Cutting mudguard stsys

[MichaelW2]

Dremel, round off with a file for safety in a crash, and cover with supplied plastic caps.

 

[craigwend]

Cutting with a (mini) hacksaw (8 max) mudguard stays will hardly take 'ages' and probably less than typing and reading these messages. Last time I did it, I only needed to trim front 4.

 

[silva]

A faster way to hacksaw stainless is to saw undeep diametrical grooves in it, then with the grooves serving as both beginning and right location, bend bend bend bend and it breaks, saving a big part of the Saws Intensive Manual Labor.
Works less fast on non stainless because not as quickly fatigued.

 

[mickle]

Bolt croppers are the tool of choice in bike shop workshops. The flying offcut projectiles have enough energy to break a window or stick in a ceiling.

In the absence if the appropriate tools, simply bending the excess end downwards at a right angle is also a valid solution. And probably the fastest.

 

[Dan Lotus]

I've used two methods, with similar success, the latter being faster.

Hacksaw to cut part way through stay, then two pairs of hefty mole grips, one pair to grip the part that is staying, I wrap that part in something protective, the other side of the cut I use the 2nd pair of moleys to pivot the metal and enlargen the cut until it gives up and breaks - this usually takes only a few seconds.

The cut is sharp, but mine have always come with some kind of rubber boot thing to go on the end.

The second cleaner and quicker method is a dremel.

 

[wafter]

Rotary tool with a cutting disc is the wy forward IME as the stays are pretty hard (possibly cold-drawn so will have work-hardened) so using a saw will be potentially messy (potential to skip when starting) laborious and won't do the blade any favours.

A good rotary tool is an excellent asset that's useful for many things - in a cycling context they're also good for clean cuts on gear / break outer cables as well as sanding the callouses on my hands and a million other uses

 

[si_c]

Do you mean the metal arms, are those the stays?

A decent junior hacksaw will go through those in a few seconds I'd have thought.

Snips are too small, bolt cutter will do it though.

I've used a number of methods - a junior hacksaw didn't take long at all, neither did a pair of cable housing cutters - although they weren't much use afterwards.

Last time I did it I used an angle grinder, but only because it was on my workbench and had a cutting wheel and battery in it. A dremel would work well - but I find myself avoiding the dremel as it's a faff to get out and set up, you'd have done the whole job with a hacksaw by the time you got ready.

 

[Dadam]

12" hacksaw with a new-ish blade went through mine like butter. Even a junior would be fine, 30 seconds tops. Clamped to the workmate. Don't push too hard, let the saw do the work. 10 seconds with a file afterwards to tidy it up, job jobbed.

 

[Dogtrousers]

On my Spa Audax (my main bike) the mudguards & stays are among the few parts surviving from the original bike as purchased (along with the frame, fork, seat post and brakes). So they were cut by Spa 13 years ago and have been quietly doing their job ever since. I think they may still have the protective caps on them.

 

[si_c]

On my Spa Audax (my main bike) the mudguards & stays are among the few parts surviving from the original bike as purchased (along with the frame, fork, seat post and brakes). So they were cut by Spa 13 years ago and have been quietly doing their job ever since. I think they may still have the protective caps on them.

I lose my protective caps on the first ride usually. I don't know how I manage it. I even superglued some on once, but they also disappeared.

 

[matticus]

Can't remember. One of:
- I quickly improvised a suitable tool from toe-straps, a pipe-cutter, and old freewheel removers. 2-minute job. OR
- Just plopped it into my 5-axis rotary acetylene jigsaw. Which every proper cyclist should have in their workshop. 2-minute job.

[I did NOT take them out of the packet and say - Feck, these are way too long for ANY 700c bike! What tools do they think we all have to hand to cut these?!? That was someone else.]

 

[Yellow Saddle]

Can't remember. One of:
- I quickly improvised a suitable tool from toe-straps, a pipe-cutter, and old freewheel removers. 2-minute job. OR
- Just plopped it into my 5-axis rotary acetylene jigsaw. Which every proper cyclist should have in their workshop. 2-minute job.

[I did NOT take them out of the packet and say - Feck, these are way too long for ANY 700c bike! What tools do they think we all have to hand to cut these?!? That was someone else.]

You must have cut yours with the former, because oxy-acetylene doesn't cut stainless steel. But, perhaps yours was just el-cheapo galvanised steel stays. Don't you have a 5-axis plasma cutter?

 

[fossyant]

I use C4 on mine, makes a bit of a mess, but it's quick.