Fendering My Atlantis

[Luke Hendrickson]

Hey all! I just swapped out my beefy Maxxis tires for some 2.25” Schwalbe Allround tires. Would I be able to get by with the SimWorks x Honjo Flat 65? Or would I need the Flat 80? And how’s the fit? Any input much appreciated.

[Luke Hendrickson]

Or even a Smooth 74?

[Kim Hetzel]

Hi Luke,

On my Clem Smith Jr. "L" bike, I am running a pair of Schwalbe Rapid Rob 29x2.25 ". As one of my last upgrades for my bike are the SimWorks Honjo Smooth 74 steel fenders as yet to be.  

Before I came confident in a decision about which fenders I should buy for my bike, I had emailed Steve Smith, the General Manager at SimWorks in Portland, Oregon. He said that the Smooth 74s' would work. Steve referred me to Kevin, who owns an orange Rivendell Clementine bike. Kevin's bike has the Honjo Smooth 74 fenders. He had to modify the rear fender; cutting out a section for clearance for the chain above the chain stay. See attached pictures. I did not ask at the time what size tires Kevin is running on his bike. I was more concerned about what shim size I needed for a 27.2mm seat post for my Clem.

All in all, I can say that the Honjo Smooth 74 fenders with accommodate 29x2.25" or 57.15mm tires. In the description of the those fenders on the SimWorks website, the maximum tire size is 58~mm.

Hope this helps and not to confuse you.

Kim Hetzel

Yelm, WA

..changing out my chain and rear derailleur to new.

[Kim Hetzel]

Kevin Purcell is co-owner of Golden Pliers in Portland, Oregon. ...left this out.

Kim.

[Luke Hendrickson]

Kim! Fantastic news. I had hoped the smooth would be operable as they look to have better coverage than the Flat 80. I appreciate the help here! Ordering pronto. 

[Kim Hetzel]

I am very glad that I was able to help. I hope they fit to your liking. If not, let me know, I will buy them.

Kim Hetzel

Yelm, WA.

[scott minor]

I have a set of smooth 74's in my shop for another bike (not yet fitted) and holding them up to my Atlantis, they don't fit without cutting and  heavily dimpling the fenders to fit between seat stays, also fork blades, and remove fender material around the chain stays.  Not for the faint of heart but looks possible with patience and proper jigs for setting the dimples just right.  There's little question that the fenders will fit over your tires, but on an Atlantis, it will take some work.  The problem I would worry about is this, by the time you dimple the fender enough to fit, you may have lost your clearance around the tire at those points.  If you remove metal at those edges where it is too tight then the structure of the fender is seriously compromised.  I'd go with a smooth 62 fender and 50mm tire on Atlantis and save the 74's w 2.25 tires for a bike with more clearance (like a Clem).  

[DavidP]

That's great info, though too bad the 74s won't fit out of the box.

Before giving up on 2.25s and fenders, I'd take some measurements and see if Flat 65s would work in the frame and fork (and chain in low/low). If so you should be able to get them setup with the 2.25s G-ones since they don't really have knobs (assuming the tires actually measure out to 2.25 or less).

I'm thinking that Smooth 62s with 50mm tires would work on my Platy so I'd guess the Atlantis could do incrementally more.

-Dave

[Luke Hendrickson]

Man, wonderful info about the 74s – thank you for taking the time to relay that. The above posted photos of them show a significant amount of modification (cutting) to fit which I might be game to do however what I won’t tolerate is losing ample clearance around the tire. I’m about to head into the shop for the day and will throw the Atlantis in the stand and see if any of the dimensions of the Flat 65s would work, etc. At the very least I’ll share the mishaps I encounter as I try to push the limits of what the Atlantis can fit with you all. 

David – I appreciate that suggestion. I’ll throw around the dimensions of those with the mechanics today and see if they also see that working out. I feel pretty dedicated to the idea of fenders on this thing and the recent rain has left me wanting to ride more with less of a reason not to regardless of the weather. I feel like having fenders is the definitive way to make a bike a year round possibility, whether or not it’s a downpour.

