the mud of the Chilterns –

    OK the current EWC-replica bikes make it look a bit goofy and the set-up isn’t for most riders but there’s sense in the ideas when it comes to really filthy conditons. Rigid, long guards, good mud tyres, good bearings and either a protected gears, or just go SS. Other versions use an Alfine and those chain-tubes seen on Dahon folding bikes.

    chiefgrooveguru
    Full Member

    Ignoring the Weeride that I was testing earlier, I think this is the perfect mud bike for my local riding (mini DH to twisty singletrack to downland XC):

    Tons of mud clearance. Tyres that work well in everything from mud to dry (just in case the weather turns suddenly) and are good on wet roots (rear tyre wouldn’t suit rockier places), not too draggy but plenty of grip. Enough gears but simple enough to be pretty mud proof (1×10 short-cage clutch mech and narrow-wide ring). Dropper post (that keeps working in hideous conditions) and flat pedals for safety/confidence when you’re getting slidey. Brakes with really good modulation so they don’t lock up all the time and really hard wearing pads. Great geometry for leaning on the bars and sticking in the front wheel whilst letting the back get loose.

    I clean/lube the stanchions before every ride and (approximately) clean/lube the drivetrain pretty frequently too. The rest stays muddy. And I wear the same clothes all year round but add a thin softshell in the winter. But it’s mild and I’m hard. 😛 Softshell and kneepads get a rinse and spin, shoes put on radiator to dry off with mud still on them. If I’m really mud I get hosed down.

    Of course now I’ve written this I’m going to have some massive mechanical disaster and/or spectacular crash on my next ride…

    zippykona
    Full Member

    Here is mine. It’s the bike I ride the most. Really impressed with the 10 speed, it doesn’t bung up at all.The rear hugger is a Zefal No mud zip tied to the swing arm.The crud catcher keeps 99% of the crap off my back.
    The front is a Beaver Tail attached to a Top Peak Defender stays.
    It gets ridden through total filth every day and might get a chain lube every 2 weeks.

    GolfChick
    Free Member

    I got some brand new tyres for my birthday some magic mary 650 trailstar super gravity tyres and have a mudhugger fitted to the rear of my bike….. what mud?! Cant say I’ve noticed much!

    GEDA
    Free Member

    The other week the mud was perfect. Slippy on top but firmish underneath. You could do some reet good sliding corners, bit like skating or skiing. Now it has gone down hill though and is very soggy and sloggy.

    jameso
    Full Member


    Rear guard fitted both ends – the forks have benefits.

    bartimaeus
    Free Member

    I have no problem with dirty clothes in the washing machine – we have a shower by the back door, so I just walk in, turn the shower on, and get undressed under the shower (shoes as well). Mind you, I did have to clear 20kg mud from a blocked drain….

    rOcKeTdOg
    Full Member

    can’t say I’ve noticed the mud since fitting the mudhugger to the 29er, looks awful but a dry bottom is much more important

    i can’t understand those moaning about a bit of rain and mud, it’s the UK in winter, what do you expect? just MTFU and get out there

Viewing 21 posts - 1 through 21 (of 21 total)

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