John Young

Hello, I am new here and just wanted to ask a couple of questions

I have been cycling for a LONG time but only recently got back into road biking after a long break (been mountain biking instead)

I have bought a new bike off ebay and it seems pretty good (Carrera Virtuosa) I need a new chain and maybe a new Derailleur. The chain I was looking at was either a KMC Z51 or the KMC X-82 I have choosen the KMC as I have read good things about them but which is better between those two (X or Z) ?

My second question is about the derailleur, My derailleur hanger was bent. I have straightened it as best I can and its not bad now but if I bought a new derailleur would it come with a new hanger. I priced a hanger on its own at Halfords and it was like £20 £20 for a tiny little bracket.... anyway I thought I might aswell replace the whole derailleur as it looks a little tired and bashed. I also saw some derailleur which said 'direct fit' I assume that if I had a hanger before I would need one again and the direct fit model would not work on my bike. ?

Sorry for all the questions, any help appreciated

zukahn1 

The x series chains are for 8,9 speed and the Z's are for 5 through 8 and the quality about the same. I would go with what is on sale cheapest I can not tell the difference between a KMC X-82 and KMC Z51-7 ounce out of the box.

John Young

Thank you for the info, the price was very close so I went for the X-82 which was £7.99

So do you know about the derailleur gears - Do I need a new hanger or does the derailleur come with one when I buy it ? I did see one that said 'direct fit' but I assume that would fit to a different style frame.

Bikes used to be so much simpler.....

fietsbob

go to a bike shop, they have an alignment bending tool.
To click-shift the hanger has to be square to the axis, parallel to the center line.

if the derailleur has a steel claw that fits over the axle bolt, then that is one type

replaceable derailleur hangers that are part of the frame are many ..
over 3 hundred versions.

https://www.derailleurhanger.com/index.htm

John Young

Thank you, yeah they were going to charge just about as much to bend it back as to buy a new one. I got home and straightened it myself and it does work now (gears change etc) but of course it might be still a bit bent as the derailleur can be noisy. I have bought a new chain as that was worn and I wanted to buy a new rear derailleur but I was not sure if I would have to buy the hanger separate

Do you get a hanger when you buy a new derailleur ?

gyozadude

Most higher end derailleurs do NOT come with a hanger. They are designed to bolt into a standard hole mount with a small triangular tab that sticks out radially (i.e. the "B" screw stop).

Cheaper rear derailleurs, like the Shimano TX-31/35 series come in two models, one with standard mounting bolt or with included bracket to attach to low-end bikes that do NOT have a rear derailleur hanger as part of the frame.

cyccommute 

Derailer hangers are sold separately because you don't often bend one. They can be straightened...sort of...with a Park DAG-2 derailer hanger alignment gauge. If the derailer hanger is replaceable, you may not be able to align it because the attachment point may be too weak. It is supposed to be weak so as to protect the derailer and frame in the event of a crash. The tool is not cheap and probably isn't something you need for a home shop. Go to a bike shop, or buy the replacement hanger. The cost is likely to be about the same.

John Young

Thank you both...

Above is a photo were my hanger is, it curls around behind the frame there and is held on with those two small silver bolts (and the tension of the wheel nut)

So looking at the photo above I take it I would have to use a hanger or would there be another way to fit a new derailleur ?

Just thinking I have seen photo of hangers on this side of the wheel nut instead of the other like mine. Mine has a special cutout section on the other side of the frame (behind wheel nut) that only takes a certain exact hanger. Would a different type of hanger fit on this side of the wheel nut so I can use different shapes and find one more easily ?

gyozadude

Can't tell from the pic alone if the hanger is bent beyond salvage. You can judge if it's vertical and in the plane of the main triangle. You probably don't want to go about trying to bend it back anymore than your already have until you are positive there is a replacement part for it, since bending again could risk breakage, but your hanger is particular to your frame. You won't find one that comes with any particular RD. You should be able to buy any simple replacement. It looks like an inexpensive RD on there now. And as long as you get something that supports the same rear cog range and front chain ring variance, you're probably okay with any inexpensive RD or the same part even. What's wrong with the RD now?

John Young

Yeah you are probably right, I did bend this one back a bit and so far it actually seems OK so I will leave it for now. But the next step will be a new hanger

Yeah I did bend it when I first got the bike and it works better now but as I said to Tom above I wont mess with it again, I will just buy a new one next time

The RD is not to bad to be honest and when I was out on a ride today I actually thought I was wasting money buying a new one. I was going to get a new one as the chain can sometimes make a few clunks when spinning. It may just be the chain which I have just bought a new one so I will see what happens.


But the fact looks like when or if I decide to buy a new RD I will have to buy a hanger first.....