Damn it! Bent derailleur hanger: A Few Questions

[Philipthelam]

Ok, so today I was just riding along when due to my own stupid fault I fell. What happened was I had just adjusted my saddle height and was concentrating on my pedal stroke to see if the saddle height was better. I was not concentrating on where I was going and was slowly veering to the left. My front wheel went off the left of the bike path. I would have been fine in any other situation other than the fact that the bike path was around 10cm higher than the grass next to it and with the back wheel still on the bike path and the front wheel off the bike path, when I tried to get the front back on the path ... you get the picture. I stacked it pretty hard. What's more is that now the two shifters on my relatively new and shiny (and first) road bike have massive scratches on them . Lucky there was no one around to see me fall ... Anyway afterwards I got up and checked the bike. Luckily i did not start riding straight away, because when I was testing all the gears I found that it shifted really badly and when the rear derailleur was in the innermost ring the jockey wheels would hit into the spokes. So know I have got a couple of questions. (it is a replaceable hanger)

1. I know that the derailleur hanger is bent but how would I know if the derailleur itself got damaged as well?

2. I would really like to ride the bike tomorrow so am thinking of bringing it to the bike shop to get it fixed. Is fixing a bent derailleur hanger a really easy and fast job, like one where I could get it fixed while I wait? How much generally should fixing a bent derailleur hanger cost?

3. I was thinking about buying a Park Tool DAG-2 to fix it myself but then I would have to wait a week for it to be delivered . Anyway are bent derailleur hangers really common? Do you think it is a good idea to buy a derailleur hanger alignment tool to use in the future? For those that have a derailleur hanger alignment tool, do you find that it is something you use regularly or something that just sits there collecting dust?

Thanks for your help,

From a very sad and annoyed cyclist/bike rider.

[Baalzamon]

Steel framed bike with integrated hanger, sure get the park tool and bend it back.
Alu or carbon frame, new hanger time

[il padrone]

Hi.

Assuming it is a steel frame with hanger on the drop-out it's a fairly easy fix. If it's not you just need to buy a new replaceable hanger - that's why they are replaceable. I'm guessing it's not replaceable because usually the sort of bend you describe would most likely have just busted the hanger.

1. Get the hanger straightened/replaced first. If the gears still don't shift correctly the derailleur's buggered.

2. You won't be riding it happily tomorrow without a shop straightening job. Should take about 15mins max and <$20. In the good ol' days pre-indexed gears such a problem could just be bent straight with a closed shifting spanner on the hanger - an easy roadside job that I often did for fellow riders who'd stacked their bike. Indexed gears demanded a much more precise chain alignment, the spanner was no longer good enough.

3. I've been cycling for over 35 years and almost always fixing my own bikes. I virtually never use a bike shop for routine servicing. I have a substantial tool kit, but no Park derailleur straightening tool. The 2 or 3 times I have needed to get it straightened I have just taken the bike in to the LBS.

[Mulger bill]

If it's a steel frame and an emergency get you home fix is needed then the front wheel axle has the same thread as the hanger and the rim makes a reasonable lever and gauge.

But seeing as you aren't 15kms out the back o' Burke, then go see the LBS.

[Philipthelam]

Thanks for the help Baalzamon, Il Padrone and Mulger bill.

The bike is a Aluminium bike with replaceable derailleur and (il padrone) you are right that the hanger should have broken or at least have a huge bend. I could have sworn that there was a bend in the hanger but I went into the garage to look at it again , well, it doesn't look too bent. But there is a definite angle in the jockey wheels causing it to hit into the spokes when in the lower gears. So either the whole hanger has bent so it looks like it is strainght but actually at an angle or the RD is stuffed.

1. Get the hanger straightened/replaced first. If the gears still don't shift correctly the derailleur's buggered.

Thanks, I will do this first and hopefully the RD is OK

[Philipthelam]

Alright I am really dumb. I'd read in the past about taking the derailleur hanger off and putting it on a flat surface. I don't know why I didn't think of that before
anyway I took the hanger off just then and put it on the ground ... the D hanger is definitely bent. Quite a lot actually. Hopefully this means that the RD should be ok and that when I change the hanger everything will be fine.

Generally do bike shops stock the derailleur hangers for the bikes they stock? Will I be able to just walk in and ask to buy a derailleur hanger?

Thanks for the help guys.

[Mulger bill]

This years model? They might.

If they don't and if they know you well enough they might pull one off a floor unit to get you rolling and order a replacement in for that.
IF they do that, pay cash at the time and a half dozen decent beers next Friday afternoon. One good turn deserves another.

[biker jk]

Or if you can wait try the below.

http://derailleurhanger.com/index.htm

[a]

Get the tool. Or go to the lBS if you are in a hurry, and get the tool. It doesn't need to be out much to affect shifting. It also doesn't need to be out much for the derailleur to ping against the spokes when in the big cog. It requires very little force to bend it - you might be surprised. You could get one out of alignment just by transporting it dérailleur side down in the boot.

[il padrone]

OP has a replaceable hanger - they are designed to break first before your frame or RD. The hanger alignment tool is pretty pointless for a bike with replaceable hanger. If it's bent and you straighten it, chances are very good it will bust sometime later on a ride just shifting gear.

