by Igor
Chances are, you don't need to re-radius your fender if you choose the proper width relative to your tire size. Alas, we do not offer a 45mm 26" fenderset. Yet. So for those of you with 26" wheels with 1.5" tires, our 650bx45mm hammered fenders can be re-radiused to match the curve of a 26" wheel.
As a reference, here is what how a 650bx45mm hammmered fender sits over a 26" wheel with 1.5" tires. The subject is Adrian's 26" Campeur, in case you were wondering.
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| Before |
And here it is after some massaging. Notice that the fender is only attached at the seatstay and chainstay bridges, and has a smooth line that follows the curvature of the tire. Once this "fender-zen" is achieved, your fenders will live long and fruitful lives free of stress risers.
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| After |
First, here is what not to do:
Do not bend the fender by grasping on the ends and squeezing. You will kink your fender, and it will be extremely difficult to fix. Rather, you need to work the fender bit by bit until the fender matches the curvature of the tire.
To decrease the radius of the fender, you will need to increase the width. Since I am using an aluminum alloy fender set, I just use my hands to depress the middle and pull the outer edges. I have heard of others using a tennis ball, but since 1) I don't play tennis and 2) the yellow fuzz is bad for a dog's digestion tract, I simply do not own a tennis ball.
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| Decreasing radius |
You don't need to do a lot at a time. Little bits over the length of the fender can decrease the radius enough to work. With the wheel in the dropouts, simply mock it up and adjust as necessary. Conversely, if you need to increase the radius, squeeze the edges together.
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| Increasing radius by squeezing |
With the proliferation of off-road touring and gravel/all-road/any-road/road-plus/adventure/quiver-killer bikes, we have started including a pair reinforcement plates in all of our alloy fender sets. Just peel and stick it under the screw during installation - one under the seatstay bridge and one under the fork crown.
Here's the final result:
We'll probably bring in some fenders for the narrower 26" crowd. What other sizes would you like to see?
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38 comments:
Definitely need fenders to cover 650B +/-50mm tires. It would be nice if these were simple rounded profile to better complement modern frames/builds. Also please in black/noir/schwarz!
Thanks for this article. I'd like to see the fender reinforcement plates and some extra-low-and-smooth-profile hardware available for separate sale. Perhaps a countersunk bolt (sunk into the reinforcement plate)?
Still hunting for 700C x 60mm noir metal fenders (hammered or fluted, no issue) that have long coverage for both front and back, think SKS Longboards in length.
26"x65mm mtb style low height fenders
Looking at the very cool inside pattern on the fender,
how about some inside out fenders ?
+1 for this
Priceless, ugly fender lines ruin look of a bike.
Second the countersunk reinforcement plate idea.
Hah...How timely! Just the info I needed to help finish off a Bridgestone XO build. Thanks!
Ooh! How about 650b fenders wide enough for 47-48mm tires?
The inclusion of a set of reinforcement plates is a terrific addition. I have had to fashion makeshift reinforcement out of all sorts of things, but those look really handy and sensible. I have never seen changing the radius of a fender addressed anywhere, and it's the kind of thing you learn once and are glad you did. And it is definitely fender season. Thanks!
Then there's that situation where the fender is a little too wide for a unicrown fork and you have to compromise your aesthetics with the mushed look. A good argument for those VO fork crowns.
so that a campeur with 26 tires?.....nice....
How about 26 inch x 60 mm fenders that are the same length as the 650B fenders? Judging by that photo, the re-radiused 650B fenders provide about as much coverage as my current VO 26 in x 60 mm fenders + mudflaps. According to the store, the 650b fenders are 10 cm longer than the 26 inch ones. Longer 26-inch fenders would encourage me to buy a new set of fenders.
I currently run your 26"x60 alloy fenders on 26"x1.8 tires. The clearances are great but what I'd love to see is something in the 26"x58-62 range with more wrap - to catch more crap. Maybe fluted?!
