Originally Posted by
Germany_chris
So it looks like the Franken >Lake Garda tour is going to happen this summer barring any unforeseen circumstances.
I'm not inclined to take my Cross Check since it's going to require more weight than that bike can handle without becoming too flexy so I've drug out my Rock 'n Road frame. My parts bin is fairly deep so I can build how I like which leads to my question...
If you were going to build a bike to cross the Alps with say 50ish pound of gear would you build on a mountain triple 44/34/24/6 or go with a 44/28 double, if I go triple I'm going to use barcons and 11-36 10 speed if I go compact double I'll probably go 11-42 11 speed double tap. In day to day use I don't use that big of a cassette because it's not needed and has some holes in the cassette stack that make me uncomfortable, but on a ride like this I can deal I think.
I don't love barcons though I have no issue using them but If I had my druthers I choose integrated shifters, the flip side is my brake levers are long pull so I'll be able to use full length linear pulls v mini's since this bike is going to be built around 32mm tires I'm not sure that will make a difference but it exists.
When push comes to shove I'll be able to ride the route with either setup and since I own all the parts cost isn't a consideration. I'm leaning triple since i'll have a closer spaced ratio but I don't know if that's a benefit over a change of hand position to make it work.
So would you choose traditional or modernish for my ~600k est. 10 day trip?
I would go with the triple. If I could find a compact double with a 24T small ring, I would love it, but I would not want a 30. I dropped from 26T to a 24T on my bike and it was a great change for me. I have a 36 in the back for 17.3 gear inches, 26 inch wheels, 172.5 cranks. The 30 to 42 would be 18.6 gear inches. My old setup of 26T up front and the 36T in the rear is 18.8 gear inches, and I can definitely feel the difference between 17.3 and 18.8. I am glad I made the change. It helps a lot on the hills.
I also would not like the 44T personally. I spend most of my time in the middle ring on my triple, which I believe is a 38T. For a compact double, if I could get the low ring of 24T, I would probably want a 40T.