I use fenders on my vintage Treks. Most of them have side-pull brakes. On the old '76-520ish employee special, the seat-stay brace/brake mount is a bit low, so I can't use Schwalbe tires bigger than 25 mm with or without fenders. That is largely due to the extraordinary height of Schwalbe Marathons. You'll have to check to see if you can fit 32 mm tires and fenders, but I would be surprised if you couldn't find at least one brand that worked.

I never use fenders on my 720 on tour. I often find myself in deep mud and have found that fenders just aren't worth the hassle when the mud is caking up.