I purchased this fender set to install on a TREK 4300.
The installation of the front fender was very easy, took no alterations of the mounting hardware and took less than 5 minutes.
The back fender required bending of the mounting bracket. The rear bracket is bent to a 90 degree angle and meant to mount to a rear facing threaded hole. My bike has the threaded hole pointing down toward the tire, so it required the bracket to be bent so that it was straight. It also appeared to require removal of the rear rim to get to the screw to install it. I did find that by letting the air out of the rear tire, I could get the screw mounted with a right angle screw driver (one of those small ones that have a bend on each end for reaching tight places).
In all, it only took about 15 minutes to bend the bracket and mount it, so the installation was still fairly easy.
The front fender is very stable, however because the rear fender is longer and only has one mounting point, it tended to slip out of alignment. I also mounted a Topeak rear rack on the bike, and I found that I could mount a small 90 degree angle bracket to one of the holes that was intended for a light, and then attach it to the rear of the fender. It now is very stable, however, it would be harder to remove. I leave my fenders on all of the time, so it doesn't create any problems for me.
Generally, I think the fenders are great and do an excellent job, even with the wide tires (2.00 x 26). I will mention that since the fenders are intended to work with either 26 or 28 inch tires, they are curved a little less than might be desired for a tight fit on the 26 inch tires. I heated them with a heat gun and found that I could bend them to a tighter curve, so that they fit the tires a little better. SKS Beavertail Bicycle Fender Set (26 and 28-Inch Bikes)
Bought these for my wife's bike, a Trek Pure. They fit very well. The only problem I had was the screw for the rear was not going to work on this bike, they supplied a 1/4-20 bolt and the bike had a 10-32 thread. Took me a while to find a screw the right size, but other than that, it went together well, and looks good too. It should do the job nicely which is keeping the rooster tail off her back on our weekend rides. I only gave it a 4 star because I thought they should at least supply a couple of different bolts for different bikes. But for the price, it really couldn't be beat.
6-13-2010 update. My wife rode this morning for the first time with these fenders on. She has the Trek Pure step thru. Because the seatstays are angled down more than a standard bike, the rear fender doesn't go back far enough around the tire and subsequently doesn't stop all the water, as the water lines on her back attest to. It does stop most of it, but I noticed, from riding behind her, that if she goes through the water slowly, about 6-8mph she gets wetter, if she goes through faster, around 12mph, I get wetter :-)) as I get some back spray from her fender.
For this reason, I downgraded my rating to a 3 star. I am sure they would be better at keeping the spray off her back if she rode a bike with seatstays at a normal angle. So keep this in mind if you own a step thru bike. I may have to buy another set of fenders that have a longer reach around the rear tire.
6-30-10
Yet another update. I took these fenders off, they just don't work with this bike, the Trek Pure Deluxe. I bought a set of Planet Bike Cascadia Front and Rear Bicycle Fender Set with Mud Flaps, silver color. Now these ones I absolutely love, as does the wife, which is even more important. Yes, they cost a bit more, but really are worth the price. I bought mine at the LBS.
I installed these on my Giant mountain bike (26" tires). I chose these over the alternatives because the others seemed to have some sort of clip/screw combo on one end of the rear fender that would not work on my bike because the frame is not built to those standards. The brackets on these fenders were perfect. They also bend easily so you can customize the fit. I do not get any spray from the tires in the rain any more. I was able to install them in about 15 minutes (max) and I have had no major problems with them yet. Sometimes they shift one way or the other a bit and rub the tire, but it's easy to bump them over a bit by hand if they don't kick back after riding around for a minute or two. Overall? Enormous success. I would recommend these.
For a solid frame or front suspension bike these fenders work great. I was sketchy about their quality, but when mounting them on my bicycle I found them to be very sturdy.
Pros : - takes care of almost all mud and water
- easy to instal
- quite inexpensive
- mountable on most bicycles
- front fender works amazing
Cons: -Depending on how you mount the rear fender, it will not catch everything (I had to put on a different sks fender over top of the beavertail to catch an extra four inches. This was because I had the beavertail follow the tire all the way down to the bottom of my bike and that took the extra coverage that would have been had up above.)
- though easy to install, it is still time consuming
- tricky to fit in and around brake cables
Very quick and easy to install. I just have an inexpensive Costco mountain bike (Motiv) with fat tires and was concerned about fenders fitting inside the frame, but the fit was fine. In ten minutes I was outside riding through all the puddles on our dirt road. The performance of the fenders fully met my expectations.
As of yet, I have not installed my fenders because the screws don't work with my bike. Before purchasing, I saw others post similar complaints, but I wasn't sure why the screws didn't work. Here's why they don't work on my bike - they are just barely too wide and definitely too long. The screws seem to be made for a bike that has a hole that is open on both ends. My bike does not have this. I plan on keeping the fenders regardless because they seem like they will provide good coverage and they seem pretty sturdy. I just have to find some screws that will work. - Cycling - Fenders - Fender - Bike Fender'
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