SctX proteins are secreted substrates and are essential components of type III secretion systems. The dedicated chaperone SctY escorts SctX proteins to the secretion machinery, where the hydrophobic helix at the C-terminus of SctX mediates recognition by the export apparatus. New crystal structures suggest that in the absence of the export gate this hydrophobic helix kinks and folds back onto the chaperone, presumably to shield it from the solvent.