A bit like marmite, some people hate mudguards. However, I love them. I run a mudguard all year round, rain or shine, and try to keep my fork seals as protected as possible. I also hate the winter months without one as the spray flicks up and inevitably leaves me blinded.
I first heard of them when I stumbled across their Twitter page and grabbed a cheap – £3 – mudguard from their sale section. Their designs looked good and the fact that they manufacture their own products in Sheffield made it worth a gamble.
What turned up in the post was way better than I was expecting though. The designs are clearly well thought out and the quality of the guard itself is what I’d expect from the RRP Enduro Guards. Sure, they’re simple in design and they’re not as durable as other alternatives from other brands, but they do the job, pack down into nothing (so I can always have spares to hand) and aren’t expensive to replace when I bust them by putting the bike in the car.
What really stands out is the wacky designs and price. They’re certainly a talking point strapped to the bike and they don’t cost an arm and a leg to swap out for other designs. The imagery is sharp and beautiful and the colours are bright. As a bonus, they also make custom mudguards should their vast collection of designs not be up your street.
The downsides of the mudguards, as well as being part of their benefit, is the material they’re made from. They’re the flexible plastic mudguards that do eventually bend out of shape when I put the bike in the car for travel. With that said, they’re not brittle so they don’t shatter and can be forced back into shape. Is it enough of a worry to stop me buying from Reaper again? No. Could it be a problem for you? I guess so.
All in all, I like the mudguards from Reaper. Keeping a small collection at home means I can swap in and out designs, replace a broken one easily and they’re totally flat for storage. The real winner, for me, is that they’re bright and colourful though. Their designs really are the only mudguards I’ve ever bought and really appreciated.
Now, maybe I should get a custom one…
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