Bent hanger / bent derailleur / something else?

[smorgasbord]

SRAM 12 speed GX drivetrain (mountain). After several off-road rides, one of which included some pedal strikes, noticed my bike wasn't shifting well. The usual cable length tweaks didn't solve the problem. So, cleaned the bike, re-oiled the chain, and proceeded to setup the derailleur as if from new: Let air out of rear shock, compressed to 30% sag, set up derailler stops, put in high gear (smallest sprocket), re-attach cable, adjust "B" screw per the plastic gauge, and finally check for shifting up and down speed and "certainty."

It works pretty well, but weirdly, in one of the middle gears there's some clicking. I'm used to checking the second highest and second lowest gears (to avoid the stops) for derailleur centering, and if those are good the rest should be good. But the middle gear or two isn't quite perfect. At one point it would sometimes skip a gear or even pop out of a gear while pedaling on the bike stand, but I think I got that adjusted so that doesn't happen (will ride in a few minutes).

I would have thought that something like a bent hanger or bent derailleur would be good at one end of the gears but not the other. This behavior, where it's perfect at/near the ends but not quite perfect in the middle, is new to me. Any experiences or suggestions on what to check appreciated.

 

[JRA]

Try cleaning and lubing the cable/housing as well as possible.

 

[smorgasbord]

Back from my 16 mile ride. Shifting was crisp overall. Between wind noise and Bafang Ultra motor noise, I couldn't hear any clicking.

 

[smorgasbord]

Took another more strenuous ride this morning. Had it pop out of gear a few times. So, back home, just looked at the cage relative to my wife's almost identical bike, and yeah, the cage was tilted compared to the wheel. Put a big wrench on the hanger end with the derailleur still attached and gave a shove. Better, so gave another shove.

Had to readust everything, but now it shifts like crispy butter. I'm amazed the SRAM did so well considering it was operating on a bent hanger.

 

[PedalUma]

It really needs a DHAG. That is a derailleur adjustment gauge applied. It measures and adjusts a hanger in all dimensions, from Park Tool. My friend Anthony showed me one of these SRAM Transmissions on Friday.

 

[smorgasbord]

It really needs a DHAG.

Yeah, I added a Park DAG-3 to my cart earlier.

 

[PedalUma]

Sounds too much Hollywood.
I'll bite. How much, $$$$$

J. P. Morgan had a yacht as it was sailing the Nile someone asked, 'How much is it?" He replied, 'If you have to ask, you can't afford it.'

That is how much it costs. You have to buy the entire system. It requires their chainring and cranks... My buddy had it set up in no time. There is nothing to adjust. SRAM found that MTBer's want robust over grams of weight-weenies.

 

[bobf]

A friend says he was sailing in the Bahamas, more or less on the cheap, and came across the gathering for the wedding of Sergey Brin (founder of Google) ... lots of very high rollers. A bold member of my friend's group approached one of them and asked, "What's it like to be so rich?" The answer was, "Everything is free."

 

[pmcdonald]

A friend says he was sailing in the Bahamas, more or less on the cheap, and came across the gathering for the wedding of Sergey Brin (founder of Google) ... lots of very high rollers. A bold member of my friend's group approached one of them and asked, "What's it like to be so rich?" The answer was, "Everything is free."

If it's any consolation, a couple of high profile studies point to diminishing returns when it comes to wealth and happiness. Much like the benefits of high end bike components like deureiliers. Boom! Full circle.

 

[6zfshdb]

Derailleur adjustments were getting to be a pain on my bike. I bought the Park DAG-3 and it worked very well but I found I had to use it frequently to maintain smooth shifting. I also bought a Wolftooth heavy duty hanger which helped some.

The real fix came when I invested in an electronic shifter from Archer Components:

D1x Trail Shifter (Gen 2) - Paddle Remote

Shift Everything with the new D1x Trail electronic shifter. Fully programmable to work with nearly every derailleur or geared hub. Bump and run autostart Quick-charging cartridge battery Up to 30h run time or 3 months of standby Works with all Archer remotes Micro-adjust individual gears on the...

archercomponents.com

It is compatible with almost any derailleur/bike combination. At $450 (15% off sale going on now), It isn't cheap but still half the cost of an electronic derailleur.

Since installing it 2 seasons ago, I haven't had to do any derailleur adjustments at all. I'm not sure exactly why it works so well but it may have something to do with the shifter/cable assembly. The cable length was reduced from 36" to just 6".

