Mech Hangers Are Expensive

georgebrailsford

So mech hangers are a deliberate weak link which protects your frame and your derailleur from being written off if you bash the back around a bit much. Why are they so expensive? And why, if they are deliberately weak, are they not plastic? Assuming plastic ones would be cheaper to replace than alloy or machined ones. I'm asking because i've slid off alot recently due to the roads being covered in lovely loose grit salt and i'm on my 3rd replacement since Christmas, at about a tenner a go it's becoming quite expensive.

ricardo_smooth

quit belly aching. Wish mine had broken today instead of my XTR rear mech...... £140 down the drain! I suggest you need to scan the road better if you're falling off on tarmac!

stubs

Get yourself a Hanger Banger

http://www.cyclesuk.com/category/Frames___Forks/Hanger_Bangers,i.html?sortBy=FeaturedDesc

georgebrailsford

well if your mech broke your hanger was too strong....so it should've been cheaper/softer plastic?

stubs

The hanger is to protect the frame not the mech.

cooldad

Does your brain hurt a lot?
It needs to be rigid as well or your indexing will be a bit off, all the time.

concorde

cooldad wrote:

Does your brain hurt a lot?
It needs to be rigid as well or your indexing will be a bit off, all the time.

And you can't get rigid plastic?! That's a new one on me!

cooldad

Concorde wrote:

cooldad wrote:

Does your brain hurt a lot?
It needs to be rigid as well or your indexing will be a bit off, all the time.

And you can't get rigid plastic?! That's a new one on me!

Read his post again. He said softer plastic. And then you'd need metal inserts to bolt the mech into.
Keep up.

cooldad

But the actual problem seems to be falling off a lot.

georgebrailsford

granted that is my problem. but ricardo_smooths problem is that his derailleur broke. Why are the "weak links" not properly weak and cheaper to replace, thus protecting the derailleur and the frame

georgebrailsford

also you'd only need a metal thread insert for the derailleur to attach to

cooldad

Because, as mentioned, it's there to save your frame, not your mech. Steel frames have integral hangers but you can bend steel. Aluminium would snap.

georgebrailsford

i know, i just feel it would make more sense to protect both by making them snap-ier. Especially because doing so would probably make them cheaper. I'm not arguing that they shouldn't exist, i understand why they are used and why they're made like they are, I just think that making them differently could result in something better. Whether i'm right or not...... that's just my ha'penny

Chunkers1980

Quite simple really. I don't want my mech falling off with every small knock. And be careful.

georgebrailsford

well that would be too weak, the perfect strength would allow it to snap just before the derailleur broke.

supersonic

It is a balancing act. Stiff enough to withstand the way the mech works and light knocks, weak enough to sacrifice itself and save the frame.

But I agree, they are stupidly expensive for a small piece of alloy.

nicklouse

stubs wrote:

Get yourself a Hanger Banger

http://www.cyclesuk.com/category/Frames___Forks/Hanger_Bangers,i.html?sortBy=FeaturedDesc

why?

that FUBARs everything.

chez_m356

georgebrailsford wrote:

at about a tenner a go it's becoming quite expensive.

be glad your only paying a tenner, it would cost me double that

Plyphon

I'm thinking about taking my hanger into a mate who has a CNC machine, and asking him to copy it, and quote me for it.

Just to see if they really do cost pennies.

stubs

I think the problem is there are about 200 different designs of hanger out there if the bike manufacturers could agree on say 2 or 3 designs we probably could buy them for about £3 each. I know nothing about CNC machines but I bet the main cost is setting them up for each new design. If it was so easy then the Chinese who can knock out CNC machined LED lights for £10 would be making them and selling them for noodles.

DodgeT

http://www.muckynutz.com/index.php?rout ... duct_id=61
I assume it lets you change gear?! If it does, why can't a beefier permanent universal hanger exist?

cooldad

Plyphon wrote:

I'm thinking about taking my hanger into a mate who has a CNC machine, and asking him to copy it, and quote me for it.

Just to see if they really do cost pennies.

Careful making it too strong unless you want to lose your frame - there is a reason they are made of cheesy cast alloy.

Proutster

Really don't see the problem, it's the first thing I buy when I get a new bike/frame and then it goes in the Camelback.

I think that the one for the Summum cost £19 but I don't want a day's DH uplift to be wasted because of a failure.

Never had to replace one yet, but I know it's there so that I can carry on the ride if needed.

rockmonkeysc

cooldad wrote:

Plyphon wrote:

I'm thinking about taking my hanger into a mate who has a CNC machine, and asking him to copy it, and quote me for it.

Just to see if they really do cost pennies.

Careful making it too strong unless you want to lose your frame - there is a reason they are made of cheesy cast alloy.

It's going to be expensive to make as a one off. For one similar to the mech hanger on my Scalp I would quote around £150 - £175 including the steel thread insert. You also need to get the right grade aluminium, it may not be the same as the frame and it may need heat treatment. I wouldn't bother with it, much easier and cheaper to just buy one.

Mech hangers can't be designed to fail before the mech because there are so many different mech's which vary massively in strength. If they were designed to suit the weakest good quality mech you would still be bending hangers regularly.

welshkev

3 hangers and a new mech for me in the last 6 months, quit your whining

ilovedirt

You should all be glad you don't ride an intense, £150 for a replacement hanger!

bennett_346

stubs wrote:

I think the problem is there are about 200 different designs of hanger out there if the bike manufacturers could agree on say 2 or 3 designs we probably could buy them for about £3 each. I know nothing about CNC machines but I bet the main cost is setting them up for each new design. If it was so easy then the Chinese who can knock out CNC machined LED lights for £10 would be making them and selling them for noodles.

If it's CNC'd surely there's no cost to changing the design it outputs other than the code monkey who reprogrammes the tooling machine?

I imagine they are made in one of these or similar, correct me if i'm wrong:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNPojGFg9-8

rockmonkeysc

Not necessarily. Different hangers may be using different cutters and different tooling to hold the hanger during machining. They also need processing separately and packing separately.
Design is also an expensive process, the component will have to go through design, FEA, detailing, CNC programming and all the document control bollocks.

The Rookie

Volume saves....always worth seeing if the Carrera one will fit as Halfords do them for £7.99......

cooldad

CRC are selling ones that fit my Kona for £4.99. I've stocked up on a couple.

supersonic

Most are not CNCd, they are forged ie smacked with a big press.