Over time I have been experiencing more and more trouble with my rear derailleur.

Let me try to explain what is happening; the moment I stop paddling and especially when I paddle a little backwards, the chain is getting stuck, due to it not running through the rear derailleur. So the top part of the chain is hanging low until I paddle forward again.

When I look straight down at the derailleur from above I can see that it is pointing inward towards the rear wheel, but as far as I can tell the cage is straight.

Note: My bike is a Schwinn Traveler from 1987 with SunTour Delta 5000 derailleur. I commute to work about twice a week except when the temperature dips below the mid twenties or/and when there is too much snow or ice.

Any advice will be greatly appreciated!

Try peddling,, not paddling, see if that works more better...

Sounds like your cable might have stretched some and the derailleur is in between two gears. Shift to the smallest gear in the back and check the cable tension. If it is a little slack, then unscrew the barrel adjuster on the derailleur until the cable is tight.

LOL Why isn't spell check smart enough to know that paddles are not used on bikes?

I have been suspicious that the dropout is bent. How can I check the alignment and what is the easiest way to correct the dropout? My preference is to fix it myself.

In order to check and correct the rear hanger alignment, you need one of these:



They are expensive and my advise would be to have your local bike shop check it, and correct it for you. It would be cheaper that way.

-Shin

As a professional editor, my recommendation would be to try pedaling.

When I get fired that's the ONE tool going with me.
Top

It does sound like a bent derailleur-hanger is at least one major factor here. That tool - Park Tools DAG-2 - goes for around $60. A bike-shop would charge you between $7 and $15 to straighten it for you. Depending on where you live.

It's a good tool. I have one and use it frequently to fix bent hangers on flip bikes.

-Shin

I am thinking this could easily be a freewheel problem. I don't see why a bent hanger would cause an issue going from pedaling to coasting. OP: have you checked if the freewheel works OK with the rear wheel off the bike?

I have not. After I take the wheel off the bike, what should I check to make sure the freewheel works correctly? One comment I would like to add is that the problem does not occur consistently (sorry, I should have mentioned this before.)

I had the exact same problem with an older Giant I had. Problem was just a sticky freewheel. I disassembled the freewheel to grease it, but being the first freewheel I'd ever taken apart I was not expecting a million bearings to go rolling everywhere. Ended up sticking a different freewheel and chain on it which solved the problem perfectly.

+1 sounds like a sticking freewheel or freehub.

It turned out to be a sticky freewheel indeed. I flushed it with WD-40, then lubed it. I took the opportunity to repack the bearings as well and now everything runs smooth again. I still have to deal with the derailleur alignment issue, but for now at least I can use my bike. Thank you all for your help and suggestions

Aw, Top, when you retire, they'll give you a gold-plated one!

Neal

that Park unit is a great tool (I got mine used at a swap), but before I had one and knew better I used a tap (the proper 10M x 1mm) and a tap handle with sliding rod arm to bend a DO back...had to use eyeball and a straightedge to align. It's a bit risky as the tap is brittle steel, but mine didn't break and I still have and use it.