Key Bike Makers Discuss Shimano's New Direct-Mount Rear Derailleur Option - Video
Shimano chose a soft-launch to introduce DRD, its 'Direct Mount Rear Derailleur' option this year, correctly anticipating that there would be pushback from many who feel overwhelmed by the recent rainstorm of new 'industry standards.' For those not up to speed, Direct Mount is a sturdier derailleur hanger that improves shifting by eliminating flex at the hanger interface.
![Direct Mount Rear Derailleur]()
Direct mount is single arm between the frame and derailleur body that eliminates both the conventional, replaceable hanger element as well as the B-link that Shimano developed to move its Shadow rear derailleurs behind and to the rear of where a conventional changer mounts. The concept has been in the works for a long time, and before anyone starts crying like a baby about a 'new standard,' Direct Mount hangers are not Shimano products - they are an option that is designed by bike makers who want a better, stiffer derailleur mount that better integrates Shimano rear changers with their frame designs. Santa Cruz, Pivot, GT, Ibis, Yeti and Rocky Mountain are among the early adopters, so there is definitely some credibility in the concept.
To facilitate a better understanding of Direct Mount and its benefits, both as an enhancement to shifting, and as a better solution to existing and future frame designs, Shimano produced the following video:
Bike-makers Weigh in on Direct Mount Rear Derailleurs
Direct Mount Is Good
Direct Mount is presently Shimano-specific and so far, every bike maker that is on board with Direct Mount will offer a standard hanger as well to fit SRAM or old-style Shimano derailleurs. Shimano will also include a B-link with its Shadow derailleurs so Pinkbike folks can off their old Shimano changers on our Buy/Sell pages to non-Direct-Mount customers. Shimano is happy about DRD because it eliminates two crappy pieces: the flimsy 60-year-old derailleur hanger that we inherited from road bikes, and its own B-link which, Shimano admits, was a stop-gap measure to retrofit its low-profile Shadow derailleur to existing bikes until it had proved the concept. Bike makers are happy about Direct Mount because they won't have to waste more money and time trying to make a replaceable derailleur hanger and a rear dropout fit into the same tiny piece of real estate on the frame. If there is a place on the bike that is crying for a better solution, the pathetic derailleur hanger is it. If Shimano didn't take the initiative to develop a better hanger, someone else would have to make it happen soon.
What will protect my expensive rear derailleur if I crash?
Most rear derailleurs are ripped off of bikes when the hanger bends and allows the cage to ram into the moving spokes. A break-away hanger bolt is a far better solution if you want to protect your changer. Choose the existing alternative - an effeminate wafer of aluminum - and you willingly compromise your shifting performance and risk trashing your rear wheel. Presently, a hard hit to the rear mech usually bends both the hanger and the rear derailleur. That's two parts to straighten that will never be quite right - or two parts to replace IF your LBS has them in stock. For the record: replaceable derailleur hangers were invented during the hardtail era to protect the frame, not the derailleur, at a time when a broken dropout meant the loss of an entire frame. Not all replaceable hangers are designed to protect a derailleur anyway. It is interesting that two DRD early adopters, Santa Cruz and Pivot Cycles, had already devised super-strong hangers intended to survive the death of a derailleur should push come to shove.
Bottom Line:
DRD does not complicate the existing marketplace. At present, every brand uses a different hanger anyway, so in essence, DRD is just a better hanger. I've managed to survive every 'new standard' in the history of the mountain bike and can say with a measure of clarity that DRD is a big step in the right direction. As the sun sets on the conventional dropout and rises on the quick release through-axle, now is the perfect time to consider a better derailleur interface. I'm throwing in with Shimano on DRD. -RC
Pivot Cycles incorporated Direct Mount to its carbon fiber Mach 5.7. The sturdy derailleur hanger integrates well with the frame's carbon construction and its 142/12mm through-axle configuration.
Direct mount is single arm between the frame and derailleur body that eliminates both the conventional, replaceable hanger element as well as the B-link that Shimano developed to move its Shadow rear derailleurs behind and to the rear of where a conventional changer mounts. The concept has been in the works for a long time, and before anyone starts crying like a baby about a 'new standard,' Direct Mount hangers are not Shimano products - they are an option that is designed by bike makers who want a better, stiffer derailleur mount that better integrates Shimano rear changers with their frame designs. Santa Cruz, Pivot, GT, Ibis, Yeti and Rocky Mountain are among the early adopters, so there is definitely some credibility in the concept.
