Straighten bent gear hanger

flycop2000
flycop2000 Posts: 55
edited June 2013 in Workshop
Hi,

I'm very new to road cycling and just had a minor crash, couldn't get my right foot out the clip quick enough :cry: A slow motion fall :lol:

The gears would not change smoothly after this and upon inspection I noticed the gear hanger had a small twist in it.

To straighten it I heated the hanger and placed into steel jawed vice. It looks almost perfect but I'm concerned that heating the aluminium hanger may have weakened it structurally?

any engineers out there who would know?

Comments

  • nicklouse
    nicklouse Posts: 50,675
    there was no need to heat it.

    if it works it works.

    get a new ordered and fit it when it arrives and keep the old one as an emergency spare.
    "Do not follow where the path may lead, Go instead where there is no path, and Leave a Trail."
    Parktools :?:SheldonBrown
  • flycop2000
    flycop2000 Posts: 55
    I tried to straighten it without heat but I could not get straight enough. Just contacted Merlin cycles and they do not have the hanger in stock, it will take around two weeks to get a replacement.
  • dee4life2005
    dee4life2005 Posts: 773
    Once bent, trying to bend a gear hanger straight can lead to a stress/weak spot (especially as it's aluminium) and more prone to failure - this can result in your derailleur being forced in to your spokes etc. I don't know how likely this is to happen though (only heard the scare stories), and I've had success straightening (not perfectly mind) a bent hanger and had no problems other than slightly iffy shifting.

    If you find somewhere that has them in stock, as you seem to have, I think it's always worth buying a couple as frame designs tend to change year on year and the hangers change with them. Meaning in a year or two it could be difficult to get hold of a replacement.

    To this end, I've found this site to cover most : http://soshanger.com/en_GB
    http://app.strava.com/athletes/307297
  • Monty Dog
    Monty Dog Posts: 20,614
    Bending the hanger may have weakened it, so find and fit a replacement ASAP if you don't fancy wrapping your rear mech around the cassette and probably taking out all the spokes on one side of your rear wheel. For the full-whammy, I've seen this snap the frame drop-out off too.
    Make mine an Italian, with Campagnolo on the side..
  • flycop2000
    flycop2000 Posts: 55
    Merlin cycles don't have any in stock, It seems strange as this is where I bought the bike from just a month ago, they don't even have them on their web mail order site. They are having to order them from Taiwan where they get their frames from. I have searched all the major mail order outlets but could not find anything similar :cry:

    Thanks to everybody for the advice, :D

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