Universal RD Hangers?

[Nomadmax]

I'm considering the purchase of a Litespeed Flint. The Flint has a UDH and I'm not familiar with them. Is this something that's going to be a "PF30" (ie "Oh that didn't work as well as we thought") in the next couple of years or is it a worthwhile change? The Flint is UDH only, a normal RD hanger is not an option.

[p nut]

Originally Posted by Nomadmax

I'm considering the purchase of a Litespeed Flint. The Flint has a UDH and I'm not familiar with them. Is this something that's going to be a "PF30" (ie "Oh that didn't work as well as we thought") in the next couple of years or is it a worthwhile change? The Flint is UDH only, a normail RD hanger is not an option.

Who told you you can’t use regular derailers? You should be able to. Pictures on Flint’s product page shows exactly that. Also compatible with SRAM’s transmission. Hence the name, “Universal” derailer hanger.

It’s pretty amazing when used with Transmission. Shifts are crisp. Even mashing uphill, mid-pedal stroke. It’s here to stay.

[Nomadmax]

I didn't say/ask if it couldn't be used with a regular RD. I guess in essence my questions are:

Is the UDH (as it is now) something I won't be able to find in five years?

Is it at least as good as a regular RD hanger and are there any "Oh yeah, that. They all do that" things about them? IE sound like a set combination wrenches in a dryer like a PF30 BB or some other thing that turns out to be a non improvement.

Originally Posted by p nut

Who told you you can’t use regular derailers? You should be able to. Pictures on Flint’s product page shows exactly that. Also compatible with SRAM’s transmission. Hence the name, “Universal” derailer hanger.

It’s pretty amazing when used with Transmission. Shifts are crisp. Even mashing uphill, mid-pedal stroke. It’s here to stay.

[phishrabbi]

Are you asking for predictions about the future of bicycle parts?

Nobody knows.

In the present, however, the UDH appears to be a very good thing.

[prototoast]

UDH is considerably easier to source than literally any other derailleur hanger ever made.

[Turkle]

I personally am only buying bikes using the UDH standard going forward. They are inexpensive to replace and it seems like a great common-sense standard.

[p nut]

Originally Posted by Nomadmax

I didn't say/ask if it couldn't be used with a regular RD. I guess in essence my questions are:

Is the UDH (as it is now) something I won't be able to find in five years?

Is it at least as good as a regular RD hanger and are there any "Oh yeah, that. They all do that" things about them? IE sound like a set combination wrenches in a dryer like a PF30 BB or some other thing that turns out to be a non improvement.

I’ll just say if I were buying a new bike today, or getting a custom, I’d opt for UDH. I don’t see any downsides.

[BRad704]

Originally Posted by Nomadmax

I didn't say/ask if it couldn't be used with a regular RD. I guess in essence my questions are:

Is the UDH (as it is now) something I won't be able to find in five years?

I look at it like all the other Rd Hangar options that are still supported by Wheels Manuf or DerailleurHanger.com. These aftermarket companies will certainly pickup any slack that might occur in case UDH is no longer a standard.

[prototoast]

Originally Posted by Nomadmax

I didn't say/ask if it couldn't be used with a regular RD. I guess in essence my questions are:

Is the UDH (as it is now) something I won't be able to find in five years?

Is it at least as good as a regular RD hanger and are there any "Oh yeah, that. They all do that" things about them? IE sound like a set combination wrenches in a dryer like a PF30 BB or some other thing that turns out to be a non improvement.

The ease of finding a replacement derailleur hanger is directly proportionate to the number of bikes that use that derailleur hanger.

More bikes use UDH than any other derailleur hanger.

UDH is easier to find now, and will continue to be easier to find in the future than any other derailleur hanger currently available.

I really don't understand what you're worried about.

[pwgoode]

Originally Posted by p nut

Who told you you can’t use regular derailers? You should be able to. Pictures on Flint’s product page shows exactly that. Also compatible with SRAM’s transmission. Hence the name, “Universal” derailer hanger.

It’s pretty amazing when used with Transmission. Shifts are crisp. Even mashing uphill, mid-pedal stroke. It’s here to stay.

This is spot on. You can use a regular derailleur and can use SRAM's transmission derailleurs too. No downside that I can see. My next gravel bike will definitely be UDH.

[Nomadmax]

Thanks all.

I guess my concern was, "I don't know what I don't know". This has, during many times in the past, been a "lesson". I'd prefer not to learn anymore of those

[KonaSS]

So many people who haven't dealt with this are so confused by UDH.

First - it is just a derailleur hanger. It functions the same as any other derailleur hanger. It is well made and better than average compared to all the other hundreds(thousands?) of other hanger shapes out there.

The only thing unique, is that UDH means it has a UNIVERSAL shape. There is nothing to fear, nothing else to think about. The big upside here is if/when you need a new hanger, you are more likely to find a shop that has a UDH compared to any other hanger.

Finally, I agree with an earlier poster that I would NOT buy a new bike without a UDH at this point. Hard to predict where the industry is going, but not hard to read the current tea leaves on this one.

[Jaybee]

The UDH thing can be a bit confusing, but as stated above, it's a normal hanger that also happens to be compatible with Transmission. Personally, 3 of 5 bikes in my garage are UDH at this point, and it's kinda nice to know that the same hanger will work on all 3 of them. If those two non-UDH bikes get replaced, it will definitely be with a UDH bike. This is one of the few instances of an industry which loves proprietary standards actually moving to something that works across most systems and manufacturers.

[FriarQuade]

There has also been patent fillings from Shimano that have shown they are headed in the direction of a UDH direct mount derailleur as well. Curious how far we will see UDH head into road bike territory though.

[Alistair]

The only part I hate about UDH is none of my bikes has it, so going forward, I'm at risk of not being able to use the latest drivetrains (all of SRAM's latest MTB is direct mount relying on the frame to follow UDH specs). Yeah, probably a long way off from not being able to source regular hanger-hung RDs at all, but still.