Originally Posted by
seedsbelize
12 speed is my favorite configuration in road bikes. Six speed freewheels and cassettes are decidedly not easy to find anymore.
I had a sweet Nishiki hardtail with a 6 speed freewheel. The bearings are inboard so the axle isn't supported as well as a freehub. I used to bend axles so often that I kept an axle at home. Eventually the frame broke at the dropout/chainstay area. I really liked that frame.