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Flashback to 2009 when my derailleur hanger snapped on a gravel road outside Nashville

Was doing a 40 mile ride and the whole drivetrain just locked up going up a hill. Had to walk 3 miles to the nearest gas station and borrow a pair of pliers to jury-rig it enough to get home. Anyone else had to improvise a fix in the middle of nowhere?
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3 Comments
grantw32
grantw322d ago
Honestly, did you try shifting without the derailleur or just lock the chain to a single gear? I had a similar situation once and ended up using a shoelace to hold the derailleur in place so I could at least pedal flat ground to the next town. It was janky as hell but it got me home way faster than walking 3 miles in bike shoes.
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robert_bell
Tbh, did you try just jamming a smaller stick or maybe a folded-up energy bar wrapper between the derailleur and the frame to tension the chain? I had a similar issue once and used a thick zip tie around the derailleur cage to keep it from flopping into the spokes. It wasn't pretty but it held for like 10 miles until I found a shop.
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josepha32
josepha321d ago
Had a buddy who zip-tied a stick to his frame once. Got him 20 miles easy.
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