Originally Posted by
ramzilla
I like good old 7 speed cog sets. They'll fit on 126mm & 130mm dropouts (with a spacer). and, they're cheap as dirt. Shimano and Microshift still make brand new shifters for them. And, If all else fails you can just connect friction shifters to them. What's not to love?
I just built up an older bike with a 2x7 system. Compared to 11spd components, 7spd was much less expensive. With 53x39 up front, I did go with a 12-32 cassette. Having 24 gear inches in the lowest gear helps out with some of the longer hills in my area. And Microshift shifters just work. They never fail. I went with used wheels with an 11spd hub, but spacers are cheap too. For a 1995 modernized bike, I'm very happy with 14 speeds.