How To Make A Derailleur Hanger Alignment Gauge Tool

[@RJTheBikeGuy]

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[@juanvicuna739]

Great thanks 🙌

[@elwoodireland3741]

So great RJ! Local recycler charged me $0.65 for sweet square aluminum post from a 10'x10' tent. Bolt Depot online had variety of correct bolts and drill bit you specified. local metal artist cut the square tubing, drill presseded the holes, and even sanded down the edges for my largest spend - $10. Built two tools, one for me and one to give to my local bike tool co-op; Community Cycles. All is good in the bike world.

[@Goriaas]

You are truly a worthy successor to Sheldon Brown(RIP). Learned tons from your videos

[@nicholasavery5979]

This is beautiful. Yes.

[@danman2070]

Mate, this is exactly what I was looking for. I looked at buying one but the price is a little more than I was willing to pay. I also just happened to have some square bar here that I almost threw out. Brilliant idea so thanks very much for putting this up.

[@disturbed-ov9ig]

I tried this and it worked perfectly. I couldn’t find a bolt with that thread so I used an old axle. Thanks for the idea appreciated.

[@porterpearson]

I too couldn’t find the right screw in my workshop so I used a derailleur screw. Wish I’d read your comment first, now I have to go back and remake it with an axle. 😅

[@walterdockins8475]

Ok, ex bike shop mechanic from the 80's-90's here and I just put on a new Ultegra 10-speed R Derailleur, new Ultegra chain, cleaned the cassette cogs, cleaned the Ultegra shifters, and rerouted the cables. After adjustment the bike shifts like crap and is really sensitive and touchy. The hanger alignment looks a little off and I was just about to buy a tool and ran across this video. I'll have to make one of these. Great info!

[@BrownianMotionPicture]

How did you get on?

[@willparsons32]

Holy crabapples!! You just saved me $120.00 worth of work from the local bike shop... A simple home made alignment tool like that one you just built is a definite must have! Something all of us backyard bike mechanics need that won't clean out my bank account to build. 10👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻....

[@fatimaidouchrih9806]

The best wonderfull tool i haven t seen ever in youtube thanks a million for your video. From morocco

[@xavierderck3910]

RJ is a real hero. Because of him didnt go to the bike shop anymore for the last few years, and built 4 randonneurs in the meantime. Gr of the west of Ireland

[@TheGNexus]

Just wanted to leave you a note thanking you for the alignment tool specs...I thought my derailleur was just a wee bit out of alignment...I built a tool following your specs just for fun (identical, in fact) and learned that my derailleur hangar was, evidently, pointing somewhere near the landing site of one of the Apollo missions. It's fixed, and the shifting is now seamless. Many thanks!

[@SNGeneral]

My dude, I really appreciate your videos! Making maintaining my bike easy and affordable! I really dislike how cycling has become so expensive for quality maintenance. I always rather do my own repairs/maintenance and these videos are a huge help to do the more technician skilled repairs.

[@moitynz]

Love your work, these tools that you don't need often and can make yourself are awesome

[@asbjrniden3621]

When something weird is up with my bike you always have a solution. Bike shop here in Norway wanted 160 dollars for this tool and 10 dollars for a new hanger they had to order in. Being cheap and impatient I will go for this solution, thank you :)

[@RJTheBikeGuy]

If it's a replaceable hanger, you might just want to replace it.

[@asbjrniden3621]

@@RJTheBikeGuy I did order one after looking through the ridiculous amount of versions of hangers... Kind of want to try the DIY route too though since it might also be a good way to just check alignment if I am not sure of some old bike that shows up even though I am not allowed to buy more 😊

[@qwertyazerty2137]

Hey RJ. Thanks on this one. I just made one using a 25 mm sqaure tube. I could not get m10x1 bolt so took an old rear hub axle, cut it a milimeter above the end of the thread on the inside where the locknut could stop. Used two cones and locknuts on both ends and it works perfectly. The most important thing is this drill the holes perpendiculary. They cannot be skewed. Otherwise this tool is pointless because it won't be on the same parallel plain as the hanger when screwed in. However I found dificcult to allign my hanger. I bend it really firmly, it flexes but returns back to the original shape.

