• This topic has 14 replies, 8 voices, and was last updated 3 years ago by igm.
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  • What are these mounts for?
  • igm
    Full Member

    Ok. My son got a Merlin G2X frameset to rebuild an old road bike for gravel and maybe a bit of CX. Built it up and it seems pretty good for what we paid.

    I suggested some mudguards might not be a bad idea for use as a winter bike.

    Now it gets puzzling. The frame has rack and guard mounts but the (carbon) fork only seems to have two threaded holes halfway down the inside of the legs. No holes at the drop outs, no holes at the crown – at least not that I can see.

    The photo shows it.

    Now to be fair Merlin don’t mention mounts of any sort on the fork, so:

    1) am I missing something, is it a mounting system I don’t know about (racks or guards I would have thought needed another hole or two), or

    2) is this a specification error when the forks were ordered from the manufacturer?

    Thoughts? Knowledge?

    https://www.merlincycles.com/assets/images/productImage_470_470_ffffff_image-jpeg/80562_merlin_malt_g2x_gravel_frameset.jpg

    kelvin
    Full Member

    Mudguards mounts above the disc.

    igm
    Full Member

    That’s what I thought initially but mudguards with only those two mounts?

    Don’t most mudguards also need an attachment at the crown – with is beautifully smooth and solid and hole-less?

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    matt_outandabout
    Full Member

    You are right. Merlin made a mistake.

    I have the same issue – they advertised and show in images that it has mudguard mounts, but the fork crown has neither mount nor steerer hole to mount a bung.

    They’re apologetic but still haven’t changed online description to hug highlight the issue.

    I’m waiting on a set of guards, but my plan is to use the fork mount and then velcro with a couple of brackets that ‘cup’ the underside, front and rear of the crown.

    itstig
    Full Member

    There may be a threaded hole between the fork legs in the crown, cut the angled bracket off the mudguard and bolt through into the crown.

    igm
    Full Member

    @itstig – sensible suggestion but there isn’t.


    @matt_outandabout
    – considering getting a large 1mm shim with a 38mm ID then cutting / shaping / drilling it and placing it under the crown race to provide a mount. Of course it’s always possible someone makes one of these already. Neater than Velcro if I can do it, better on a carbon fork and at 1mm it ought to fit. Have you considered something like this?

    igm
    Full Member

    I’ve found someone who’ll laser cut one offs (bet it’s not cheap).

    I’ll get a proper measurement but

    1mm thick stainless
    38mm ID
    53-54 mm OD
    12mm wide tongue extending 20-25mm with a 5mm hole 3mm from the end.
    Carefully bend the last 11-12mm of the tongue 90 degrees so you have the 5mm hole vertical when the shim is between the fork and crown race and I think you have a decent mount.

    tjagain
    Full Member

    The lower race sits on a taper does it not? You run the risk of the lower race not fitting properly

    igm
    Full Member

    Indeed @tjagain

    I will need to measure carefully, but I think the crown race has about 1-2mm before the taper would make it loose.

    It’s a split race and putting it on with fingers meant I could feel it go tight and then slacken ever so slightly as it settled in. So it might actually be a more positive location with a suitably narrow shim.

    Care will be needed though. Two or three 1mm washers arranged in a triangle around the steerer would give me the spacing to check before I commit to anything.

    molgrips
    Free Member

    A fair few manufacturers are offering mudguards for ‘nice’ carbon bikes but there doesn’t seem to be any kind of standard mount format. That’s one reason I went with Cube because at the same time I could order a set of frame-specific guards that I knew would work.

    If I were you I’d trawl other manufacturers for some dedicated guards that look like they have the same fit system. You may find that someone’s designed a clamp or something to hold the guards on the fork. I have a plastic thing that bolts onto the frame without a hole at the seat stay for example.

    I’d consider drilling a hole too. Apparently previous years had a hole there, and almost certainly the factory would have drilled it not done anything fancy. I’d probably glue in a threaded insert though rather than use the rivnut setter, or just use it really gently, to avoid the risk of splitting anything. Rivnut kits really cheap on eBay.

    molgrips
    Free Member
    Greybeard
    Free Member

    I’d bolt or rivet a flat strip longitudinally on the top of the guard (or maybe cut two slits if it’s not brittle) thread a cable tie through, wrap it round one fork shoulder, back through and round the other shoulder in a figure eight.

    matt_outandabout
    Full Member

    I had wondered about cable ties, but thought I’d try the velcro first as it’s less obvious and likely to rub less.

    damascus
    Free Member

    If I’d have bought a winter bike because it took full guards and I got that fork then it would be going back or id expect a new fork or a fancy pair of mudguards that work with no hole in the fork.

    We expect this from PX but not merlin. Seems when you go to China and get cheap frames any company can make mistakes.

    Its a bit poor of them not to change the listing though.

    igm
    Full Member

    If I’d have bought a winter bike because it took full guards

    He’s 14 and wanted a bike for gravel and maybe a bit of CX. Mudguards are not really on his list and he uses SKS Raceblades on his road bike for the winter PDC sessions.

    I’m an old man and I like fixed guards in the winter. Doesn’t look sexy but it’s far better on today’s roads.

    It’s a nice to have that’s become a bit of a challenge for me.

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