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A bent derailleur hanger can cause poor shifting
Well, it looks like it’s drivetrain week on the web and everyone’s searching for flawless shifting on their rides. Following up on Ashwin’s piece on a quick cable lubing technique and Velorution’s thoughts on worn drivetrains comes a short entry on The Steeps about misaligned derailleur hangers.
Most bikes use cheaper derailleur hangers (ie. under $20), so it’s a reasonable idea to carry a spare hanger around in your hydration pack when you’re heading out for a day on the trails. I’ve found that it’s much easier to replace a tweaked derailleur hanger than it is to eyeball the alignment and try to bend the thing back into position. Remember, you can always check the suspect hanger once you get back to civilization.
1. Posted by Ashwin | 8:45 am, 14 February 2006
One of the best tools I ever purchased was the Park DAG-1 hanger alignment tool. I cannot believe I waited so long to get something like this. I’ve spent so much time chasing shifting problems in the past. This thing would have saved me hours and hours.