[@ngiamtongkheng]

RJ’s videos on solving bicycle issues are among the best. His solutions, easy to understand and practical, have helped solved a number of my bike issues. Making an improvised derailleur hanger alignment tool is one. As I do not have the necessary tools to drill holes on metal post, I used ready cut PVC pipe following RJ’s idea. Though it’s a little cumbersome to use the improvised alignment tool I made, the hanger has been aligned anyway and gear transmission has become smooth. Thank you RJ for your simple but great idea. 👍👍👍

[@paulmarkowski9794]

Found your video when I was looking for the thread size of hanger as I was just going to bend it but didn't want to stress the threads. But you made the tool manufacture so simple- why not be more accurate? The money I saved on the tool I used to buy a small bench drill press- something I've needed for years. So now I have a repaired bicycle, home-maid tool, and can actually drill straight holes! Thank you RJ!

[@carllee7809]

RJ’s videos on bicycle maintenance and repair are among the best. His solutions, easy to understand and practical, have helped solve a number of my bike issues. This video on how to make a derailleur hanger alignment gauge tool is another great help. It solved my bike derailleur hanger issue with minimal cost. Thank you RJ.

[@porterpearson]

Just made my own version from materials laying around my workshop. Couldn’t find a 50mm bolt so I used an old derailleur screw. It meant I couldn’t move the arm all the way to the 12 o’clock position as the QR screw was in the way due to the shorter length of the screw, but I could get it as far as 10 o’clock which was sufficient to measure the vertical alignment. My gears are now shifting perfectly after an accident which bent the hanger quite seriously. Thanks for the video, it was exactly what I was searching for ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[@MirkoMacas]

Great videos, right to the point, I learnd so mutch watching them. Thank you. Greetings, Mirko

[@jcvdphoenix1987]

To be honest it's a simple explanation , easy to make it and it do it's work ! Chapeau 🎩😉🤙💯💫

[@jimwg2112]

Thanks!!! easy instructions. Works great !!! Now I never have to wonder if my hanger is bent !!!

[@glenmiller1437]

Great video, thanks. I made the tool this afternoon, straightened the hanger and fixed my shifting problem. Note: I used it on a replaceable aluminum hanger, not a steel frame bike with an integrated hanger. I assume there a limited number of times you can do this without damaging the hanger, but I didn't have much to loose since I'd need a new hanger anyhow. It was only out a couple millimeters.

[@danalvarez146]

That's a great hack RJ appreciate all your videos, I bought a used 2009 Gary Fisher and used a lot of your videos to tune her up, she rides a lot smoother than when I bought her thanks.

[@joshwokojance3790]

I recently wrecked my bike and bent my derailleur hanger. The price of the tool is ridiculous. I didn’t want to pay a mechanic to bend this, or have them try to make me buy a replacement hanger. This saved me! Thank you so much! Bike is shifting like new again!

[@RJTheBikeGuy]

If the hanger is replaceable, I would just replace it.

[@RogerioCosta1.0]

So far, the best bike maintenance channel. Best regards!

[@johnhanley9946]

I did this tonight with a rear wheel quick release axle and hardware and a piece of square steel tube from an old mailbox. It works and it's easy!

[@rickmiller48]

This is so awesome I'm probably going to make a couple so I can give one to a friend. Anyone with a bike that is picky about their shifting should have something like this. This is perfect for someone who would have to do this occasionally but I can still see how the sliding bar on the Park Tool version would be better for an actual bike mechanic that would do this all the time.

[@vicroberts3839]

Thanks for that! It's just what I need. I'll make one tomorrow! Also. many thanks for all the knowledge you've passed on to me over the years, it's been invaluable. Vic in the South of England.

[@oldmansadventures4627]

Thanks RJ you just saved me $55. I was just about to order one when I decided to check youtube to see how they work. I watched your video on how to use the tool and when you mentioned you were going to do a DIY tool video I searched it up very simple and straight forward.

[@walterdalpiaz4349]

you demonstrate an uncanny imagination and creativity ( translation: awesome dude)

[@stevemcnutt3093]

Thank you so much! You made this a very simple project that worked perfectly, and saved me a few days ride time and a few bucks to boot.

[@futilesteps]

Man Derailleur hanger is so huge problem and your vids are exactly what I looked for. Thank you so much for this!

[@Patrick94GSR]

Genius! I'll be making this for my upcoming road bike teardown and rebuild this winter. One thing I might do differently is add nylon washers between the metal washers and the steel tube on each side. That should make it be able to turn a little easier.

[@HenningJohansen]

Might the nylon washers not compress when making adjustments to the hanger?

[@RJTheBikeGuy]

Yes, I thought about nylon washers, but they will compress.

[@Patrick94GSR]

Ah yes you're right. I was thinking about the axial load along the bolt itself and not about the lateral load while adjusting the hanger. Guess I won't use nylon washers. Thanks for the tip!

[@Anybloke]

Thank you so much RJ. I made one today and saved myself over £80 UK on buying a Park Tools one. At the moment, I'm using an old 10mm QR wheel axle (with cones, spacers and stuff) but I'll get a proper bolt with nuts and washers.