Oooh ooh - Also what Morlamweb said about more length
You may have wanted to mention that this is only going to work on metal fenders. I can imagine some poor soul out there trying to bender their plastic fenders.
I'm looking for a fluted alu.fender that will caress the 26x1.75s on my Atlantis. Currently using SKS Longboards which are acceptable but a proper fitting alu requiring minimal adjustments would be the bomb. Cheers.
Add another vote for a Hammered aluminum fender to fit the Atlantis in the 40mm-45MM range, these would probably be popular for owners of LHT's and other bikes now that manufacturers are starting to vary wheel size to frame size. 50MM fenders are great for Cruzers or really fat tires, but a middle width 26' would be appreciated. - Mas
Another vote here for wider fenders for 650b. At least wide enough to accommodate up to 48mm tires.
A well written article. The reinforced plate is an great product and needed when installing fenders.
Great article-- looks eerily like a photo set of instructions I made a few years ago to re-radius fenders :-)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/7516215@N03/albums/72157633821482372
I like the idea of a pre-bent reinforcement plate. I've been doing that on all my builds.
To the guys wanting fenders wide enough for 650bx47-48, VO's 26"×60 works PERFECTLY. No fuss no muss. My frame was designed with proper clearances, but should still work nicely if you frame can handle it.
if possible, i'd be interested in a 55mm or more hammered finish for 26"; i've got a pair of rat trap pass tires that according to specifications, don't reliably fit under any fender with significant side coverage (honjo being the one very expensive solution).
How about some larger metal fenders for the 47mm tire crowd.
+1 for narrower 26" fenders in 35-40mm wide.
Must've been reading my mind. I've been researching how to get some 700c fenders to fit on 650bx42+ the last week or so. How much wider can I expect from doing something like this? Like if I get 700x45 fenders, how wide will the fenders become?
@ somervillian These instructions are fine, but here is some applause (clap clap).
@Anon 5:38pm,
Probably not wide enough to safely clear a 650b 42mm tire, I think. I would suggest getting the proper width fender designed for the tire and wheel combination.
-Igor
Hi Velo Orange, Great article. I have 26" wheels with Compass Rat Trap Pass tyres, I was going to buy the 60mm polished fenders but they are a little narrow for the 53mm width of theses tyres. I wonder would this resizing trick work with your 700c x 63mm fluted Fenders to fit the 26 wheel with my fat tyres?
Thank you for any information,
Take care,
Barry ;-)
I'd say something huge for 650B by 2,5"/65mm tires. Very wide, flat/shallow, such as the unique Honjo H95.
There is a serious lack of wide fenders for small wheels out there. I'm getting ready to re-radius a set of your 700c fenders for 20"x2.0" tires, because it's literally the ONLY option on the market.
You could charge a premium for small, wide fenders, and I can just about guarantee that people would buy them. Folding bikes are popular, and with small wheels, wide tires are the smart choice.
There are just no other options out there - you could fill this (huge) gap in the market.
Hey, did you end up re-radiusing those 20" wheels? I may do the same and was curious about your result!
i vote for a 700c x 50mm fender in black (noir)!
@Anon,
We have our 700x52mm Zeppelins in Noir! https://velo-orange.com/collections/fenders/products/vo-polished-52mm-zeppelin-fenders-700c?variant=53108396999
-Igor
26 x 2.0 in hammered aluminum, please!!!
@VeloOrange,
the 700x52mm black Zepplins are indeed nice, but 50mm is the max size that will fit my frame, and the next size down that come in black (45mm) are a bit too narrow for my 40mm tires.
@Anon,
If your frame can take 50mm fenders, you'll be able to mount the 52mm Zeppelins if you crimp a tad around the stays. You're only adjusting 1 mm on each side.
-Igor
700x52 smooth : )
It works great on plastic, as long as you use a heat gun also and do so very carefully. Plastic and hybrid alum/plastic fenders are very easy to custom mold around unicrown forks, stays, rack struts and chain guards.
Just take your time and you might be surprised by the results!
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