Originally Posted by srrs
i think i'll go with 48-36-24, probably.
I posted in a different thread last week, in reference to my Sugino crankset, that "46-36-26 is as close to perfect as you can get for touring gears".
I actually think your choice is better -- you get a wider top and bottom range, plus you get the pleasure out of your mid ring which you spend most of your time in anyway.
HOWEVER..... the shifting can get finnicky with a 48-36-24, since you're dropping 12 teeth with every shift instead of 10. This means you have to have a front derailler that can handle the jump, and can do it cleanly. I think you said you're building up from a mtn bike; if so, I'm guessing it can handle 46 OK but maybe not 48 (most mtn bikes have 42 or 44 for a large ring). You'll certainly have to move the der up on the seat tube.
Once you do that, chances are it'll shift up and down OK. Just spend a day or two riding around shifting the front gears to make sure. If not, you have 3 choices: 1) new derailleur, 2) go to a smaller range like 46-36-26, or 3) live with it.
Welcome to the "tweek it one more time" world
-- Mark