I have a replaceable hanger from my MTB that bent on a ride - didn't break. I have straightened it but fitted a new hanger. The old one has been kept as a trail spare for an emergency where I do bust the hanger.

[Philipthelam]

Thanks A, but first I will try get a replacement.

Biker jk, I have already looked at the site. I have sent them a photo to try identify the derailleur hanger.

I have also called the bike shop and they said they don't have it but can order it in. I've got to call back on Monday though because they said the warehouse is closed on weekends. They said it will be $15 and will be able to be in by probably the end of the week. Which is great. Hopefully the hanger will solve the problem and that there are no issues with the RD.

[Philipthelam]

OP has a replaceable hanger - they are designed to break first before your frame or RD. The hanger alignment tool is pretty pointless for a bike with replaceable hanger. If it's bent and you straighten, it chances are very good it will bust sometime later on a ride just shifting gear.

Thanks Il padrone. I'll be buying a couple of spare ones just in case. Considering that I will be going clipless soon if I stack and the hanger gets damaged at least I will be able to change it and not have to wait for it to be ordered in again.

[trailgumby]

Mine get bent all the time, well a few times a year. Bumping rocks and tree roots, small tumbles and occasional unplanned dismounts on the trail.

I carry a spare in my camelbak just in case, as some of the rides I do take me quite a ways from civilisation and walking 10 clicks or more in bike shoes is not something to look forward to. But generally a restrained tweak with a multitool (5mm Allen key, I think, in the derailleur pivot bolt) until the derailleur cage is vertical again will do it.

I've only broken one off doing that, that I think had been bent and straightened quite a bit judging by the extensive fatigue marks where it failed. That was on my "new" ex-demo bike.

Buy a spare, they're handy to have, but I think straightening it will be fine.

I've only once bent a derailleur and that was from a substantial stick, at speed. Believe it or not, I managed to straighten it with the help of a soft-jawed vice and a rubber mallet but that was at home, not on the trail.

[bychosis]

Wouldn't it be nice if there was ONE standard size replacemable derialleur hanger. Or at the least one design per brand. THat way every bike shop could stock any hanger you need.

[warthog1]

Or if you can wait try the below.

http://derailleurhanger.com/index.htm

Thanks for that. Very handy.

[a]

OP has a replaceable hanger - they are designed to break first before your frame or RD. The hanger alignment tool is pretty pointless for a bike with replaceable hanger. If it's bent and you straighten it, chances are very good it will bust sometime later on a ride just shifting gear.

1. Apparently even brand new frames and replaceable hangers often need aligning. I know mine did.

2. I have a replaceable hanger. Have made 4 alignments in its life. Once when brand new. Twice after throwing the bike down the road. The other time because I dunno. But it was a little bent. Must have looked sideways at it. They are soft. Each time the adjustment has been small. Adjustment after stacks about the same as when brand new. All required <very> little force. As I said, my hanger is soft.

Tool $50. 4 hangers ~$200. And experience suggests I'd need the tool after replacement anyway to have schmick shifting.

[Philipthelam]

Wouldn't it be nice if there was ONE standard size replacemable derialleur hanger. Or at the least one design per brand. THat way every bike shop could stock any hanger you need.

I agree!
then it wouldnt be so expensive to get a small piece of metal!

[warthog1]

Tool. And experience suggests I'd need the tool after replacement anyway to have schmick shifting.

Which tool are you talking about and where to get it?

Edit: This one? I'm guessing its not the shimano one$$

[Philipthelam]

Tool. And experience suggests I'd need the tool after replacement anyway to have schmick shifting.

Which tool are you talking about and where to get it?

Edit: This one? I'm guessing its not the shimano one$$

Yeah I think a means that one. It's a bit cheaper on pro bike kit

[Jonno]

I snapped mine this morning riding into work..

So, I'm now trying to source the hanger from a 2011 Focus Mares AX 3.0 - seemingly a difficult task.

I've tracked down a few suppliers online, does anyone have any experience with the following regarding quality?
http://www.derailleurhanger.com/focus.htm
http://www.schaltauge.com/Focus-Rear-De ... Hanger-017
http://soshanger.com/epages/box11137.sf ... ries/Focus

Cheers.

[kukamunga]

If the derailleur hanger was bent inwards a lot, the OP would probably have discovered his RD intermingling with his rear drive side spokes! As it is only just touching, and if his derailleur hanger isn't made of a very brittle aluminium (most are relatively soft), it should only need a slight tweek to get it straight with it cracking. This can be done with a professional tool, or by eye with a shifter

Whatever way you do (or don't) choose, the most important thing is to set your inner limit screw so your derailleur does not go within a couple of mm of the spokes - even if this means losing your large cog usability. Even with a mildly bent hanger, a bit of cable tension and limit screw adjustment could see you continue riding without to many probs

An experienced eye can often pick a bent hanger, even just from riding behind someone else. You'll be surprised at just how many bent hangers are out there riding around!!!

Mulger Bill' tip to use a solid, bolt up axle front wheel as an alignment tool is ok as long as the axle is a M10 x 1.0 thread - some axles can be 9mm or 3/8"