Originally Posted by
Medic Zero
I'm finding it difficult to research what would be compatible with my set up (indexed 9 speed mountain, 1" steel tubing) but so far have come across the FD-R453 which appears to be spec'd at 24 tooth spread.
Are you sure? The
tech doc I found seems to suggest "20 teeth or less" as the maximum difference.
Shimano's specs do tend to be conservative, so it's possible that any of their front derailleurs might be able to handle a 24-tooth difference. Worst case, the chain will tend to fall off the inner ring and you'll need a
Deda Dog Fang or another chain guide to keep in in place. That's not necessarily the end of the world...
So, what about 48-36-24 ? Does that make sense?
I'm not aware of any crank that comes pre-configured as a 48-36-24, which means that you'll end up buying some chain rings. Make sure you can find the rings you need in a pattern that's compatible with whatever crank you intend to bolt them to.
If it were me, I'd probably just stick with a 26/38/48 or the 22/32/44 found on most mountain bikes depending on how much weight I was planning to carry and how far uphill it needed to move.