[@ionutgur]

Thanks!

[@RJTheBikeGuy]

Thank you very much!

[@cupiddstunt]

Nice simple alternatives thanks for those, I will be using the spare wheel idea later today and looking at making the tool later. Some vids like this one deserve the option of more than one thumbs up.

[@numarc1010]

My weekend project. I think this will allow me to love my bike again. So many problems coming from out of alignment hangars that I have just now today learned about. I crashed this bike 16 years ago and never can I find perfection from the rear mech. Thanks, RJ I found this video super helpful, especially to see how the tool was used!

[@markburns4777]

Simple yet effective. RJ the Bike Guy does it again.

[@royjones4698]

I suspected my hanger was out of alignment (though I don't remember it being knocked from new) so I made a tool similar to this. it was out by a mile but the tool did the trick. Absolutely Brilliant! Thanks.

[@salmonjmar]

Many thanks from Mexico. This will keep me riding . bike mechanics here like to take jobs and keep your bike for days.

[@shadow7423]

I have all the tools to make one this morning. I have ordered the Park Tool DAG-2.2. But Wiggle is very slow in shipping even though it said "express shipping". So thank you for this video as this will get me back on the road. My gear shifting is not too bad, but it could be better. This homemade tool will 1000% help me this morning.

[@jamestajiri58]

I made it. It was a little lose but I pulled it to the same tension when measuring. But for fixing a commuter bike it worked great! Thanks!!!

[@fabioleal4665]

Just awesome! Willl make one and try to finally fix my Deore deraileur to work decently. It really suck. Brand new on a brad new bike but never worked properly. The 6-year Acera on my Rockhopper in the other hand, is still just perfect, even after lots of sand, mud, rocks and dust. And the bike never went to a shop for any maintenance.

[@ManuelGonzalez-zj2cn]

Great video man! A must to have tool for any mountain biker

[@Albanez39]

It was really hard to find someone that sold metal rods, squares, L shaped, plates in my country, we don't have Home Depot, and the only big store similar to it does not sell such materials. Anyway, I found an old man that sold all kinds of shapes of metal in his building material store. The square rod was 100 Lek/metre. ($1/metre) :P

[@petervick4775]

Necessity is the mother of invention, as they say. So simple, and SO much cheaper than buying the ready made tool. Well done!

[@psychrave]

Thank you so much for this video. Pretty much followed it exactly. Instead of the solid tube steel I found some "1 in. x 36 in. Zinc-Plated Punched Square Tube" at Home Depot. It comes with holes in it already and I only needed to increase the diameter of the holes a little. I used one of the levels at the store to check the tube for straightness. I recommend doing this while you're at the store. Thanks again.

[@Toto-is8ci]

And on and on....you still keep them coming RJ. I really like using a measuring rule instead of installing a slide. Keeps the device simple and easier to grip and to use it as a lever to actually adjust the hanger.

[@lucidbarrier]

awesome video, I made 2 of them and painted them cast iron grey. The hardest part was putting the rear derailleur back on. I couldn't get it to thread into the hanger. I ended up having to back out the stop screw all way and then thread it in. after I tightened it, I turned the stop screw until half of the threads were in. It already shifts better and I haven't reindexed it.

[@iancopp7646]

Just great RJ! The ridiculous asking price this simple tool from parktools(& others)was keeping me off the bike,and very frustrated.... U R a godsend !!

[@mixalispetroto]

Super easy! Thanks! Those park tool ones are a couple hundred bucks here in Canada....you saved me a ton of money! Now I can spend it on new Campy ergo shifters!!!😅

[@SianaGearz]

Excellent. As no welding is involved, i can build it easily enough!

[@teej008]

It works great. I'm getting my 80s Dawes Galaxy ready for a summer of touring. It's running true and I saved myself £60. Thanks

[@neoamour1]

Great job R.J. I just got a new ebike Alite 500 from Luna Cycles, and now I'll have an inexpensive way, to keep my derailleur aligned. Thank you!

[@kirstenspencer3630]

Love it, have all the materials in our shop. As luck would have it I was given a bike with a bent hanger a rew days ago....thanks

[@IanHski]

A simple solution to a simple problem. It's accurate enough for me to see what my problem was, it's fixed now. I would have either bought an expensive tool or put it into a shop, this was way more satisfying. Thanks. And I have a tool I am happy to lend out too.

[@stevengines9762]

Thanks Rj, great as always. I bought the real tool a while back based on your glowing reviews and found only one bike in my fleet of family bikes was close to true. I would've totally tried tool make one like this. clever sir!

