ww hanger alignment tool

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sungod
Posts: 1702
Joined: Fri Dec 24, 2010 9:37 pm

by sungod

on a recent cycling holiday a combination of careless positioning and high wind my bike blew over, no damage but the mech hanger was knocked out of alignment

it put the rear mech perilously close the the spoke, i aligned it by eye which wasn't perfect (chain noise on the small ring) but ok to carry on

i've got an alignment tool at home, but not something i'd add to my tools for travel due to weight/bulk

anyway, i thought about making a tool that'd be portable/better, i'm thinking...

a length of carbon fibre 25mm L section, with a 5mm mounting bolt/washers at one end as pivot

the bolt would go through the rear mech mounting - sram, it's hollow - so i would be able to align things with the mech in place, unlike a normal tool

bolt head - washer - hanger - mech pivot - washer - cf - washer - butterfly nut

then a short piece of L section that would slide along the long bit, held by a couple of elastic bands maybe

attached to this short piece, a rod that can be slid in/out (parallel to the mounting bolt) to match distance to the wheel rim

the L section will easily be strong enough to act as lever to bend the hanger into line, and because it mounts through the rd pivot point it avoids having to remove/refit the rd to check/adjust alignment

it'll be light of course, easy to slip into the bike box for travel

any opinions about whether or not this'll work? or better way to do it?

main thing i'm wondering about is the mounting point, if it's slack/unstable the thing won't be accurate enough in use

by Weenie


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kkibbler
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Joined: Tue Sep 09, 2014 9:30 am

by kkibbler

The best WW solution is to bring a spare hanger. ;)

I always bring a spare, even more than 1, if I'm cycling far from home (eg. overseas) or on multi-day rides away from home base.

sungod
Posts: 1702
Joined: Fri Dec 24, 2010 9:37 pm

by sungod

yes i do take one if i'm away from home

i actually replaced the old one a few months ago after finding a crack in it (and ordered a new spare, i like to be prepared!), but i found the new one still needed aligning

eric
Posts: 2196
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Location: Santa Cruz, California, USA
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by eric

kkibbler wrote:The best WW solution is to bring a spare hanger.

Except that the new hanger needs to be aligned when it's installed. They're usually off. Perhaps you could mount it and pre-align it but I'm not sure how well alignment holds after it's unmounted and remounted.

em3
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Location: NYC

by em3

Given that ALL new hangers MUST be aligned when newly installed, I simply carry a spare that I have pre-aligned to my frame.
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goodboyr
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Joined: Wed Jan 10, 2007 10:56 pm
Location: Canada

by goodboyr

+100000!
The abbey is so much better than the park.....and its smaller.

sungod
Posts: 1702
Joined: Fri Dec 24, 2010 9:37 pm

by sungod

think you both missed the ww stipulation!

goodboyr
Posts: 1483
Joined: Wed Jan 10, 2007 10:56 pm
Location: Canada

by goodboyr

FWIW, the Abbey is smaller and lighter than the park.

sungod
Posts: 1702
Joined: Fri Dec 24, 2010 9:37 pm

by sungod

yeah, but i want something light to stick in a bikebox, i'm thinking < 100g, hence the idea of using a piece of angle cf

eric
Posts: 2196
Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2003 9:47 pm
Location: Santa Cruz, California, USA
Contact:

by eric

Tubular CF would be stiffer for a given weight.
Whatever its made from it needs to be sturdy enough to let you bend the hanger. Otherwise you'll have to carry another tool to do that.

@em3 does the pre-aligned hanger maintain its alignment when removed and re-fitted?

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Calnago
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Joined: Sun Nov 07, 2010 9:14 pm

by Calnago

Have any of you guys noticed a "warning" of sorts by various manufacturers specifically stating "Do not use a derailleur hanger alignment tool. If bending adjustment is necessary, remove the hanger from the frame first!"
Personally, I think this is mostly a "cover their ass" kind of warning so if you do break a dropout while aligning the thing they can claim you didn't remove it first and thus the warranty is void. It would be a very tedious trial and error process to remove, bend, reinstall and recheck till you get it right exercise for sure. I've never heard of anyone actually doing this but seeing how little material there is on some of these carbon dropouts it does give me reason to pause a bit.
The particular warning I quoted above is from the 2016 Cannondale Supersix Evo HM Owners Manual Supplement, page 7.
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em3
Posts: 883
Joined: Tue Dec 23, 2008 2:57 pm
Location: NYC

by em3

eric wrote:@em3 does the pre-aligned hanger maintain its alignment when removed and re-fitted?


As long as I am using the same wheel and the surface behind the hanger is as clean as when I first aligned it, then presumably it should....luckily, I have never had to use a spare on the road. If I did, I would still check the alignment of my pre-aligned hanger upon getting home.

OP, as far as missing the point of your WW tool idea (which I still think is an interesting idea, as u described)...installing a pre-aligned spare is easier, lighter and faster to replace then aligning with a DIY tool.

EM3

PS- would still be interested in seeing your prototype when you build it
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Sacke
Posts: 643
Joined: Fri Sep 26, 2008 2:33 pm
Location: South of France

by Sacke

Calnago wrote:Have any of you guys noticed a "warning" of sorts by various manufacturers specifically stating "Do not use a derailleur hanger alignment tool. If bending adjustment is necessary, remove the hanger from the frame first!"
Personally, I think this is mostly a "cover their ass" kind of warning so if you do break a dropout while aligning the thing they can claim you didn't remove it first and thus the warranty is void. It would be a very tedious trial and error process to remove, bend, reinstall and recheck till you get it right exercise for sure. I've never heard of anyone actually doing this but seeing how little material there is on some of these carbon dropouts it does give me reason to pause a bit.
The particular warning I quoted above is from the 2016 Cannondale Supersix Evo HM Owners Manual Supplement, page 7.


I was just wondering if that would be the case with my bike, and helas... I have a '16 SS Evo HM... I guess I'll have to be careful.

em3
Posts: 883
Joined: Tue Dec 23, 2008 2:57 pm
Location: NYC

by em3

I had seen the Cannonade warning for earlier double plate hangers where dropout is sandwiched in-between two plates hugging the dropout (like this: https://www.evanscycles.com/cannondale- ... r-EV222366). Yet, even then it was an obvious CYA warning for the hamfisted given that there is no other way to align the dropout with precision unless it is installed in the frame. The new SuperSix EVO dropout design is a single sided/single plate (more traditional) design that even includes a read der cable guide...highly machined and interesting design: http://www.cannondaleexperts.com/Cannon ... _5149.html
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by Weenie


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