I'd agree that there are a whole lot of good touring bikes from the 80's, many of them very similar.

I've got a Lotus Eclair that I really like, it's my second one. I'd agree with balindamood that it rides very nicely without any load, I can't say one bad thing about the ride, it's superb. There are a few quirks:

- The Eclair does not have a whole lot of tire clearance. I have 1 1/4 in tires, and it would be a squeeze to get fenders in. Apparently that is common with a lot of 80's touring bikes.
- The Eclair has 2 bottle positions, none on the seat tube. Mine came with a frame pump on the seat tube.... still an odd choice.
- The Eclair has those weird Shimano down tube bosses. Not insurmountable, but it's a hurdle to install bar-ends or brifters. I did install bar-end shifters, so it's totally do-able.


DSC06722 by mkeller234, on Flickr

Sorry, but I'm not that much of a fan. They're great looking and well thought out. They're truly nice, but how many touring miles do we put on per year? I haven't taken an overnight bike trip since 1983, though I hope to get back into it this summer.

Cyclo-cross and sport-touring bikes are just a bit shorter and lighter. They don't feel heavy when they're not laden. Full touring bikes do, so if I do end up touring, I'll probably do it on a cyclo-cross bike. I've determined that the chainstays are long enough to prevent heel-scrape.

I took a three-month tour on a 1980 PX-10 with a very short wheelbase. I had to modify my pedal stroke to clear my heels of the panniers. On all my tours, I used a handlebar bag rather than a front rack. The PX-10 was far from ideal, but it worked, and it refutes the idea that you need a specialized bike. I had to hang on really tight going down mountains, but I managed, and I didn't have to slow down. I was even foolish enough to use racing tubular tires. Now, that was stupid. I got a lot of flats!

I also took a several-day tour on my McLean racing bike. Same kind of setup but with clinchers.

I should wander over into the touring section of bikeforums so I get psyched to take tours again. Maybe it will get me into gear (pun intended) and start the planning.

Sorry I never met you out there (or maybe I did!) I did that tour many times, most recently also with a 1985 Pro-Tour. I'm afraid I didn't like its handling very much, both loaded and unloaded, and sold it last year. I love my 1981 Specialized Sequoia (pre-Expedition geometry) although it does not have cantilever brakes. I'll get back to touring after the rando season!

My '84 Fuji TS V. All the bells and whistles. It handles much better with a lot of weight, kind of squirrelly without. If I were to actually start touring again, I have a TS III that has been thru the ringer a few times, I'd be more comfortable getting it banged up.



https://vintagefuji.posterous.com/198...uring-series-v


Scott

My favorite of the 80s models was the Lotus Odyssey...I felt like it rode better unloaded when compared to the Miyata 1000 (and the 1000s under other names) and I preferred the aesthetics. Some years were built with Columbus tubing...which is sort of an interesting factoid.

For those tall guys with the itch, there's a nice 63cm Fuji Touring IV on craigslist for $340...

If I plan to tour I want as many functional bells and whistles as possible. Most notably a third bottle cage, fork lowrider mounts, and canti brakes. I've toured a number of times on my Specialized Expedition and found it can have shimmy issues unless specifically loaded extra heavily in the front with no handlebar bag. It is very similar to the Miyata 1000 but the splined tubing of the Miyata may make that a bit stiffer. If loaded properly it is very comfortable and also a nice ride unloaded. Due to those flex issues I bought a 1987 Schwinn Voyageur which I found to have super stability no matter how it is loaded. Slightly heavier than the Expedition but still a bike I enjoy riding unloaded. I left the Voyageur with 27" wheels and I think that makes it seem to roll fast enough I don't notice the weight. My most recent purchase is a 1990 Cannondale ST400. This is a year they had cantilever brakes. I really love this bike for general riding and it is much stiffer than the other two without sacrificing much in ride comfort. I hope to give it a try loaded this spring and based on the stiffness I expect it to be very stable. It is definitely the lighter of the 3 and best suited for an all around bike.

As other's have mentioned the type of touring you expect to do can dictacte your best option but I can definitely recommend getting something you can solidly mount a front rack on. Splitting your load between front and back will definitley improve the stability.