[@Busabuck100]

Great, useful, video.

[@tonyconnors1342]

Hello RJ i have been able to make most of the tools you have made thank you for this one i have saved a bunch of money love your videos.

[@fahrrad-noerdlingen]

Hey Bike Guy this is a great tool to make for exact checking and bending the hangers. Slower in use the the Park tool but easy to make and for the one or two times in the year i need it - just great. I will make on on the weekend and after a little Overengineering i'll be happy with it. Thank you for the inspiration, for saving money and most of all for giving me a reason to start the old welding machine again to fabricate a tool.

[@JohnHymmen]

I was just considering making a tool like this. Great timing. I think it is advantageous to have a bit of play in the hole so that if the axis is not perpendicular to the face plane, it doesn't matter. Thanks

[@hartleymartin]

Thanks for making this video. I have rear derailleur alignment issues, and I am pretty sure it is a bent hanger. I'll try this out some time in the next week.

[@cschuh4695]

Well, I would've never thunk about that... I'm gonna make one and check both my hangers... I don't have any shifting problems, but it's just nice to know... Park Tool: Love you guys, but RJ's got ya beat hands down on this one...

[@wheelman2012]

DERAILLEUR HANGER ALIGNMENT GAUGE TOOL NICE THANKS I HAVE A CAMPY TOOL CABINET BUT I WAS ENTERTAINED

[@bigfootandbananaman4746]

Thank you for this. I needed one a few days ago for my friends bike but I just took off the hanger and put it in a vise and hit it straight with a rubber mallet. I got lucky because now his bike shifts very smoothly and all I did was eyeball the straightness

[@RJTheBikeGuy]

This tool is for frame with built in hangers. Replaceable hangers, you can replace them or try to straighten them off the bike. I generally replace them.

[@robofatcat]

I've always eye balled it to get the hanger straight but is perfect. Thanks RJ

[@headasunder]

instead of a ruler I use a set square on my home made device it saves you having to read the measurements, always enjoy your videos RJ so keep them coming

[@mrnitin2749]

I made it using steel tube...working perfectly for my bicycles....thanks a lot.😊👍

[@bobby3704]

Dude .. thanks ! earlier i wrote a comment from your video on how to strainghten a hanger you made and ask you to come over and bring your park tool .. Go ahead and cancel out this video was L perfectO ! ! ! ... , haha !

[@Amagaeru81]

Im totally making this tommorow.Thank you dude.

[@dorianspence1335]

thanks RJ, nice and simple, please make more tools

[@muhammadizatisnin8899]

Ohh wow that's very useful tip & hack. Thanks RJ

[@Rob-ln7dd]

Fab fab fab...no nonsense just great stuff, making one tomorrow....

[@marksmith4298]

Thank you for the great video! My son and I are headed to Lowes to get our supplies.

[@nassirbadrudin9741]

Thank you for a great idea! Simple and effective. Not to nit pick but I think you meant 8cm or 9cm not mm. I was confused at first wondering why you would adjust something that was only out by 1mm. Cheers.

[@shaungranger2166]

made mine today exactly like that, works like magic thank you for your time to make this awesome video

[@mikei611]

Just made one and it’s spectacular! I used a 3/8th drill bit and it was perfect. Thanks for the idea

[@sitflyer2661]

Thanks Man, you just saved me 60-80$. Love your channel!

[@qbnwndr]

Very very clever my man. Thank you.

[@Ad-wv8zt]

Love all your vids. I made one from this vid, and i drilled 2 holes, 1 for 26" rim and 1 for 28" rim. Through these holes I have put an aluminum pin and with a lock clamp bolt I fix the pin to the desired depth.

[@RJTheBikeGuy]

Except the hanger is not in the center of the wheel. That is why it slides on the Park Tool gauge.

[@Ad-wv8zt]

@@RJTheBikeGuy i know,i did it just for my own wheels,

[@Ad-wv8zt]

@@RJTheBikeGuy my latest change, is that I have used the antenna of my radio instead of pen, so that it is extendable. Like this one www.elektronica-shop.nl/contents/media/l_opsteek-telescoop-radio-antenne-fm-dabplus.jpg. At the end of antenna a hole drilled and with a small pin the antenna is held when you start measuring. You still have to hold backside, but the antenna that is extendable works perfectly, to indicate depth. Works like a telescope

[@adrianelturco5311]

Muy ingeniosos todos tus inventos!!! Muy instructivos y educativos!!!Saludos desde Argentina.