- Luke in rainy, hailing San Francisco

[Scott Luly]

What did you discover? Did you by chance try the Flat 65?

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[Luke Hendrickson]

Scott – I ordered the Flat 65 yesterday after some consideration. I hope it’ll arrive by Tuesday or Wednesday of next week at which time I’ll hurriedly mount them. I think minimal modification will be necessary though I worry about reduced coverage due to their shape. 

[Scott Luly]

Luke, after you get and fuss with them fenders, post the results, please.

Some pictures to go with would be great.

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[Jay Lonner]

I’ve been using SKS fenders since forever, so I’m very familiar with their installation and have lots of spare parts lying around. Are there non-aesthetic benefits to metal fenders? I think back to the old Raleigh 3-speed I had as a kid, and the fenders on that bike were prone to scratches/dings and also made a loud pachinko sound when riding on gravel. Have modern boutique metal fenders found a way around these shortcomings?

Jay Lonner

Bellingham, WA

Sent from my Atari 400

On Jan 18, 2023, at 7:37 AM, 'Scott Luly' via RBW Owners Bunch <rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com> wrote:



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[Scott Luly]

Jay,

Thanks for pointing out differences in materials fenders are made of. I'm a fenders virgin, so it's insightful! Definitely a characteristic I'll weigh heavily when I purchase a set.

As a long-time user of SKS fenders, do you have any gripes with them?

Scott

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[Patrick Moore]

I've installed about the same number of metal -- Honjo, VO, Berthoud, Kelpie, Wald -- but mostly VO -- and plastic fenders, SKS, Blumel, Zefal, Avocet, Planet Bike, etc. Metal ones properly installed are more rigid while plastic ones can -- but don't always -- rattle from vibration. Some metal ones are sturdier than plastic: stainless steel, Wald, 2X gauge aluminum Kelpie, but most are more prone to damage than plastic, but only very slightly so IME. 

Metal ones tend to be longer -- I've had some SKSs and PBs that were absurdly short and required 8" or 10" long front mudflaps for full coverage. And metal ones almost always IME look better: curves and gaps more even, better looking fender and strut materials.

[Scott Luly]

Patirck,

Killer! Thanks for sharing your experiences with various fenders/materials.

Scott

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[Jay Lonner]

I like SKS fenders just fine — they’re easy to install/modify, resilient to incidental contacts, and quiet while underway. They don’t have the sex appeal of something like hammered Honjos, but from a purely functional standpoint they seem more or less unimprovable. Unless I’m missing something?

Jay Lonner

Bellingham, WA

Sent from my Atari 400

On Jan 18, 2023, at 9:42 AM, 'Scott Luly' via RBW Owners Bunch <rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com> wrote:



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[DavidP]

Like Patrick I've had bikes with plastic/aluminum fenders (SKS and Planet Bike) and a few sets of VO metal fenders and would echo his comments. The metal fenders weigh less and tend to be/feel more secure, less prone to move or rub on things. The plastic fenders are less fussy to install (which is part of the reason why the metal fenders tend to look/fit better) and come with quick release tabs for the front (PDW makes some for metal fenders if you want them).  

With care plastic fenders can be made quite secure as well but when riding rough roads or off-road metal fenders stay put better (maybe due to the better stays?). Gravel can make noise on both types (it makes noise without fenders too, pinging off my bike's tubes).

In terms of coverage - that's more down to the particular fender than the material it's made of, but many plastic/aluminum fenders are economy/budget focused and skimp on length so Patrick's generalization is fair. The SKS Longboard P45s I ran on my commuter for years had great coverage. The Wald 26" steel cruiser fenders I used on my townie for a a few years were the shortest fenders I've used and required long mudflaps to be useful (I finally replaced these with VO stainless steel fenders).

Overall I find metal fenders to be a bit more satisfying in look and use.

-Dave

[Patrick Moore]

Funny, I have acquired (I won't say "earned") a reputation for fender expertise, and here I live in a city with a 9" per year citywide average (5" Westside, 14" foothills). 

