Touring - Ya'lls thoughts on this bike

I'm looking for a decent touring bike well under budget. I think I may have found one. I will buy a nicer one later on when I feel like I'm ready for a tour. I'm not quite sure what to look for when I shop for touring bikes. Any advice is more than helpful. I would prefer not to get a MTB but if I have to then I will. It's just that all the MTB's that I've seen have no place to store water bottles and I feel like the handle bars would bug the junk out of me. I'm a male whose 150 lbs and 5'11. I'll be riding this bike around campus and back and forth from work and cheer practice. So what thoughts do ya'll have on this bike?


http://cgi.ebay.com/Raleigh-Wyoming-555t-touring-bicycle-bike-12-speed_W0QQitemZ260244376780QQihZ016QQcategoryZ98084QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

54cm is going to be too small for most 5-11 men, especially if you're an athlete and more flexible than the average beer gut pilot. I'd look for a 57 or so. Raleigh frames of that era are ok, but there's nothing particularly "touring" about that rig, you could set it up for touring but you'd probably want lower gearing.

Ok. Thanks. I'll look into something with that criteria.

Good God, just get a bike that you like because it feels good to be riding it.

I'm seriously starting to to think that bikeforums.net does more harm than good. A touring bike is a bike that you like to ride because you feel good riding it and it doesn't make you feel bad. That's the entire definition of what a touring bike is. There's no subsection of the definition where you learn that it must cost $1,000 or have a particular wheel diameter or special brazed-on threaded parts.

Just obtain a bike that feels good to your wrists, back, and bum, and ride it around with a grin on your face. That's touring.

A lot of bikes are good candidates for touring, even if they're not marketed as touring bikes. Here's what I'd look for, in no particular order.

Comfortable fit
Solid construction
Rack or fender braze-ons or both (If I really liked a bike without braze-ons, I might get it anyhow and add a small trailer.)
No suspension system, front or rear (For touring a lot on rough roads and trails, I might consider getting something with a fairly stiff front suspension but no rear suspension.)
A wide range of gearing, especially for touring in the mountains
I've toured on mountain bikes and on road bikes. Only one bike I've used for touring was designed for that kind of riding. One of my bikes was designed for off-road racing while another was made for running about in the city. They all worked well for touring.

54cm is going to be too small for most 5-11 men, especially if you're an athlete and more flexible than the average beer gut pilot. I'd look for a 57 or so. Raleigh frames of that era are ok, but there's nothing particularly "touring" about that rig, you could set it up for touring but you'd probably want lower gearing.

I'm 5'11" 1/2 and my LHT is 56cm and fits me well. Then again, I'm a beer gut pilot...

Good God, just get a bike that you like because it feels good to be riding it.

I'm seriously starting to to think that bikeforums.net does more harm than good. A touring bike is a bike that you like to ride because you feel good riding it and it doesn't make you feel bad. That's the entire definition of what a touring bike is. There's no subsection of the definition where you learn that it must cost $1,000 or have a particular wheel diameter or special brazed-on threaded parts.

Just obtain a bike that feels good to your wrists, back, and bum, and ride it around with a grin on your face. That's touring.

Huh? Touring is what? I guess I have a different opinion. To me, touring is going on a bicycle trip that involves an overnight stay somewhere. Within that definition are sub-categories: self-supported, supported, and credit-card touring. What do others think?

For my definition of touring, especially if one is going to be carrying a load, a bike with certain capabilities is preferable. This Raleigh doesn't seem to have many of the specs I would look for. That said, you can tour on just about any bike, and when I first started out it was on a Raleigh that wasn't that much different from this.

Good God, just get a bike that you like because it feels good to be riding it.

I'm seriously starting to to think that bikeforums.net does more harm than good. A touring bike is a bike that you like to ride because you feel good riding it and it doesn't make you feel bad. That's the entire definition of what a touring bike is. There's no subsection of the definition where you learn that it must cost $1,000 or have a particular wheel diameter or special brazed-on threaded parts.

Just obtain a bike that feels good to your wrists, back, and bum, and ride it around with a grin on your face. That's touring.

I should clarify that raleighs of this era are often marked "sport touring," which does sound a lot better than "good for regular recreational riding" (which they are), but they're geared kind of high (52/40 and 14-28 or thereabout) for actual loaded touring. It would be a fine base for a touring rig if it fit him, I just didn't want him to get the impression that just because it was labeled as a touring bike it would be good for that purpose without some pretty major modifications.