[@justinsefton4133]

Thank you, thank you, thank you for this video! I made one based off of this, and have used it on 3 bikes so far, fixing bad shifting issues on all of them.

[@billlyall3838]

Excellent idea R. J. From a U. k. Fan. Keep them coming.

[@robt6695]

You are the man RJ. I'm making one today. Cheers man.

[@24AnVRodri]

AWESOME!! Park Tools must hate you!! 🤣😂🤣 I shall try building this tonight. Just bought a smaller frame for daughter and will be switching out all the components. I’m sure this will come very handy during this transition

[@RJTheBikeGuy]

I am not sure they know I exist. LOL

[@tedmichel8999]

Brilliant, well done and thanks for this nice tool to make...was just about to buy one...but made my own...works perfectly...

[@henryoh2546]

Thanks for giving me great inspiration!! I just needed to adjust my hanger.

[@Leo-gt1bx]

That's what I need. I have been thinking about making one of these.

[@yv5grb]

Thanks "Master"... Always learning from your vídeos.

[@stevemalone4972]

Excellent video. I can't wait to make my own alignment tool.

[@allyourcode]

Thanks, RJ. I was thinking of making one of these this morning. This really helped me figure it out and have confidence about what to buy at the hardware store. Let me share some of my experience: 1. M10 1 mm pitch it hard to come by 'round these parts; they had 1.5 mm course pitch, but not 1 mm. I used 5/16 bolt instead. This is small enough to clear the threads in the hanger. I secured the bolt using a nut (on the inboard side). Unfortunately, the nut interferes with the cassette, so I temporarily removed the cassette while doing this repair (this is esp annoying if you don't already have the special tools to remove your cassette, but I do have those tools, so it was just a little extra work for me). This might be safer than threading into the hanger, because it puts minimal pressure on the threads, and spreads the load along the side faces of the hanger (just make sure you use some large washers). 2. If you are a super cheap-o like me, you can get away with using a wooden board (I had one lying around) instead of a steel bar. It doesn't work as well, and won't last (the wood gets crushed a bit by the metal hardware when you use the tool), but hey, this is an infrequent repair. 3. You may have mentioned it already, but let me reemphasize (because I had to make a second trip to the hardware store): Get enough spacers so that the handle clears the skewer (nut). You can use larger nuts as big spacers (e.g. I used 3/8 nuts which barely clear the threads on 5/18 bolt) instead of using many thin washers. Now that I'm looking very carefully at how parallel my rear derailleur cage is vs. the cogs, I'm noticing that even after un-bending the hanger, I'm still not parallel. I guess this means the rear derailleur itself is also bent? I'm going to look into unbending my derailleur too. Another option is to add a compensating bend to the hanger, but that is too much of a bodge for my taste. Maybe if I had some spare hangers lying around, I wouldn't mind. I'm kind of thinking that a symmetric tool (i.e. with handles in both directions) might be better, because you don't have to swing it around to compare opposite sides. Not sure if this is a good idea though, because you are really relying on the handle being very straight (swinging around avoids that problem), and if you want to avoid relying on the wheel being very true, you are still swinging the wheel around anyway. Anyway, you can always use a symmetric tool to do the asymmetric "swing" style measurement to double check. It just makes comparing a bit easier.

[@RJTheBikeGuy]

You can't easily unbend a derailleur.

[@frankmollegaard1989]

Thanks for posting this video. My derailleur and hanger are one unit and attaches to the bike via the hub nut. Can't separate them without taking the derailleur apart. I think they're referred to as a non integrated derailleur. It's almost like it can't be aligned with any kind of tool. I wonder if there's a way to align this type of derailleur.

[@postvoorjohn69]

I was about to buy that kind of tool until i saw your video! You Just saved me 40 euro's! Keep up the good work!

[@topetopsrandomvlog1968]

very nice, kind of useful tool.i will mke my own like this. thanks for this!

[@MasterK9Trainer]

Great video and what a great project. I just learned about this problem and about this tool. I could get one, but I'd rather build 2 or 3 of something for less than the price of one item. It's always nice to have an extra, a backup or to make one that is a different size, length, weight, color or of different materials or has more or fewer features. Now if I find a bike that shifts poorly, I'll know to check for a misaligned hanger and I can even fix it myself.

[@jtb52]

Great video, I like it. Just made your headset removal tool for a khs 1996 Montana descente renovation.

[@stephensano9156]

Brilliant tool making! Thank you !

[@franklinarizagabicimaniabi2764]

Great work, easy and professional

[@Shimshams]

Great advice, nice and simple 👍 think you are saying mm when you are measuring in cm

[@argenisalezones1327]

Excelente herramienta. Great tool...