Nearly killed by a Giant.

[Getz_in]

Hi,
A couple of days ago, I had the rear derailleur on my Giant Upland let go when I was taking off from the lights. It went into the spokes and nearly chucked me under a truck. Oops.
It seems the bracket that held the Shimano Altus derailleur sheared off. (Please excuse the nastiness, I am cleaning it while the bike is down for repairs..)



Can I get this bracket (hopefully stronger) as a separate part?

If I have to buy a whole new derailleur, what is compatible with the frame and cassette?

Thank you!

[outnabike]

Hi Getz_in and welcome.
Don't know where you are, but that shouldn't be hard to replace. Always fall off on the left hand side....

[Duck!]

Images no worky, but that sounds like the derailleur hanger, an intentionally sacrificial component. Although ther're intended to bend or break more easily than anything else in the event of a crash, they do sometimes just let go from fatigue. Replacements are readily available; any Giant dealer should have them, but aftermarket ones from Wheels Manufacturing & others also exist.

[eeksll]

Hi,
A couple of days ago, I had the rear derailleur on my Giant Upland let go when I was taking off from the lights. It went into the spokes and nearly chucked me under a truck. Oops.
It seems the bracket that held the Shimano Altus derailleur sheared off. (Please excuse the nastiness, I am cleaning it while the bike is down for repairs..)



Can I get this bracket (hopefully stronger) as a separate part?

If I have to buy a whole new derailleur, what is compatible with the frame and cassette?

Thank you!

[Xplora]

The RD Hanger will snap off like no one's business if things go wrong. Chain drops on the inside and you stomp the pedal? Bam. Chain is WAY stronger than the hanger.

Very frustrating, but given that cleaning job, I wonder if the adjustment was out? I've had the same thing happen to me on my Madone. Very weird.

[Drizt]

That cassette is disgustingly filthy. Surprised the bike kept the chain turning over )

[bychosis]

First: The separate part is a derailleur hanger, should be fairly easy to get a replacement, probably from the local bike shop that sells giant.

Second: The derailleur should be wily replaceable IF it is broken. The hanger is designed to break to protect the frame and the derailleur a bit as well. To match your current shifters most shimano up to 9spd dérailleurs should fit straight on, just make sure you get the right length cage to suit the number of gears you have.

Third: clean your chain and cassette the get some rock n roll lube to help prevent that gunk building up, don't use oil! Rock n roll is a simple drizzle on, wipe off. The solvents in it allow the lubricant to flow into where it's needed and you wipe off the crud. The lubricants are wax based so they don't pick up as much crud while riding. It is a one minute application.

[outnabike]

Or you can just take the chain off and get the missus to tow you home.

[PatNZ]

Your drive train looks quite worn to me. The jockey wheel looks worn and the cassette looks like its starting to get a bit of a shark fin style pattern. Have you put a chain checker on your bike recently?

maybe you need a chain, cassette and maybe even chain rings as well as the derailer. See how things are I guess. no harm taking alook at the other componts while fixing it.

giants are good bikes. my experiences have been good. any thing on a bike can break or go out of adjustment. if you don't want a problem with a derailer again single speed bikes can be nice too.

[danny the boy]

That cassette is disgustingly filthy. Surprised the bike kept the chain turning over )

Yep, thread title is misleading. Should be updated to "Nearly committed suicide by my own lack of maintenance".