Tech

Review: Momsen Design pre-production carbon fibre fender

· By BikeHubCoreAdmin · 25 comments

Momsen Design’s first full carbon fibre mudguard has been tested and developed over the last year in their hometown of Port Elizabeth and once the final version has been signed off will be manufactured there too.

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It is refreshing to see that not all carbon fibre products are manufactured in Taiwan, and that our humble shores can also produce some fine fibre weaves. I’ve had a near-production prototype Momsen Design carbon fibre fender for a couple of months and it sure did help with the summer rain we’ve had in Cape Town.

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The general design is almost like a motocross fender, not the simpler rounded kind you see more often these days on mountain bikes. It has a rounded middle section to fit under the fork arch with a short front over-hang hugging the tyre and a longer rear that extends straight over the tyre. The front and back is a double rigged shape and is all angles.

It doesn’t only attach to the fork arch. It has half-circle attachments on either side that fit onto the fork lower and because of this the fenders are fork specific, with Rock Shox and Fox dedicated variants. At the moment there will only be 32mm stanchion options.

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It was a fairly straight forward fitment. Because it was a pre-production model, I had to use heavy duty double sided tape to connect it to the fork lowers and had to drill holes in the top top thread a zip-tie through, connecting it to the fork arch. After a couple of months on my bike and a good couple of washes it is still 100% secure and hasn’t moved a millimetre. The production models will already have holes to connect it to the arch and the fork lowers. This was also a three-piece fender, where the production ones will be 1 piece. This will help keep the weight down.

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Overall width finds a good balance between light weight and coverage, and the broad tail stops mud and spray from the back of the wheel being kicked up into your face and chest. It’s not long enough to keep your chest entirely clean, but that’s not the aim here. It covered my 2.2″ Schwalbe Racing Ralphs well enough. The main aim of fenders like this are to keep most of the mud out of your face and – secondary – chest. So in this regard, it does its job.

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Final version will be one piece, full carbon fibre with dedicated Fox or RockShox design to make mounting a breeze. It will be available by the end of the month and should retail somewhere between R500 and R550.

For more info, pricing, final weight and confirmed availability keep an eye on their online store or send an email to info@momsenbikes.com.

Comments

flat29

Apr 4, 2014, 8:57 AM

I am sure bogus one can make us some

Steven Knoetze (sk27)

Apr 4, 2014, 9:21 AM

Price isn't too bad!!!

_David_

Apr 4, 2014, 10:26 AM

I think mud clearance might be an issue.

Scott2luvit

Apr 4, 2014, 12:47 PM

jaar nee dit lyk kakkas

T-Bob

Apr 4, 2014, 1:06 PM

It's a small, short, mudguard that took a year to make? Am I missing something here?

BIERSTEKER

Apr 4, 2014, 1:24 PM

jaar nee dit lyk kakkas

 

LMAO

Sepia

Apr 4, 2014, 1:36 PM

Too little clearance and too short at the back?

IMHO

Thug

Apr 4, 2014, 5:09 PM

Don't see why I'd favour this over a plastic one.

Brian Fantana

Apr 4, 2014, 5:20 PM

Most important question: Is it Enduro Specific?

werner1619

Apr 4, 2014, 5:23 PM

Got to love the forum.

Quick and to the point, market research for the product done.

 

I think the frame guard as shown on the bike in the first photo would be a better product to sell ... may I have 2 please !

Hate it when my carbon frame scratches !

King_Crispy

Apr 5, 2014, 5:57 AM

Carbon is too dangerous to use as a mudguard.

No flex in it.

It would remove a kneecap with surgical precision should one fall on it. Plastic, on the other hand would bend.

Not a good idea imho

Iwan Kemp

Apr 5, 2014, 6:09 AM

I think mud clearance might be an issue.

In the worst of it any mud guard would suffer.

 

jaar nee dit lyk kakkas

Pre-production...

It's a small, short, mudguard that took a year to make? Am I missing something here?

"...has been tested and developed over the last year..."

 

Too little clearance and too short at the back?

IMHO

All depends on what you want and like. I would never fit a massively long mud guard to any bike.

 

Most important question: Is it Enduro Specific?

Only if you want it to be! Option is always there to rebrand it as Enduro specific and charge more :D

 

Carbon is too dangerous to use as a mudguard.

No flex in it.

It would remove a kneecap with surgical precision should one fall on it. Plastic, on the other hand would bend.

Not a good idea imho

Carbon can have as much flex as you'd like it to have.

Iwan Kemp

Apr 5, 2014, 6:11 AM

Got to love the forum.

Quick and to the point, market research for the product done.

 

I think the frame guard as shown on the bike in the first photo would be a better product to sell ... may I have 2 please !

Hate it when my carbon frame scratches !

 

http://momsenbikes.com/shoponline/latest-arrivals/momsen-vipa-microfiber-frame-protection-kit-w-momsen-logo-detail

 

http://momsenbikes.com/images/stories/virtuemart/product/momsen_vipa_microfiber_protection_kit-web.jpg

BarHugger

Apr 5, 2014, 6:23 AM

The idea is good.....the product seems fine......I will just fit it the wrong way around.......instead of becomming a mud guard (catcher), I will utilze it as a mud scraper. Small clearance between guard and tyre will work fine to get the worst mud off and prevent big blops of mud accumulating (experience after three very muddy races this year already......on my MOMSEN ;-))

Dubber88

Apr 5, 2014, 6:24 AM

Would have loved this at this year's Sabie.

amasendeinja

Apr 5, 2014, 1:53 PM

Mucky Nutz version does (and looks) the same for about R90.

Steven Knoetze (sk27)

Apr 7, 2014, 5:42 AM

Mucky Nutz version does (and looks) the same for about R90.

 

Doesn't look the same at all, Different profile.

The bends in the Momsen guard will add rigidity plus it's Carbon. For what you'll be getting it's well worth the money IMO!!

D Vader

Apr 7, 2014, 6:15 AM

I think it looks pretty good, not a bad price for carbon, but plastic would do for me.

Neutral black colour would be my choice.

BTW I like the wheelrim and frame choice!

Iwan Kemp

Apr 7, 2014, 10:53 AM

...BTW I like the wheelrim and frame choice!

 

:thumbup: A review of those will follow soon.

braailegend

Apr 7, 2014, 10:27 PM

Thought half of the hub members do not ride in mud, due to wear and tear,haha...

Iwan Kemp

Apr 8, 2014, 5:25 AM

Thought half of the hub members do not ride in mud, due to wear and tear,haha...

 

Thankfully, I'm part of the other half! :thumbup:

kennyg

Apr 8, 2014, 6:09 AM

where's the guard part?

 

I run a plastic guard over the back portion of the wheel for commuting,( JHB had a very wet feb/march) its probably 100mm longer than that. In spongy and full flow conditions my guard makes a difference, it allows you to wear glasses, but most of the **** hits the bottom third of the guard

 

The cover and benefit of this guard is very limited. It will only really stop that spray that the wheel throws up and you ride into. I would lengthen it by 50 or so mm and give a little more wrap with a nice flare at the bottom. I like the mounting, Rshox, have less clearance than fox, but it looks pretty

Iwan Kemp

May 9, 2014, 6:22 AM

Saw this on Victor Momsen's Instagram feed this morning. Mine is still going strong after many miles on the bike. It will be put to test this weekend with all the rain we had and if possible I will take some mud pics for you guys and girls to see.

 

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Iwan Kemp

May 10, 2014, 7:02 AM

I see on Victor Momsen's Twitter feed they have 10 SID models available to order.

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