There’s an assortment of Velo Orange products on review and the first one are very cool Zeppelin 52mm fenders. These aluminum fenders are full coverage with a beautiful matte finish. I actually prefer this matte finish over the high polish of other metal fenders. My worry of scuffs and dings are very low due to the finish.
The setup of these guys was a bit more in depth than a standard SKS or Planet Bike fender. Due to the shape and length of the metal fenders some fenders/bending was needed.. Using a standard set of side cutters worked well and some patience with setting up the aluminum struts.
Width : The fenders fit up to a 44mm tire, due to my frame type I can only run 32mm tires with fenders, and the brakes (Tektro R536) required some fine skilled “bending” of the fender to fit through the brake. Every time I would brake the fender would flex, finally I fine tuned it to work with out flexing.
Length : Front fender is 80cm and the rear is 110cm long. They give a good full coverage but could use an extra mud flap to catch things from flying on to the rider behind me. The front fender also doesn’t allow the bike to sit on my roof rack. Quite a bummer as I use the roof rack daily to get from home to work in the mornings.
So far in the week I’ve had these fenders installed I’ve been super excited and thrilled by them. The looks alone catch me and others eyes, also I’m coming to like the tinging of gravel and sand on the metal as I’m riding down rough roads.
Two thumbs up for a set of $48.00 fenders with all the needed hardware, and pre drilled!!