Fenders for train commute

[Eric G]

The rainy season has started in SF and I am considering putting fenders on my Sam. I commute daily on the Caltrain where people stack their bikes side by side. Generally folks are not very considerate about how they place their bikes. Would fenders be easily broken or damaged in transit? Anyone have experience with this? Would certain brands be sturdier than others?

Thanks!
Eric G@rs
SF

[Benz, Sunnyvale, CA]

On Friday, November 29, 2019 at 8:08:34 PM UTC-8, Eric G wrote:

The rainy season has started in SF and I am considering putting fenders on my Sam. I commute daily on the Caltrain where people stack their bikes side by side. Generally folks are not very considerate about how they place their bikes. Would fenders be easily broken or damaged in transit? Anyone have experience with this? Would certain brands be sturdier than others?

 Eric, while there are certainly inconsiderate Caltrain cyclists, I will say I’ve only suffered damage on my fender once in almost 10 years of Caltrain ridership (way back when there was just one bike car per train, and no one had Clipper). Just be a little more vigilant about which bikes you park with (find regulars to help occupy a whole berth), try to park more upright, and you should be fine. The type of fender shouldn’t matter too much as all fenders should flex enough to butt up against tires.

[Patrick Moore]

I've used all sorts of fenders, from Blumel to Zefal, even though I live in a high desert region. I've dented metal fenders, Berthouds, Honjos, and VOs -- the 2 pairs of VOs I've owned seemed to be made of slightly thinner gauge aluminum, but I emphasize "seemed". Planet Bike and SKS fenders don't dent. The downside is that their stay system is (IMO) far inferior to that for the metal fenders. Me, if I were to choose fenders purely for resistance to damage, I'd install PBs or SKSs and rig up a Honjo (etc.) type of stay system.

Suggestion: Install PB or SKS fenders, but order 2 pairs of extra-thick gauge stays (Honjo type) and "R" clips from Kelpie, and adapt the plastic fenders to fit them; far stiffer than even Honjo and Berthoud stays.

I'd have chosen plastic fenders for my Matthews if I could have found some big enough. As it is, I ordered aluminums from Kelpie, which are 2X the gauge, I think, of the usual metal makes, and come with the extra thick stays I mentioned. I daresay you can dent Kelpies, but it would be harder to do so.

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Patrick Moore

Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum

[Eric G]

I decided to go with SKS based on your recommendation, Patrick. The installation wasn’t so bad, but they could benefit from a bit more adjustment. Most importantly — they work!

Eric

[Patrick Moore]

I suppose that I am the "Patrick" in question. If so: "Glad to help." And, the fenders don't look half-bad.

I do notice the cardinal sin of SKS, which is that they're fenders are so g**d****d short! Yours aren't as bad as the 700C X 65s that I installed on the Matthews (with 700C X 60 mm tires measuring actual 60 mm wide and almost 30" tall); those were so short that even had I installed the rear on the front, it would have been too short. But the flap makes up the difference in front, and on the rear, unless you ride in pelotons, you don't need full coverage in the rear.

On Wed, Dec 4, 2019 at 12:12 PM Eric G <eric...@gmail.com> wrote:

I decided to go with SKS based on your recommendation, Patrick. The installation wasn’t so bad, but they could benefit from a bit more adjustment. Most importantly — they work!

Eric

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[Patrick Moore]

Shees! "Their"!

[Patrick Moore]

"Sheesh"!