Small win after 2 years of struggling with my rear derailleur alignment

I finally got my shifting dialed in after messing with it off and on since I built this old Fuji touring bike back in 2021. The key was realizing the hanger was bent about 3 degrees from a previous crash I didn't even notice. Picked up a cheap alignment tool for $25 on Saturday, bent it back straight, and now it shifts through all 9 gears without any hesitation for the first time ever. Has anyone else dealt with a bent hanger they ignored for way too long?

2 comments

2 Comments

rowanbennett17d ago

Yeah @xena_jackson called it, that hanger tool saves so much headache.

xena_jackson17d ago

Oh man, I did the exact same thing on my old Trek! Had this annoying skip in the middle of the cassette for like a year and a half. Kept adjusting the cable tension and limit screws over and over but it never fully fixed it. Finally broke down and bought the Park Tool alignment gauge and found the hanger was bent almost 5 degrees from some weird crash I barely remembered. Bent it back with the tool and it shifted like butter immediately. Felt so dumb for not checking that sooner, but hey, at least we got there eventually.