Originally Posted by
Jose Mandez
Wow, 34-18 is a heckuva jump up/down for loaded touring. I myself get annoyed at the 34-24 jump that I currently have on my touring freewheel...but as long as it doesn't bother you, I guess that's all that matters. I just bought some NOS Shimano 600 7 speed FWs on ebay that are 14-34 with more evenly-spaced gearing.
Actually, the jump is from the big ring/big cog to the small ring/big cog, not from 18 to 34. So that would be 53/34 to 39/34. 53/34 is my second lowest gear, and the shift works really well. The hills around here are either rolling, or monster grades, so I very rarely use the 34, or the 28 on the International, but when I need it,
I need it. I rarely even use my small chain ring except in conjunction with the 34 cog.