cnickroot

My Hi Stepper has cracked right through where it attaches to the frame. I'm not complaining, it only took 40 years. Well, now everything is different. I'm wondering what the experts here would suggest I replace it with? I bought it originally as the best derailleur I could buy with a massive range for my touring triple on the same bike that I use for everyday and "training" rides for fitness. My granny is 24 tooth, and I want it to be able to handle that all the way to 52 big ring. I still use friction shift, but have replaced the rear long ago with a Shimano Deore XT to handle the big rings in back. I would be willing to consider a swap to something that could handle index shifting later. I'm not against modern stuff, I just never bothered to modernize from what was serving me just fine. Do I need to get a Shimano Deore to make sure it will work together? The bike is from 1983, a custom fit Rodriguez touring model. 6 speed spacing.