Originally Posted by
rowebr
Thanks for writing this up, I'm sure your pics and story will be valuable for others attempting similar projects. I share Ex Pres's concern about the tight clearance between granny ring and chainstay. Definitely test it before going on tour. From your description, it seems like it would be easy (ha!) to compromise on the perfect chainline to get a bit more clearance for the granny ring. I think the imperfect chainline will work better with a modern 8-speed chain instead of a vintage chain.
I've tested it on the little hills (ravines, actually) that we have around here, and it's OK so far. We're going for a 30-mile practice ride tomorrow, so we'll see what happens. It might not be a bad idea to acquire a 1mm Italian BB spacer ring, just in case.