Waterproofing your ass?

Rubinstein

Well-known member
Apr 7, 2022
405
534
kent
I’ve spent £££ on clothing trying to keep my ass dry and nothing has worked, wet chamois is no fun on a 5 hour ride. Even if you get an improvement your still grinding all the crap into your nice new gear and it’s ruined within a few rides. The only solution is to stop it getting up there in the first place. As many have suggested, a mudhugger is an excellent option. This thing twisted my melon it is so good at protecting me and my very expensive dropper. It still amazes me when I look at my saddle and it’s completely dry after the crap I ride through, best £25 I’ve spent on the bike in 2 yrs. Never gonna win a beauty contest but dam it works.
 

Rubinstein

Well-known member
Apr 7, 2022
405
534
kent
Here you go, can be cut down. Mine is stock length.

BA39D84F-57EC-47F6-8436-6640ECCB279F.jpeg FDFFE5AF-361D-42E4-AFC2-3DB36D23965C.jpeg
 

Rubinstein

Well-known member
Apr 7, 2022
405
534
kent
I’m keen on your thoughts of the Deemax wheels. I’m thinking of upgrading to them
Hi, so the deemax are the E S30 version, and a worthy upgrade on my stock Giant AM rims. I’m not going to say it’s night and day, I’m not a very sensitive rider, but there is an improvement. Firstly I noticed a smoother ride, important for me coz I mostly do long distance trail rides so comfort is a high priority. Also they are very good at holding pressure. I would need to check the stock ones every ride, but these I can trust and maybe do once a month. Maintenance is low, I’ve done over 2000k on them and all they have required is a re-grease in the freehub. They have a reputation for being bomb proof but I can’t really comment on that because I don’t ride that hard. My set up is around 110kgs fully loaded so they have a pretty easy life with me, but you do see them on some pretty high end stuff getting smashed around, and haven’t heard any horror stories on this model. The model below is a bit weaker I think. One small negative is that tyres are quite tight to get on and off. You need to make sure both beads are sitting right in the wheel wells for this. Ok when you get the knack and probably the reason they seal so well along with the spoke setup. Lastly, one of the best looking wheels out the in my opinion. I got mine on a deal at CRC, but last time I looked they were very cheap at Tredz. So overall I’m very happy with them, mechanically and cosmically. I ran them in the summer with some 2.4s on which worked really well, but as you can see I’ve got the chunkies back on for winter. Hope that helps.
 

mtb-steve

Member
Nov 4, 2021
112
97
Cumbria
I’ve spent £££ on clothing trying to keep my ass dry and nothing has worked, wet chamois is no fun on a 5 hour ride. Even if you get an improvement your still grinding all the crap into your nice new gear and it’s ruined within a few rides. The only solution is to stop it getting up there in the first place. As many have suggested, a mudhugger is an excellent option. This thing twisted my melon it is so good at protecting me and my very expensive dropper. It still amazes me when I look at my saddle and it’s completely dry after the crap I ride through, best £25 I’ve spent on the bike in 2 yrs. Never gonna win a beauty contest but dam it works.
Another plus for having a mudguard. I also use a front mudguard with sides, it keeps most of the dirt off the fork legs so the seals have a much easier life.
 

Wooders

Member
Mar 28, 2019
30
20
Oxford
I've just picked up the V2 mudhugger which now has velcro straps and a bit that covers the area from the seatstays to the chainstays.

I can't quite bring myself to fit it though, I've just invisiframed the seat stays and I don't want to double wrap a load more helitape over it and spoil my nice finish!

1671465543677.png
 

Rubinstein

Well-known member
Apr 7, 2022
405
534
kent
I've just picked up the V2 mudhugger which now has velcro straps and a bit that covers the area from the seatstays to the chainstays.

I can't quite bring myself to fit it though, I've just invisiframed the seat stays and I don't want to double wrap a load more helitape over it and spoil my nice finish!

