Custom Raceblade fenders

One of the projects I've kept on the backburner for the winter has been the creation of some temporary fenders for my road bike.   There are several on the market like Speedez from Planet Bike and RaceBlades by SKS, but there is one issue I don't like about any of them-the length.  Most are just downright short and, while they keep the rider reasonably clean, they do little or nothing to protect the bike and drivetrain from sludge and crap.

My idea is to use a pair of full sized 45mm SKS  fenders that I have on the Jamis I no longer use, and modify them with the hardware for the regular raceblades.

 It was easy enough to find the hardware, I just looked at the SKS website, downloaded the parts list and pedaled over to my LBS to see if they could order them.  The good ole' boys at Zoo City were good enough to give it a try and found it remarkably easy.  They had the stays and straps ordered and in hand within a few days.  $28 was the price so they were a little more than half the cost of a complete set of XL Raceblades.

I was careful to order the XL stays because somewhere in my world, I learned that the XL Raceblades were 45mm wide.  Not so.  I checked all the information available and found that reality had interfered with my life again.  They are really 37mm wide.   Undetered by anything but my imagination and determination to make the world bend to my will, I went on with the project.

 I put the stays on the bike and lined up the fenders to mark the cuts I needed for the length and coverage I was looking for.  Then I took a Dremel tool and cut the sizes I needed, removing the original stay fasteners.

After that I made a couple of small notches in the side of the fender to create the 37mm width I needed to fit the stays.

 They clipped right into place on the stays.  There is a threaded recess in the center of the stay where I will probably secure them with a small screw, but that may not be necessary since they are quite tight as it is.

After that, they clipped on quite nicely providing the extra coverage I wanted lower than the drivetrain.

As with all the clip-on fenders, the stays will need to adjusted (bent) to create the clearance needed,

but with the longer and wider fenders, I will be able to use them on multiple bikes in the future.

There is bound to be some toe overlap, but when you put fenders on a road bike you just have to expect and be aware of it.  There is just no way out of that one, on my bike there is TCO on the tire alone without the fender.

All in all it didn't take but an hour to do and I am really pleased with the result.