Hey,
im looking for a hanger allignment tool alternative for a shop use. Currently we use Park Tools DAG 2.2, but dont really get a along with it. Abbey’s HAG of course comes to mind, but might be a bit too pricey to talk my boss into. What can you recommend? Thoughts?
Get the Abbey HAG. I eventually capitulated only to find it worth every penny - in the end it was cheaper than the 2 or 3 others I bought and regretted in the interim.
A very different approach, but I also like the Wolf Tooth ‘Pack Hanger’, particularly as a mobile/travel toolkit option.
Thing is tariffs and exchange rate are making it super expensive in Poland. But hell, worth asking:)
You could try the 3d-printed add ons for the Park tool DAG 2.2 that allow the feeler gauge to rotate. I thought Chris Heerschap had one, but I don’t see it on his Etsy store, you could try emailing him. he is also active on the Escapecollective Discord server.
+1, beats the Park. And here’s a great testimonial. My mechanic set up his own shop out of his house when he lost his job 10+ years at an LBS that closed. He bought out all their tools and was fully stocked up with Park, etc. I splurged for the Abbey HAG for personal use, tired of dealing with frequent issues every time I pack/fly a bike. When I dropped off my bike for regular tune up, I bragged that he wouldn’t have to check the hanger, handed him the HAG. He really couldn’t afford to invest in tools that early in the new business, but ordered the Abbey HAG the next day.
[And I gave him a Decade chain tool for Christmas 
]
Abbey is the way to go. It’s only bested by EVT (which is US$600 and massive).
The Park Tool 2.2 is my second pick (as per an old comparison test I did at CyclingTips), so if you can’t justify the Abbey, then stick with what you’ve got.
Another vote for the Abbey. We have two of them, and they’re just the best.
Mistakenly took my personal HAG to work and now it has permanently replaced the Park at the service writing bench. I will have to find budget space to order one before summer so that I can have mine back. Worth every penny.
One note on the hag is that it will not work on kids bike wheel sizes. So if you are fixing a lot of 20-24” geared bikes it is worth keeping the Park close by.
I find DAG 3 much nicer to use than 2.2 (used 2.2 at work, bought myself a 3 for home use). The rotating slidey-stick-thing is a really neat feature, so you can move it around chainstays or rack/guard stays easily without losing your position, or relying on o-rings.
DAG3 doesn’t seem to have such a long arm, which isn’t an issue for wheels, but might crop up if you plan on using it to align shift levers as well, if you have riders with stems more than 130mm, or long reach bars.
I think that once @Dave_Rome recommends something in a tool thread, the thread should be locked.
My non-shop mechanic view: the Park DAG-3 seemed nice when I got it, but I noticed the its “measurements” weren’t as repeatable as I liked. I replaced it with Abbey’s HAG. Abbey’s tool had better repeatability. The lack of plastic bits would, IMHO, make Abbey’s HAG a tool better suited to withstand high use and abuse in a shop.
The best part though is that The Breeders had a vision of the future and foresaw the release of Abbey’s HAG. They thus wrote a song about it 21 years before Abbey released the HAG.
I prefer the DAG-2.2 over the DAG 3. I just couldn’t get along with the 3’s freely sliding indicator rod – one little bump and you’ve lost your measurement reference. If they locked the indicator rod, then it would absolutely be better than the 2.2.
Member Chris Heerschap took inspiration from the DAG 3 and made a flipping indicator arm upgrade for the DAG-2 series. It locks the indicator rod… or at least allows you to set the tension of it. IMO, that, plus the DAG-2.2 is the best in Park’s range.
Still, Abbey is in another class.
I think its the freely sliding indicating rod is what im missing with the 2.2, if thats what I think that is. Ie the rod touching the rim being able to be turned sideways to get past a chainstay or a seatstay. And we keep loosing the little rubber o-rings on it
edit Yes, the 3D printed add-on might be the thing I was looking for! Thanks!
Yep, what you’re describing is the ability to flip the indicator rod out of the way. The 3D printed add-on will solve for that.