To facilitate a better understanding of Direct Mount and its benefits, both as an enhancement to shifting, and as a better solution to existing and future frame designs, Shimano produced the following video:
Direct Mount Is Good
Direct Mount is presently Shimano-specific and so far, every bike maker that is on board with Direct Mount will offer a standard hanger as well to fit SRAM or old-style Shimano derailleurs. Shimano will also include a B-link with its Shadow derailleurs so Pinkbike folks can off their old Shimano changers on our Buy/Sell pages to non-Direct-Mount customers. Shimano is happy about DRD because it eliminates two crappy pieces: the flimsy 60-year-old derailleur hanger that we inherited from road bikes, and its own B-link which, Shimano admits, was a stop-gap measure to retrofit its low-profile Shadow derailleur to existing bikes until it had proved the concept. Bike makers are happy about Direct Mount because they won't have to waste more money and time trying to make a replaceable derailleur hanger and a rear dropout fit into the same tiny piece of real estate on the frame. If there is a place on the bike that is crying for a better solution, the pathetic derailleur hanger is it. If Shimano didn't take the initiative to develop a better hanger, someone else would have to make it happen soon.
What will protect my expensive rear derailleur if I crash?
Most rear derailleurs are ripped off of bikes when the hanger bends and allows the cage to ram into the moving spokes. A break-away hanger bolt is a far better solution if you want to protect your changer. Choose the existing alternative - an effeminate wafer of aluminum - and you willingly compromise your shifting performance and risk trashing your rear wheel. Presently, a hard hit to the rear mech usually bends both the hanger and the rear derailleur. That's two parts to straighten that will never be quite right - or two parts to replace IF your LBS has them in stock. For the record: replaceable derailleur hangers were invented during the hardtail era to protect the frame, not the derailleur, at a time when a broken dropout meant the loss of an entire frame. Not all replaceable hangers are designed to protect a derailleur anyway. It is interesting that two DRD early adopters, Santa Cruz and Pivot Cycles, had already devised super-strong hangers intended to survive the death of a derailleur should push come to shove.
Bottom Line:
DRD does not complicate the existing marketplace. At present, every brand uses a different hanger anyway, so in essence, DRD is just a better hanger. I've managed to survive every 'new standard' in the history of the mountain bike and can say with a measure of clarity that DRD is a big step in the right direction. As the sun sets on the conventional dropout and rises on the quick release through-axle, now is the perfect time to consider a better derailleur interface. I'm throwing in with Shimano on DRD. -RC
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Member since Mar 23, 2011
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plus the pile of parts i have in my garage is now obsolete, plus when i sell my frame i have to sell the mech along with it....IM FU*KING STOKED.
Actually, on a slightly different point here, did anyone else notice how defensively the article was written??? its not an observation directed at the author directly, rather at the industry who seem to be realising that the general riding public is getting more and more pissed off at the manufacturers complicating the crap out of what is meant to be a simple machine.
Looks like you'll have to use a regular hanger to use SRAM, but I'm sure the SRAM copy cat department is working 24/7 to get their version out ASAP.
and ANOTHER point....(sorry)...that video said F**K all. all i got from it is that a load of marketing people are excited and its easy to put a wheel on now. was it difficult before??? oh, sorry...its also gonna shift a whole load better. MY HOLE IT WILL!!! my sram XO stuff shifts like shit off a shovel!!!
P.S. I realise this sounds like trolling/a massive rant, BUT can anyone actually say im wrong....im all ears if you can!!!
so theyre essentially now getting rid of a bit of metal that they put on one or two years ago because they've realised that it wasnt that good...
For example: sealed bearings in the hubs and bottom brackets, index shifting, wide-ratio gearing, oversized bottom bracket axles, offset crankarms, roller chainguides, oversized steerers and head tubes, unthreaded headsets, wider rear hub spacing, through-axles, wider rims, remote-adjustable seatposts, hydraulic disc brakes, oversized handlebars, larger diameter seat posts, wider bottom bracket shells,.splined crank arm interfaces and suspension components that didn't leak. Every one of those improvements required a new industry standard and yet without them, bike designers' hands were tied. We could not move forward to make frames or bikes lighter, better handling and stronger without the cooperation of component makers bold enough to make breakthrough improvements.
Presently, most of the mountain bike's weak links have been fixed, which means the grocery list I have been carrying for quite a while is nearly empty, The two glaring exceptions are the weak derailleur hanger and the undersized pedal axle. Both items have little or no reserve design strength. If there is a certain tone in the article, it may be because I occasionally get annoyed by riders who forget that they are standing on top of a mountain of beneficial industry standards when they shout down a proposal for a new one. Direct mount is a path to a better derailleur interface that opens the door for future innovations in the rear derailleur and dropout. I would be happy if any company introduced Direct Mount. Shimano was first, so it got my vote.
I hope that helps.
RC
1. You say wider rear hubs are now "pushing back to a smaller 142" except I've worked in the bike industry for a long time and the standard has been pretty much 135 for as long as I can remember. I'm pretty sure 142 is a move to a wider rear axle spacing, and the hub size actually hasn't changed at all. In fact I have two sets of wheels that I can adapt from 135 x 10 to 142 x 12 in a matter of a minute or two. The exception to this is the newish 150 DH width, which as far as I know isn't going anywhere and actually uses a wider hub shell. Did I miss something important here?