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Patrick Moore

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

[Nick Payne]

If you want fenders to actually catch the maximum amount of spray when it's raining and/or the roads are wet, then metal fenders with a rolled edge, a la Honjo or Berthoud, do a better job of minimising the amount of spray that comes out the side of the fenders than do the plastic fenders.

Nick

[Luke Hendrickson]

Just received them today and made my initial marks/measurements with Sharpie and blue painter’s tape. I aim to drill tomorrow and the day after. I’d rather take my time than make a mistake and need to start all over. As of now, the Flat 65 looks like it needs to be slightly tweaked at the kickstand plate in the rear and at the fork to fit. I may reassess and change fenders and tires. TBD. 

[brizbarn]

I run velo orange fluted 65 on my Appaloosa with 700x55 Terravail Sparwood tires.  It's a tight fit, but don't think I had to mod the fenders at all, maybe a slight dimple.  The fenders just barely fit in the frame and fork, so imagine the bigger Honjo options would definitely need some modifying, but maybe the Atlantis has bit more clearance.  Overall I like them, and the tight fit has not been an issue so far.  Flat Honjos would likely give more room than my fluted ones.I 

 

[brizbarn]

[DavidP]

Thanks for that great example and photos (and nice Appaloosa!). VO lists the 700c fluted fenders as 63mm wide - are yours actually 65mm?

-Dave (who's thinking that fluted 63mm fenders could just squeeze into his Platy)

[Brian Barnhart]

No problem. Looks like you’re right, they are listed as 63mm. I don’t think that number has changed, I just remembered it wrong. So that means my 55mm wide tires fit 63mm fenders. And for reference, I have Velocity Cliffhanger 700c rims. 

Brian 

On Jan 20, 2023, at 2:21 PM, DavidP <dphi...@gmail.com> wrote:

Thanks for that great example and photos (and nice Appaloosa!). VO lists the 700c fluted fenders as 63mm wide - are yours actually 65mm?

-Dave (who's thinking that fluted 63mm fenders could just squeeze into his Platy)

On Friday, January 20, 2023 at 3:53:26 PM UTC-5 brizbarn wrote:

I run velo orange fluted 65 on my Appaloosa with 700x55 Terravail Sparwood tires.  It's a tight fit, but don't think I had to mod the fenders at all, maybe a slight dimple.  The fenders just barely fit in the frame and fork, so imagine the bigger Honjo options would definitely need some modifying, but maybe the Atlantis has bit more clearance.  Overall I like them, and the tight fit has not been an issue so far.  Flat Honjos would likely give more room than my fluted ones.I 

 

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[Luke Hendrickson]

I just finished the install this evening. I needed to slightly squish the rear fender at the chain stay mount and do the same for the front fender with the fork. Clearance wasn’t compromised however it added a certain level of difficulty to the front fender install. I still need to finish adjusting the spacing/alignment in the front, and I’m quite satisfied with the rear fender. I’ll be sure to snap some photos in the daylight tomorrow for reference. 

[Luke Hendrickson]

Here are some photos from the shop taken this afternoon. I’m very pleased and have decided to leave some extra strut just in case. 

[Keith Paugh]

Great looking bike, Luke!

k.

On Jan 22, 2023, at 8:49 PM, Luke Hendrickson <phendr...@paulpath.net> wrote:

Here are some photos from the shop taken this afternoon. I’m very pleased and have decided to leave some extra strut just in case. 

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[Luke Hendrickson]

Thanks much, Keith!

[Scott Luly]

Fenders turned out sweet, Luke. I dig the flat profile, way clean!

https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/c02dc4ce-51d2-4c5c-8ff3-f7f03811f8b3n%40googlegroups.com

.

[DavidP]

Looks great. Enjoy staying dry and clean!

[Luke Hendrickson]

Thanks all! Let’s just say that if it could go wrong, it did. I was able to sort it out and I’m stoked on how they look. The bike’s so big that many think these tires aren’t as big as they are, especially with the addition of the fenders. 

[brizbarn]

Nice job.  Incase anyone else is doing a similar fender job, I used a shradder valve cap as a spacer at the chain stay bridge fender mounting point to get better fender/wheel alignment.  Drilled a hole in the closed side and its a perfect fit.