How much difference do mudguard mounts make?

[T4tomo]

I bodged a rear mudguard on my DIY 6-speed bike by zip-tying a length of scrap tyre onto its skinny rack...

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I'll raise you half (lengthwise) a 2l fizzy pop bottle and some gaffer tape to attach to chain stays / seat tube.

 

[Punkawallah]

I'll raise you half (lengthwise) a 2l fizzy pop bottle and some gaffer tape to attach to chain stays / seat tube.

Slut :-)

 

[freiston]

If I wanted to use mudguards on a bike, then I would want the bike to be designed to have them fitted, including mounting points and clearance. If I was buying a bike that I wanted to use mudguards on, then it would be a deal breaker for me. If I was given one without mounts, then I might consider a workaround - but now I'm getting too hypothetical. All my bikes have mudguards. The closest I ever got to a bike without mudguards was late 70s, possibly early 80s (iirc) - when the bike came with those silly little ones that covered the brakes and not much else - I replaced them with ESGE chromoplastics

 

[wafter]

Quite a 'dangerous' mistake to make, that one; certainly in some scenarios :-)

I've not used the full-on, 'permanent' ceramic coating stuff. Mine is the Silca spray, applied with a microfibre cloth. I do it after a proper wash with shampoo and a mitt and it lasts in 'very effective' mode for a few weeks. In winter I'm probably re-doing it after 3-4 weeks and it's still working at that stage.

I've certainly considered compressed air, but not the idea of using my tubeless tyre cylinder: good idea :-) And as to drying, that's to avoid corrosion, rather than for water mark avoidance. And to avoid drips as the bike lives indoors.

Thanks for your concern but I'm quite safe as my life's not sufficiently interesting for me to be moving in circles where that distinction is important

Thanks for the the info on the Silca stuff; sounds like it's has a similar lifespan to the carnauba so I'll stick with this.

No worries re. the compressed air - there are all manner of fittings on ebay that should allow you to cobble something together... I originally planned to put a valve assy on top of a nitrous bottle to allow me to charge it with the track pump, with an outlet with a workshop air gun on it.. but as usual never got around to it. Could be really handy for getting the wet out of nooks and crannies however.

Alternatively if you're modding a tubeless tyre inflater it's probably a bit easier as you at least have the valve assy in place, but would probably need to lash something up with the hose / outlet valve assy to give you more control.

Also, I find that post wash, bouncing the bike up and down on the tyres (repeatedly lifting it a few inches off the floor and dropping it) will shake a lot of moisture off.

Fair point about drying... I think distilled water is intrinsically less corrosive but leaving a bike wet is never good! Drips aside it's probably less critical if it lives inside