The thought did cross my mind , but upgrading the comp set, unless I cannibalize the Haro, is gonna make it a little pricey. The frame is in great shape, and it came with lightly ridden Schwalbe Marathons and front and rear racks, but the Alivio group set is a little worse for wear. Actually, the guy I bought the bike off had used the bike for touring before he put it in storage.

The price was decent, not great but good for the area, so I thought "what the heck". I don't have a box'o'parts to dig into, so I'll have to buy or trade for the necessaries. I've wanted an old steel frame a while, and figured it would make a cool long term project, but buying a new parts set will cut into my tour budget.

I'm willing to be convinced to swap parts off and build the Haro back it up if y'all think that would be a worthwhile course. The 830 will still need a few things (new wheelset topping the list), but that shouldn't be too terribly expensive.

I found the MTB conversion thread 4 or 5 pages back last night, and got inspired.

Fietsbob, that is the idea I was considering, trailer plus, for use with the Haro. Thanks bud.