View attachment 103238
I double wrapped mine and it does look crap until it’s covered with, eerm, crap. Also I’ve got the early version but did a mod with an old inner tube to protect the lower part, works a treat. 😉. Had to get the heat gun out on mine to centralise it over the tyre once fitted 👍

58AB45DC-FFDE-46A6-97F2-9AF8EEE2080A.jpeg
 

Wooders

Member
Mar 28, 2019
30
20
Oxford
I double wrapped mine and it does look crap until it’s covered with, eerm, crap. Also I’ve got the early version but did a mod with an old inner tube to protect the lower part, works a treat. 😉. Had to get the heat gun out on mine to centralise it over the tyre once fitted 👍

View attachment 103239
That's great info, many thanks. Now I want to fit it even less!

For anyone else considering one of these, I just messaged MudHugger and they said the helitape can be installed in the same wet way as frame wrap as long as the room (and bike presumably) is warm to keep the tape pliable. Their install video shows doing it with a hairdryer which I was a bit nervous of as the frame is already wrapped.
 

steve_sordy

Wedding Crasher
Nov 5, 2018
8,429
8,677
Lincolnshire, UK
............. Their install video shows doing it with a hairdryer which I was a bit nervous of as the frame is already wrapped.
Don't worry about using a hairdrier on the helitape. Unless you have an unusually hot drier and put it up really close to the frame, I very much doubt it will affect your invisiframe. But as all the suppliers say "try it in an innocuous place first".

I use a hairdryer every single time I use helitape; absolutely invaluable! Not only does it make the tape form around odd shapes much better, I'm sure it makes it stick better too. (y)
 

mtb-steve

Member
Nov 4, 2021
112
97
Cumbria
Just to put your mind at rest, when using wrapping vinyls you have to heat it up to set it, and it's far hotter than any hair dryer could ever achieve.
 

Loe Rider

Member
Oct 26, 2020
59
29
Kernow
I've got the original mudhugger and like others gave said, it works a treat as long as you leave it at stock length..... but it is fugly. I switched to a much less obtrusive zefal defender rs75 which hugs the wheel instead and it is just as good TBH. I keep an enduro guard on all year anyway which fills in the gap between seatstays and chainstays.

Before i used mudguards I used to fit a flap of neoprene (about 20cm square but rounded) to the bottom of my camelbak so it was a little lower than the seat edge. Not pretty but also not as visible as you might think but my Bum Beard (tm) always kept my ass dry. I don't need it with the zefal so its now retired.
 

Eliadn

Member
Jul 25, 2022
82
34
Croatia
I've got the original mudhugger and like others gave said, it works a treat as long as you leave it at stock length..... but it is fugly. I switched to a much less obtrusive zefal defender rs75 which hugs the wheel instead and it is just as good TBH. I keep an enduro guard on all year anyway which fills in the gap between seatstays and chainstays.

Before i used mudguards I used to fit a flap of neoprene (about 20cm square but rounded) to the bottom of my camelbak so it was a little lower than the seat edge. Not pretty but also not as visible as you might think but my Bum Beard (tm) always kept my ass dry. I don't need it with the zefal so its now retired.
I bought the same mudguard, was a pain in the ass to install it. Didn't try it out though, as I was quite sick for the past two weeks so didn't ride anywhere at all.
 

Bummers

Active member
Mar 12, 2022
528
486
UK
I ended up getting the topeak defender xc11. Seconds to clip on/off which is exactly what I wanted. This is the 29"er model on a 27.5 wheel (they were in stock and on offer so took the chance with it)
Not had a chance to test it out yet. Don't care that it looks ugly, I won't see it when I'm riding 😂

20221220_182752~2.jpg
 

Litehiker

New Member
Nov 23, 2022
73
31
Las Vegas, NV
I may just make my own "under-the-rear rack" extension B/C my E-Cells Supe Monarch Crown rear fender cannot be lower B/C my 1UP bike rack wheel hold-down brackets need to be fairly high. on the tires. This can be made with cutting board sheets if necessary.
Thankfully the front of the fender goes all the way down to the chain stay/seat tube junction.
 

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