The only down side to the electronic shifter system is, it uses batteries which need to be charged 2 or 3 times per season. There is a $60 adapter cable available though, which lets you power the shifter from the bike battery.

This is not a product endorsement and, other than being a satisfied customer, I have no connection with Archer Components at all. Keep in mind that just because this system works so well for me doesn't mean it will for everyone. YMMV

 

[juggernaut]

It's due for Sram Eagle upgrade I asked Google for help it showed wireless shifting for derailleur.
Okay they are expensive.
I found this, I think it requires replacing chain ring and cassette too
It can get expensive for an Eagle drive train.

The upgrade kit is for replacing an existing cable Eagle GX 12 speed with this wireless version. So no nothing else required in this instance. One thing that I would like to see is shift tuning of individual cogs which this doesn’t have.

 

[smorgasbord]

At $450 (15% off sale going on now), It isn't cheap but still half the cost of an electronic derailleur.

The SRAM GX wireless derailleur kit is now $528:

https://www.amazon.com/SRAM-Eagle-AXS-Upgrade-Kit/dp/B091TJ3CJL

But, a bent hanger will mean that somewhere along the travel the derailleur is mis-aligned and whether it's shifted by cable or electronically, especially if the cable is simply moved electronically, that shouldn't make a difference.

 

[6zfshdb]

The SRAM GX wireless derailleur kit is now $528:

https://www.amazon.com/SRAM-Eagle-AXS-Upgrade-Kit/dp/B091TJ3CJL

But, a bent hanger will mean that somewhere along the travel the derailleur is mis-aligned and whether it's shifted by cable or electronically, especially if the cable is simply moved electronically, that shouldn't make a difference.

I think the real reason the Archer shifter works for me is the fact that you can "micro adjust" each gear. Each cog is set independently of the others so the setting for one gear won't affect the others. You can also make adjustments on the fly in case you bounce the derailleur off something during a ride.

 

[PedalUma]

9 speed drive train

@Rome, Check out the Box Three, Prime 9 Group Set. The 9-speed allows for a thicker chain and more robust cogs with the same overall range as a skinny 12-sp. I just installed an 11-50 Box cassette. It will climb any road that a car can drive up a mountain. That bike is a 'ladies' Marin Stinson 2 ST, step-through, version of a modern take on the classic beach cruiser. My metallic blue mid-step Marin Stinson (Beach) 2 XL arrives tomorrow. This is exactly what a 90 Nm eBike looks like! That bike is so fun. Smooth, Intuitive! I had to ride it 12 miles today to bed the multi-metallic bronze pads to the stainless rotors. There are other sellers who price match, I just saw the $212 set on sale in 11-46 for $140. Use premium housing and a premium Bontrager pre-stretched and highly polished shift cable. Put gun oil down your housing. That 'girl's' cruiser will kick the adze of any Specialized product on the market in the real world. It has a cargo motor and comes in at 40 pounds. No Spandex required. It will, Smoke every mountain, search far and wide, pee in every fountain, till you find two Vados. Then you will smoke those and put them in the ash can. Note: An adze is a tool used to make things such as canoes.

 

[smorgasbord]

Took another more strenuous ride this morning. Had it pop out of gear a few times. So, back home, just looked at the cage relative to my wife's almost identical bike, and yeah, the cage was tilted compared to the wheel. Put a big wrench on the hanger end with the derailleur still attached and gave a shove. Better, so gave another shove.

Had to readust everything, but now it shifts like crispy butter. I'm amazed the SRAM did so well considering it was operating on a bent hanger.

Have done a couple rides now with my un-bent hanger and re-adjusted derailleur. Not a single missed shift or popping off a sprocket.

Lesson learned: If you’ve adjusted your derailleur and still have problems, check for a bent hanger. It’s really hard for derailleurs to overcome that. Unfortunately, I suspect most home mechanics don’t have the $70-$140 tool to check/fix hangers. But, if you’ve got a long cage derailleur, you might be able to look at how parallel to the wheel the cage is as a sign.

 

[smorgasbord]

@Rome, Check out the Box Three, Prime 9 Group Set. The 9-speed allows for a thicker chain and more robust cogs with the same overall range as a skinny 12-sp.

Actually, Box Three says the chain has same internal dimensions as an 11-speed chain, so the cogs/sprockets aren’t thicker. And tests I’ve previously linked showed that all manufacturers’ 12 speed chains outlast their own 11 & 10 speed chains due to better materials.
But, the Box Three stuff is quite inexpensive, if that’s important to you.