I tour on an '83 nishiki cresta and firmly believe that touring is mostly mental and that the differences between a 200 dollar bike and a 2000 dollar bike won't make or break a tour. (so take what i have to say with a grain of salt,) but I think that almost any older touring bike will work just fine. Like an earlier poster said the biggest issues is the selection and availability of 27'' tires. It took me forever to find a good set of thickish knobby 27'' tires, so when I found some I bought up a lot. When my friend and I take off to tour Patagonia for three months (leaving on Sunday) we will be carrying three extra tires between the two of us, just since I know the knobby 27''ers are so hard to find.