My 1988 Schwinn Voyager build has been finished for a while, but being a new Dad I haven't had a lot of time to visit the forums. I ran out of time on this bike, and Cycle CL in Montreal which is my favourite not so local bike shop, home of Bassi bikes and also Canada's only Rivendell dealer, did a lovely job getting this over the line. I owned a gray 1990 Voyageur for years, though it was too small but kept for the ride and versatility a 1980s touring bike offers, albeit with a Nitto stem jacked way up - it still felt cramped and awkward. I wanted another quality 1980s touring frame in my sizeish for a grail all-rounder touring and provincial park camper build in tribute to the French randonneur bikes I and so many others here can't get enough of, but can't quite afford. Though to be straight with you I spent more on this than I initially planned...I'm sure you know what I mean. I want to also highlight the dedicated craftsmanship gugie brought to to this bike build for me. Gugie not only relocated the front canti posts so that I could do a proper 700c conversion and fit new brakes, he also built me a beautiful bag rack and accompanying low-rider racks which I'll highlight below. Really fantastic.

Here's the build details

1988 Schwinn Voyageur, one of the framesets with Columbus Tenax tubing, Emerald Green, rear triangle spread from 126 to 130mm
700c conversion with Hplusson TB14 polished rims (these look great!)
NOS Shimano Ultegra/Tricolor hub in the back, SP dynamo up front
New Tange headset to replace the worn original
Honjo fenders and leather mudflaps
RH 35mm tires (they fit under the Honjos, but I think next time I'll get 33mm Riv Jack Browns to give me more wiggle room) the price for these tires is high, but they deliver a great ride
Nitto Gran Randonneur handlebar, Nitto stem, and maronn Newbaum's cushioned tape (I think next time once the tape is worn I'll do normal newbaums and blond shellac).
New Dia Compe levers and brakes, with brown hoods to match the saddle
Rivendell Silver Triple, 44/34/24
Original Shimano Deore derailleurs, cleaned and serviced, they were in good shape and I like this era for Shimano so why not?
Rivendell Silver bar end shifters (I was going to go with Suntour but read of some folks having trouble with 8 spread out cogs so I thought I'll try new. I think these are basically a modern update of 1980s Suntour bar ends anyway.
NOS Shimano Deore XT 8-speed cassette
IRD cup-and-cone bottom bracket for longevity
B&M IQ-X up front, and a Velo Lumino rear lamp by southpawboston
Unseen but since added: SP-11 pedals, bottle cages, randonneur bag.

Onto the pics:

As found, next to my old gray Voyageur. Those white Bluemels are going on my Sun Wasp:


Build photos (by Troy Biliski)
The maroon handlebar tape isn't quite this loud in regular light, it was just a very sunny spot. I think the powdercoat colour on the fork is a very good match to the Schwinn paint. The stem and seat are not set for me here, stem is higher than I have it set now.


Bag rack and low-riders by Gugie. They're gorgeous. After Gugie's torchwork the fork needed some paint but we found a powdercoater, and I think the match is really damn good. I'm going to remove the Nitto lamp mount and mount the light directly to the hangar for a cleaner look. The low riders are also removable for packing and transporting the bike:


Gugie also added this tab to the fork in a thoughtful addition to make fender installation not only more practical but also more elegant:



Rear end shot, with southpawboston Velo Lumino rear lamp, which combines modern lamp electronics with timeless design - really a nice piece of equipment that really classes up the joint. The Nitto Big Rack will come and go as needed, depending on what I'm doing with the bike. I imagine most of the time I'll have low-rider bags and my Carradice Nelson for trips of a few days here and there while my kiddo is young:



A few more:


Close up of Gugie's low-riders:



I'm really happy with this bike. It hits a lot of C&V high notes for me, while using drivetrain parts that are close to the bike's origin in the late 1980s / early 1990s technology wise, but mated with friction shifting instead of indexing. I'm planning a few camping trips for this summer and fall with this bike in the region, really looking forward to stretching its legs!