Are fenders effective?
 

I'm considering full fenders on my bike for winter travel. I'd like to keep road salt off the bike, but don't really expect much.

I'll ride on wet roads using a short rear "blade" type fender to keep my back dry. Will upgrading to full length fenders be an improvement? Normally, I would just add the accessory and be done with it, but I would need to remove the CF fork on my bike and replace it with a fork that has attachments.

Are fenders effective?

They will keep water off you and the bike, too. Not entirely, of course.
Bikes still get funky when ridden during wet conditions, fenders or not.

yes

I believe that they are. I use full coverage fenders because I believe that they work.

See this thread.

Full fenders are the only way to go if you really ride in slop, but they're definitely no silver bullet.

I know you ride many miles and have been for many years, in Chicago, no less. You've never rode with full fenders before? I can't ride without them, even in the dry. I can't stand all the junk on my arms and face when I arrive at my destination. If a bike doesn't have fenders (and a rack) I never get around to riding it. I even have a front fender on my MTB.

5050 miles in 2009, but I only use the half rear fender. I have a shower at work, so I can clean up no matter how bad the weather.

The half fender keeps my back dry and also keeps the seat-post mounted water bottles and everything else above the brakes clean.

http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/l...omka2x2009.jpg

I rode for years with my front fender zip tied to the fork, since my MTB didn't have brazeons. This could work for your carbon fork as well. However if you don't have clearance for standard full fenders (usually this is an issue on racier bikes between the top of the tire and the crown, you may wish to look into the Crud Roadracer, it only fits tires up to 25mm, but if you have a carbon fork, that may be all you're running anyway. It requires no brazons to be fitted and is very thin to fit through the narrowest of gaps between tire and fork.

Even with 'full' fenders, be sure that you have an adequate mudflap on the bottom of the front fender. Many commercial fenders either lack a flap or have one that is too short. Without a pretty long mudflap you still get water coming off the front tire hitting the bottom bracket and crank area of the bike and also your shoes.
A long mudflap on the rear fender isn't necessary when riding alone, but it is good to have if riding with others.

Short rear fenders will keep mud off your back. Short front fenders will keep mud off your face. However, full fenders with appropriately long mudflaps, will indeed keep you and your bike mostly clean. Personally, I hate being grimy, hate having wet feet, and hate cleaning gunk out of my drivetrain, so I ride with full fenders on all my bikes. In summer, I'll take the fenders off one of them so I can feel like a roadie again, but I still leave them on the others for those inevitable rainy days.

Yeah I don't like fenders. If I need to arrive clean, I take the truck. No matter what, my hair is messed up and i'm sweaty, at least. A little road grit just adds to that, so I don't care. In the summer, I'll just wear tevas and get wet.

I use full fenders for touring and commuting. Add some rain gear and I will stay perfectly clean enough to go anywhere, even in a suit and tie (argh).

As for the bike, fenders do help especially with mud flaps added. But I don't care so much about the bike. I treat my bike like the underside of a car - I keep everything lubricated and in good working order, but I sure as hell don't clean it or worry about it getting dirty.

Given all that, my answer to your poll was Choice #1. I love fenders on yucky days.

Barrett, you could always go with SKS raceblade or Planet Bike SpeedEZ fenders. They're not full length, nor do they have mudflaps, but they're better than nothing, easy to attach and remove, and you wouldn't need to change out your fork.

Full fenders with mud flaps will help a lot. Your chain, rear wheels, 'railers and the area where the chain stays meet the down tube will still get rasty but you yourself will stay much cleaner. That's why I went with choice two. Fenders can't do it all, but they do a lot.

Also? Look around for an inexpensive mid 80s MTB for winter riding. Geometry similar to a road bike and usually plenty of braze-ons for fenders. I won my '85 Ross Mt Hood at Ebay for $132.00. That chrome finish laughs at salt, sand and snow...

I used raceblades on my rb and they were much better than not having any fenders at all. But I knew full fenders were the only way to go so I bought a CX bike with full fenders and they're great in crap conditions. They keep most road crud off of me but they wont be 100% crap-proof.

I only have a short rear fender and it does help, my butt and back no longer get sprayed.

Adam

I use PB Cascadia fenders and they are great. While I appreciate the minimalist look of a stripped down bike (no fenders, rack, lights, etc.) I wouldn't ride without fenders (or a rack, or lights, etc.) After all, I am an all-weather, all-hours commuter.

I have factory models on my Jamis Commuter and a set of Planet Bike Freddy fenders on my winter MB. I usually wear street clothes and my pants stay dry, which is extremely important to me.

In addition, I think they add a cool factor to the bike. My friend's teenage kids, said wow that bike looks sharp with those black plastic things!

Backscratcher for me. I've had a couple of sets of full fenders, but I'm just not that nice to them. They wind up broken after two years, tops. Using the backscratcher means wetter, dirtier feet, but that's what boots are for. Easy to move it from one bike to another, also.

I'd guess a modified answer A would be my choice:

Full fenders with mudflaps really do keep road grit off me and the bike, but cost a lot, don't last long if you're hard on 'em and are difficult to move from one bike to another.

I can't be the only one who thinks fenders improve the look of a bike regardless of their efficacy. All you need to test is a bike with fenders and a puddle. You can see pretty clearly the water that would otherwise hit you being deflected downwards.

I ride a lot in the rain (note home town in my signature).

Your comfort in the rain, and on wet roads, will be *much* improved with full fenders. A full front fender will keep a lot of moisture off your feet -- not just when it's raining, but also when the road is just wet. Make sure you either have a fender that is very long (like a Honjo metal fender) or put a mud flap on the bottom of the fender. That extra 3 or 4 inches of coverage makes a big difference.

On the rear, a full fender will keep more gunk off your bike.

You'll still get stuff on your bike, but you'll be much drier, warmer and happier.

Do fenders work? Seems like a trick question. Yes, of course they work. They will work a LOT better if you have a mud flap on the front fender. The wider, the better.

Planet Bike Freddy Fenders live on my bike and they work great. They've kept mud and filth of me and the bike. It's nice not having a muddy line climbing up my back.

Full fenders plus mudflaps are a huge step up from short fenders.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3089/...17175db9_m.jpg

They don't have to be expensive and easily broken, but I would not want to move them frequently from bike to bike. Get good fenders for each bike that needs them and leave them mounted.

I love my fenders. Can't tell you the name of them for sure, but they were $30 from the LBS. Nothing facy. Just the plastic stuff.