Carrying Spare Der Hangers

[crashmore]

Last night was reminded of why it's such a good idea to carry at least one spare hanger in your pack. Luckily thanks to some good advice I've been carrying spares for the past several years.

To make a long story short I bent a hanger pretty badly last night at Schaefer. Since I had a spare it was a 10 minute fix as opposed to a 30
or 40 minute walk back to the car.

Just thought I'd share this advice for new riders and remind the regulars it's a damn good idea to carry one around with you.

http://www.mtb-blog.com/2007/03/30/trail-side-repairs

[Dirt]

Good point. It is always a good thing to be prepared.

Insert obnoxious single speed comment HERE. ;)

Pete

[punga]

Good point. It is always a good thing to be prepared.

Insert obnoxious single speed comment HERE. ;)

Pete
Unless your Kegely, who snaps SS quick release levers like cheap pencils in an elementary school pencil fight when it's 18˚ and you're 2 miles from the car. :D

punga!

[riderx]

Unless your Kegely, who snaps SS quick release levers like cheap pencils in an elementary school pencil fight when it's 18˚ and you're 2 miles from the car. :D

punga!
You too? He had that happen when we were riding recently. DK, you need to switch to bolt on wheels!

[Dirt]

Unless your Kegely, who snaps SS quick release levers like cheap pencils in an elementary school pencil fight when it's 18˚ and you're 2 miles from the car. :D

punga!

Insert comment on the wisdom of running a QR lever on the rear wheel of your SS here. ;)

Pete

[DaveG]

You too? He had that happen when we were riding recently. DK, you need to switch to bolt on wheels!


Too much power for a pathetic QR....

I on the other hand have no such issues :(

[DKEG]

Too much power for a pathetic QR....

I on the other hand have no such issues :( Dave you excel in other area's

[beerMe]

what do you need those things for, ride with your favorite beer drinking mechanic...

[camp]

When I ran/run gears, I carry a spare derailleur in my pack. I've always had steel bikes, so I had to carry more than just a hanger.

On rides, 13 times, someone has needed it, or a part from it like a pulley wheel, bolt, pulley screw, and many times, the whole derailleur. It hasn't been me all 13 times, but certainly enough to push me to the other side...

I broke (and changed) my derailleur 92 miles into the Wilderness101, right at the entrance to the Fisherman's Path. Even though it totally sukked, I was glad to have it and not have to walk it in.

[werace424]

I always have one, usually two, one for me and one for the guy that never knew to carry one. It has come in handy a couple of times. :)

Paul

[liltommy]

I always have one, usually two, one for me and one for the guy that never knew to carry one. It has come in handy a couple of times. :)

Paul

If I didn't know better I'd take that personally.
Yeah, Paul came to my rescue on an evening ride at the Rose.
Did ya know that a Trek Fuel and Fisher Paragon used the same hanger?
You just didn't want be showing you up on a converted SS. :D

Seeyall

[werace424]

If I didn't know better I'd take that personally.
Yeah, Paul came to my rescue on an evening ride at the Rose.
Did ya know that a Trek Fuel and Fisher Paragon used the same hanger?
You just didn't want be showing you up on a converted SS. :D

Seeyall

Hey, I didn't point you out. You brought that on yourself. ;) But I must confess, I used to be one of those guys until a buddy bent his and he didn't shift really well until he bought a new one. I wasd fortunate enough to learn from someone else. I'm really not that smart, just that lucky! :D

Paul

[yueq]

Hypothetically, when hanger breaks, can the rider rip off the RD, cut the chain to the magic length, and ride SS home? Walking miles in biking shoes is no fun.

