Originally Posted by
jnbrown
Am I missing something here?
No, that's pretty much it... which is why it's not unusual to find your chain kissing the big chain ring when it's in the middle ring and smallest one or two rear sprockets. Many folks incorrectly assume the chain is hitting the derailleur cage and causing the rubbing noise, but it's more often than not the big chain ring. Granny chain ring alignment beyond the middle of the cassette is also pretty awful. But, on the bright side, being cross chained in the big chain ring and your tallest rear sprockets doesn't usually create a problem.
Originally Posted by
jnbrown
I am thinking of just buying a standard road crankset reversing the sides and installing helicoils to reverse the pedal threads. Does this seem like a reasonable idea?
Absolutely. The only risk would be having someone recut (tap) the existing threads or doing the Helicoil installation without a bench press and the skills needed to properly set up and do the work.
I could be wrong, but I believe R&E has been doing this exact procedure to create Campy cross-over cranksets for many moons.