Joined: Aug 2014
Posts: 246
Likes: 177
From: Vancouver, BC
Bikes: 48 Alleluia, 52 Blondin, 68 CNC, 55 Dujay, 46&67 Herse, 76 Singer, 48 LeGreves, 55 Metropole, 62 Holds Cyclone, 55 Condor, 65 Masi, 81 Sequoia, 76 Eisentraut, 72 Proteus, 60 Paramount, 77 Trek TX700, 81 Ross, 82 CBS, 70 Cinelli, 77 Merz, 83 Proctor
Are you positive that your Normandy hub is English threaded? An English threaded freewheel will spin onto a French threaded hub, but will usually strip when enough torque is applied. Will your Maillard freewheel thread all the way onto an English threaded hub? That would be one way to prove that your hub is English.
Like many others, I love the handling of these early touring Treks with the long wheelbase.
I have triple cranksets on most of my bikes, and have found something like 28-38-46 to work well if you don't need a big gear. You can go bigger with the middle ring, depending on your wheel diameter and typical cruising range, but 38-40 generally works for me.
I have some spare TA chainrings, including a 46 outer and a 42 middle/inner I can sell at reasonable prices.
Thanks for the interesting and informative thread!
Last edited by Duke7777; 08-18-24 at 02:50 PM.