PDW FULL METAL JACKETS – Are these the most expensive road bike guards we have ever seen?

When I first saw these guards and saw the price tag I nearly had a heart attack, I thought wow these may be the most expensive guards I’ve ever seen.

One year later and I’ve managed to finally fit a set of these beautiful PDW Full metal jackets mud guards to my winter bike. PDW also known as Portland Design Works make these guards in house in Portland and have pretty much thought of just about everything when it comes to design.

Whether you have mud guard eyelets or not PDW full metal jackets will fit pretty much any top end road bike along as you are using 23c tyres. They do say that 25c tyres can be used on some bikes, But if your bike is a full on race bike with standard road callipers you will need 23c tyres to get them to work beautifully. Most high end road bikes don’t have the ability to fit full length guards due to not being designed with mud guards in mind and this has always caused problems in fitting to my trusty winter stead.

I can hear you say “well if you were riding a proper winter bike you would have mud guard eyelets and 57mm drop road callipers” This is true and you are not wrong. But myself and another team rider bought our Giant TCR aluminium winter training bikes for one simple reason to emulate our race bike position, so when spring finally shows it’s head we wouldn’t have to re-adjust to our racing bike position quite as much. Not only that the bike would handle and ride similar even though it was aluminium rather than carbon.

Fitting these guards was an absolute pleasure and that is saying something. If you have ever fitted mud guards on a weekly basis, you often find it drives you up the wall. The amount of times you have to re-adjust the guard or it rattles or consistently rubs or sometimes won’t fit due to the callipers or space as it passes through the frame/fork. Most of the time you just want it to be summer all year round, so don’t have to deal with the stress of fitting guards.

The weather has finally turned here in Yorkshire and in the last few weeks I’ve been able to test these guards in some pretty nasty conditions. If you have ever road in Yorkshire throughout the winter it can be pretty wet. These guards really do protect you from the elements. Not only that they don’t rattle like most plastic mud guards or rub even under hard pedalling. These guards really do inspire you to get out ride no matter whatever the weather.

Once fitted these guards are so stiff and even without the guides to hold them in place they hold their shape. Quality is written all over these guards from the build and finish to the design, everything has been thought about and no stone unturned. The bracket that passes over the rear brake to hold the guard in place is perfectly designed not to interfere with the brake even when using standard drop road callipers. These guards are very easy to adjust up and down with a 2mm Allen key. The guide arms are designed beautiful and fit with ease and hold the guard in place. The guards come with protective stickers that stop the mounts marking the guard itself.


I honestly cannot find a bad thing to say about them. The only grumble is they only come in one colour, a gun metal grey.
These guards are worth penny of the £75 price tag and will keep you dry and make your winter bike look and feel great. 

Get your bike ready for Winter

It’s that time of the year where it’s finally time to get your pride and joy out of the garage and serviced. Whether it’s just a general check over of your winter bike or a full advanced service of your summer race bike. Here at All Terrain Cycles  www.allterraincycles.co.uk our dedicated team of mechanics can dust off those cobwebs and get the wheels turning once again no matter how large or small the job is. 

 

As winter approaches it’s the perfect time to get your summer bike stripped down and prepared for the new season. There’s nothing worse than storing your summer bike over the winter to find that when you finally pull it out in the spring and it’s not quite working the same as how you’d left it. 

You can solve this problem by having a full strip down and clean before putting it away. Most bicycles suffer when not in use as water/dirt and grit can sit inside the bearing’s and cause corrosion and sometimes cause products to seize in severe cases. Stripping the bike down and re-greasing all components and setting back up is the best way to keep your bike running and the wheels turning.

The Advanced service that we offer at All Terrain Cycles 

http://www.allterraincycles.co.uk/Store/ServiceDepartment 

includes a full strip down of all components, full degrease of components, re-grease of headset, bottom bracket & hubs, new cables fitted (inner/outer), fresh bar tape and a full brake and gear service. We can add extra parts on to this as requested. After a hard year of use most bikes need the chain/cassette/ chain rings replacing depending on your size, weight and how well you look after your transmission.

Getting you’re winter bike prepared for the more extreme weather can make all the difference and save you money in the long run. Even if it seems to be working fine, most people over look headsets, bottom brackets and the importance of degreasing your drivetrain. A quick strip down and re-grease of these components can help extend the life of the bicycle. Bearings, chain’s, cassettes often get blasted with muck and dirt, that combined with a build of oil can cause havoc on the drivetrain. Make sure this components are degreased on a regular basis. We offer a wide range of different servicing packages to suit ever riders needs and budget.

It’s also the perfect time of year to get some Mud guards fitted  http://www.allterraincycles.co.uk/Search?q=guards

This not only protects the rider or riders from the elements it can stop water, salt and grit from hitting your frame/forks and keep your transmission running smoother for longer. Comfort is one of the biggest problems to overcome when doing long winter miles. Having guards fitted to your bicycle can make winter riding more pleasurable and keep you the rider dryer and this can make all the difference to keeping you warm when the temperature drops. If your riding in a group your fellow riders will thank you for not spying them with water.

Day in day out we get asked this is a question on a regular basis “why do I need a winter bike?”. The reason we don’t ride our summer bikes in the winter is all down to the state of the roads conditions when the weather finally turns and the light disappears.

As the temperature drops and mother nature throws everything it’s got at you from Rain to wind from ice to snow. This can make a nasty mess of bikes and components. This can make for dangerous riding conditions. Leafs, rain and ice can leave the road feeling like your riding on an ice skating rink not a road. The last thing you need is to crash your carbon race bike. This could hit your wallet harder than buying a basic aluminium road bike. Winter time is a time to work on base miles and recover from a hard season of racing.

 Why not consider a bike for winter it need not cost you the earth.
We sell entry level road bikes from £495 that is just £11.69 per month on 0% finance.
http://www.allterraincycles.co.uk/Giant-2015-Defy-5-Compact-Road-Bike

Having a winter bike can help you ride slower and enjoy the scenery rather than smashing yourself building strength and enjoying the odd coffee or two.