2. Your head tube discussion which seems to say 1 1/8 up to 1.5 and now back down to 1 1/8th top 1.5 bottom is the progression. I remember 1" head tubes, and my brand new bike has 1.5 top and bottom. The head tube standard seems to be an odd duck at the moment, there is no real standard, just a bunch of different options and combinations. Check out the batch of Chris King headset options I saw at Interbike last year as an example. This is 6 different options just for the top. This is something that actually needs a standard...
I agree with you on points about various "standards" constantly changing, but I think that's just where we're at in the progress of the mountain bike. This is a time of constant change, and it will eventually stabilize once people figure out what does actually work better...
PS- I'm not digging the standoffish tone, but that's just me. RC usually does well with technical info, but I wasn't into this.
I am sorry to say this Shimano, however functional your idea may be, it is still a joke from my point of view and just an old solution brought back to life so that you can continue to monopolize the market and maybe somehow improve sales in certain parts of the world.
I like progression of technology, but this just seems to me that Shimano is palming off it's weak link onto other manufacturers.
If the replaceable chip were actually a problem, then single speed bikes couldn't get away with sliding dropouts. Hence, the true problem is more accurately be described as flimsy chips. So get rid of the chip or make it stronger.
This isn't an anti-all-new-standards rant. Some of the new standards are good. 142 rear spacing, larger diameter stuff where more strength is needed. As of yet though, i'm unconvinced that this particular new standard is of any benefit.
Another thing that is being left out here is that the derailleur is mounting from both sides of the new "hanger", which seems pretty smart to me. Lots of attempts to reinforce the derailleur while bolting it from one side- I think the clevis-type configuration makes more sense.
But I think that eventually the likes of the internal/hub based system will have to win over (at the moment its more a case of wont than cant on the part of the big gear manufacturers) I mean if you showed a derailleur-open cassette setup to someone who had never seen a bike before they would be thinking "thats crazy, wouldn't it get stuff caught in it, get all dirty and that thing that hangs down, would that not break" and guess what he would be right . . . . I think bikes are one of the only, if not the only mode of propulsion where the transmission is left exposed and in many ways they take the most abuse . . .well mountain bikes at least
2) Steel and ti frame builders tend to use drive side integral dropout/hanger configurations and trust the cold-set re-bend of the hanger if needed. So, when saying that replaceable der hangers grew out of necessity for saving the frame, RC must be talking about aluminum frames made by quick-fab operations (i.e. factories, robotic welders, etc.).
3) How often do riders actually rip off a derailleur hanger? How many incidents occur in every 1,000 bikes in-use? I've been riding forever and only been in the presence of one der hanger breakage, and it wasn't mine.
4) If the breakaway bolt is such a great fix for strikes to the rear der, why not go with that as standard, rather than replaceable der hangers or a new standard that seems un-necessarily proprietary?
I applaud Shimano for making a much more solid dérailleur mount, making it easier to remove and install the rear wheel and, introducing a idea that will make riding better. All the while knowing many will resist and bag on the idea.
As for me I love my 2x10 drivetrain, through axels, carbon wheels and bars, press fit headset, disc brakes, indexed shifting, dropper seatpost, Spd pedals, tubeless tires, ect. If you want to be stuck in redundancy race XC.
The way that the big 'S' have been changing things every year is briliant in a way, but it is also hurting small bike shops who can't keep with the demand of having to carry so much varied stock due to so many standards.
How easy is it to walk into a bike shop after smashing a derailleure/hanger durring a race weekend and buy one there and then without having to search on line. We've all done it.
However it is essentially an expensive lever attached to some other expensive components (frame's rear triangle etc.). As such it should have a failure point designed into the DRD hanger link (with proper material selection this wouldn't limit the stiffness) to limit forces applied to the business part of the mech and the frame during a crash. Of course these DRD hanger links should be replaceable!
A guard mounted on the outside of the driveside spokes (e.g. clear acrylic sheet) could be used to keep the derrailleur from getting sucked into the spokes and causing damage to the wheels/chain/cassette/mech hanger.
Recently I smashed my SLX shadow medium cage, when asked about B-link replace COST I realize that here in Mexico it was cheaper to buy a NEW sora derailleur than buy the B-LINK, I have to say that old derailleur it's OK but from costing perspective it is not viable to buy replace part
I have to say in terms of stiffness looks like a small evolution; because in order to protect the frame and deraillleur the stiffnes-bending ration has to be same as the derailleur hanger, son only avantage is to eliminate one ajunction
And finally I vote for second option because I have 08 Stinky and my derailleur hanger it's a huge piece
6-speed cassettes with 8 speed chains and spacing. Keep the conventional mech hanger.
op·tion [op-shuhn]
noun
1.
the power or right of choosing.
2.
something that may be or is chosen; choice.
3.
the act of choosing.
4.
an item of equipment or a feature that may be chosen as an addition to or replacement for standard equipment.