As long as we've got this thread going, I might toss in that I'm in the market for just such a touring frame myself (that Fuji Touring IV above would be just about perfect if it wasn't in CLE). Either 24" or 25" would work, must have cantis, prefer not beat-up but flexible on everything else. Anyone reading this thread feel free to PM me if you've got one to get rid of. Cash or trade, frameset, full bike or anything in between.

I can help with the CLE bike if needed...

You are correct. I am friends with a man that toured (coast to coast, I think) on a Raleigh DL-1! I cannot even imagine doing that, but it really proves that all you need is a bike, any bike. All those old pictures of stone faced men, on top of some mountain with some ancient chunk of iron that they rode there. Heck, you could walk coast to coast, you don't even need a bike. There was a recent sketch where a couple spent so much time getting special gear, that they never made it outside to actually use it.

I like my touring bikes, despite the fact that I don't tour. I use them for commuting and pulling a trailer, so yes, overkill. Isn't most of the stuff on this forum overkill? Pro level racing bikes, super special touring bikes, over-kill custom frames and an entire fleet of bikes for one person. I like to indulge in the overkill.

PM sent, but deja vu if memory serves.

How about the Panasonic-built Raleigh's? Like the Touring 18, Alyeska, Kodiak, Portage? Anyone with experience touring with these bikes? I have a Touring 18 in a basket that I'm converting to 650B... Poor man's Portage...

That should be a lesson to us all.

Yes, absolutely. I've fallen prey to that line of thinking myself. Upgraditis?

Here is the sketch. It's called "Get the gear"

I recall that the Alyeska was well liked in my area.

Brad

That's interesting, I've never heard that Raleighs of that era were made by Panasonic! On a related note, Yellow Jersey still imports new Panasonic touring frames. They're very lovely and a great deal for a separable frame, but only seem to be available up to 53cm.

My daughter's Volpe is a great bike for light/medium touring. I think you have one?

Brad

You've got that right Bill. There was a 1985 Trek 620 that just sold on eBay for $911 that looked to be a low mileage garage queen but still had some nasty scrapes. I was shocked to see it get a good 2 hundred more than any other 85 620 I've seen sell there.

I stumbled across a great deal on my '89 Fuji Saratoga a couple of years ago. Seems to be an underappreciated model.

I find it to be a great all-around bike, and very comfortable. I use it mostly for commuting, but it handles full loads just fine. Ishiwata triple butted tubing, front and rear rack braze-ons, cantilevers, Accushift bar end shifters, spare spokes on the chainstay, and three bottle mounts. My only concern is that there doesn't seem to be much room for a front fender, at least with the 27x1-1/4 Pasela I've been running. I like the Touring Series paint better, but my Saratoga is a keeper.

720 Trek. Long, Comfortable, Flexible Cushy ride. Love it.
Miyata 1000. Long, comfortable, Stiff for a large rider or masher. Great with a heavy load.

Yes, I do, and that's what I'm getting at. Let's not delude ourselves into thinking that a purpose-built bike is the only thing that can do the job. And my Volpe would make an excellent long distance touring bike. I rode worse bikes than the Volpe back when full-on touring bikes were not sold in the US.

I adore my Volpe. I took it out yesterday for two errands yesterday, totaling four miles. It was very cold and windy, so locals think I'm nuts, but it was better to do four miles than zero.

Here it is outside my former workplace, with panniers on and an unused front rack.

I agree that the Saratoga is either underappreciated or unknown. I've seen two of them for sale in the last five years or so. Very nice bike, but pretty uncommon. I've also seen a few old Novara touring bikes that looked like they'd do the trick. Novara has been around since the early 80's also, but the bikes are rarely seen in my area (probably due to the lack of REI stores.)

My 1980 Schwinn Voyageur did not have rack eyelets, cantilever bosses, or even water bottle braze-ons, but the frame is double-butted chromoly and seems fairly strong. I have replaced just about all the components and have made various adaptations so I could use it for fully loaded touring. I have used it for a couple short tours and it seems to perform well. I still am in a bit of a quandry whether I should buy a new touring bike or simply use this one despite its advanced age and despite it being intended more for sport touring.

Robert, If the Schwinn breaks in half, then buy another tourer.

Brad