Getting up hills by Shimano Megarange Freewheel

Shimano freewheel

The Shimano Megarange Freewheel is fantastic for getting up hills when limited by a 40/52 double chainring set. As my previous freewheel was already starting to fail, this was a $14.00 replacement vs. $150+ to replace the crank and bottom bracket to get a smaller small chainring (and even more expensive to get a triple).

The only problem was that my derailleur was not long enough and would rub on the megasprocket while I was on the second sprocket. While I rode about 600 miles in this state, I ended up ordering a long travel derailleur ($40), but I still feel this was
a good purchase considering the range of gears on the bike would only have been possible with a 32/52 chainring in the front. With a 28-14 freewheel, you would end up with a dead zone between 13.5 and 15.5 mph.

In short: If you have a long travel derailleur, or you're willing on replacing it vs. the crank, this is a good buy. The freewheel screws on straight, has no wobble, and for about 1000 miles has given me no problems.

Update:
3000 miles and still going strong. Just finished a hilly 400 km brevet and the 34 tooth sprocket was a life-saver.

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