[Squirrel Girl]

Hypothetically, when hanger breaks, can the rider rip off the RD, cut the chain to the magic length, and ride SS home? Walking miles in biking shoes is no fun.Craig and somebody else (I forgot who helped him) did that at WF one night. I would have been back to the parking lot, bike up on the roof and sipping a brewsky equivalent at Kilroys by the time they finished had it been my bike. But then, that happened at the top of the Bowl. Like Camp said, there could be times, when it beats the alternative. Other times, it doesn't. :rolleyes:

[camp]

Hypothetically, when hanger breaks, can the rider rip off the RD, cut the chain to the magic length, and ride SS home?Yes, but there's another step. Get the magic chain length, and then dial in your high-gear limit screw so your chain won't try to jump itself to the smallest cog as soon as you pedal. You probably wouldn't want to use the smallest cog as your one gear, unless you were somewhere flat and easy.

[werace424]

Yes, but there's another step. Get the magic chain length, and then dial in your high-gear limit screw so your chain won't try to jump itself to the smallest cog as soon as you pedal. You probably wouldn't want to use the smallest cog as your one gear, unless you were somewhere flat and easy.

Unless you have a rear D that puts the chain on the biggest/easiest cog. Also called "Low Normal" or "Rapid Rise".

But Yueg did ask if you took off the rear D. If you took it off there would be no screw to adjust.

So my question is if there is no rear D, will the chain stay on the cog you select? OR will it move to a default cog? Big or Small?

OK, that was three questions but I know you wern't counting. ;)

[camp]

if there is no rear D, will the chain stay on the cog you select? OR will it move to a default cog? Big or Small? You're right, it has been a long time since I messed with a derailleur. ;)

I think the chain will always try to seek a smaller cog. I don't think it can/will ever make itself go up to a larger cog. But, it's clear that I didn't exactly know what I was talkin' about, so take this with a grain too.

[philvw]

So my question is if there is no rear D, will the chain stay on the cog you select? OR will it move to a default cog? Big or Small?


You know I always heard this .... "just convert it to a single speed" Bull Hockey. A few years ago, riding with Derek (my son) in the watershed (I even think it was a MORE ride I was leading), he broke his derailleur. We were about as far from the car as you could get at that point. Stopped, let the group go on, removed the derailuer, shortened the chain to as close to a 'magic' gear as we could, and tried riding. Any kind of a little bump or pedal effort sent the chain skittering across the cassette to the smallest cog and a slack chain. We ended up walking alot until we got to one of the roads. On a fairly flat, smooth road you could pedal the bike carefully, but don't hit a pothole! or try and pedal up a hill! Derek got so frusterated with the bike, we switched and I tried riding it for a while. It was horrible, and this was on a dirt road! Ended up Derek took my bike an hammered back to the car. I limped along on his bike, walking hills where I had to, until he came back with the car and met me at sand flats.
I don't believe this trailside repair works, and I havent tried it again, not that I have had a real reason to. Derek went (real) singlespeed after that. I still have lots of gears and lots of boing!

[riderx]

I don't believe this trailside repair works, and I havent tried it again, not that I have had a real reason to. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. The key is getting the right gear so you have high chain tension. If there is lots of slop, like a converted single speed w/ no tensioner, the chain will derail. In this case you have the added problem of cogs with ramps to help it along.

But Phil, some of us know you now have a fixed gear in the quiver, so don't claim this "lots of gears" crap like it's absolute ;)

Camp - you are crazy for lugging a spare derailluer around!

[philvw]

But Phil, some of us know you now have a fixed gear in the quiver, so don't claim this "lots of gears" crap like it's absolute ;)

Doh! I got called out.

I rode the CCT on it last night, Bethesda->DC (Cherry blossoms)->Bethesda. The ride down was my very first on a fixie, down the (extremely) crowded CCT figuring out how to pedal, slow down, stay in control. The ride back in the dark on a deserted trail with no lights was AWESOME though! Blindingly fast.

[EJensen]

Last night was reminded of why it's such a good idea to carry at least one spare hanger in your pack.
True, but my Santa Cruz Superlight doesn't have a replaceable derailleur hanger. I have to carry a complete rear triangle and a torque wrench.

That is seriously uncomfortable, but it's good to know I'm covered.

Best regards,
Eric

[eloach]

I have now started carrying one. They aren't heavy, so why not? Thanks for the reminder.