Thinking about getting a propper touring bike...
 

Well at the moment I only have 1 bike and its a Vision R50 full suspension recumbent. I'm not the type of person to have more than 2 bikes as im quite the minimalist. I'm still searching craigslist looking for my around town beater. I'm considering selling my bent and picking up a entry level touring bike to start out with weekend tours and hopefully take a 1 week tour sometime within the next year. I've been lurking this section for a few weeks and it seems like the LHT is the most common bike by far. I would like to be able to test ride the bike before i buy and i have not seen this bike in shops around here. Would this be a nice entry level bike or more towards the higher end?

I know REI sells the safari and Rand. Any thoughts on these? Well ive never been on a real tour only long 1 day trips. Id like to go on a few weeknd tours soon :) any suggestions on bikes and anything at all would be much appreciated.

edit: i would like to buy the bike new as im still learning bike maintenace and would like to stay away from used to avoid possible problems that could come up soon...or that i might not be able to detect from the start.

* one thing that is important to me is a bike with multiple hand positions because i tend to get sore wrists on standard flat bars...which is 1 reason i switched to a recumbent.

Many manufacturers only make one touring bike, so there isn't real the idea of "entry level". Almost all bikes on the market sold specifically as "touring bikes" are well suited to the purpose.

Touring bikes are sold at such low volumes that you can not often find them in stock on the floor of a shop. But most shops are willing to order one for you without a commitment to buy.

Most touring bikes come with drop handlebars offering a variety of hand positions. Some people like trekking bars or add aerobars to their drop bars.

There's a sticky at the top of this forum which provides an excellent summary of the touring bikes on the market. See it at:

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=558172

the bike that you like to ride and is comfortable is a good touring bike

You're not buying a jet aircraft, so don't shy away from a used bike as there are very few things that could be wrong with a used bike. Further, a used bike is usually much cheaper than a new one so any added risk that goes along with a used bike is quickly made up by it's lower price

Good luck

I guess by entry level i mean the price. Im not looking to spend $2k on a bike. And since i like simple things im not going to be adding lots of extra stuff to it or modifying it. I was leaning towards the safari because the handle bars seems like they provide a good amount of positions. And of course I can test ride it easily. And well the sticker price for a full bike with a rack at $850 doesnt seem too bad.

What about using your R50 for touring? Seems like a good rear rack could be added with a little adaptation and that you'd have plenty of room for panniers. If you found the recumbent to be more comfortable than diamond frames for regular riding then I'd think the same might be true for touring. And it would let you try out touring for awhile with minimal financial investment.

I currently have a nice jandd rack already with 2 jandd panniers lol :) The bike has tons of room in the back to fit a gigantic duffle bag or something also. I think you may be correct. My bike has some minor shifting problems at the moment though. Prolly just needs a tuneup as i got it used this year and havent had one yet. I think I will have that done and give some short tours a try. i guess i was just under the impression that people usually dont tour with suspended bikes for some reason.

Any other suggestions on add ons for this bike?

brad,

I'm still currently debating the LHT v Safari. I started a thread a few months ago that got fairly lengthy (I'll provide the link at the end of this message). In terms of value they are both great options. Overall the LHT is almost certainly the better bike, but the Safari would also be fine. It really depends what type of riding you'll be doing: For mostly road riding the LHT is better (it can handle dirt roads, but nothing too rough as the bottom bracket clearance is low), while the Safari would be better on rougher terrain (it's essentially a touring mountain bike).

Ride both, think it over, then decide:
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ght=safari+lht

Hmm i noticed u said at the time the REI bikes were 20 percent off. When do they usually have the sales? i might be test riding a safari tomorrow for fun...but i will definately be using my recumbent until the 20% if and when i decide to switch.

Just a word of warning, I guess. I bought a Fuji Touring bike this spring for a great price. It road and seemed to handle pretty well with a load, but the wheels were crap. They warranty replaced them and they still broke spokes with barely more than a harsh look. I returned the bike.

I lucked into a used 2009 Cannondale T1 a few months later and I am much happier with it. Did 250 miles on the Allegahny Passage and C & O Canal without an issue. The wheels (and the whole bike) are very solid and reassuring.

The only issue with the bike -- and this seems to be the case with a number of the touring models that use road rather then mountain drive trains components is the gearing does not go particularly low.

If I were you, I would plan out a few short mulit-day rides with the R50 and see how it does. If you need more space than the rack, maybe get a BOB. The two folks I just finished my trip with both have used BOB trailers for the last 15 years of touring (used to use panniers) and they love it.

Oh and I like the LHT (as do many here) but saw that the Rocky Mountain Sherpa 30 is on sale for 25% off
http://www.realcyclist.com/roadbike/...041&mv_pc=r126

Folks will fret and fuss over each and every component on their bikes, but when it comes right down to it any dedicated touring bike is quite adequate and the impact of bike or component selection on the total touring experience will be extremely minimal IMO. The only exceptions will be if you don't have low enough gearing for the terrain or if the fit and setup are not right.

Some folks are really into the bike itself, and if they are happy with that it is fine, but... Touring does not need to have much to do with the specifics of the bike itself. A tour on a $600 bike and one on a $6000 one are just not that much different.

Off the original topic, but...
How much you carry will have a much bigger impact. I find that the less I carry the better the experience is, at least to a point. For me the I am guessing that I will find the sweet spot at between 20 and 25 pounds of gear. I am working toward that, my last tour I carried 30 pounds and there are still quite a few items I would not miss or that could be replaced with lighter ones without breaking the bank.

I agree, but would add that a tour on a bike where things break is much different from a tour on a bike that gives you no trouble. I bought a touring bike from Nashbar in 1992. Granted, I was carrying too much weight, and the thing did make it from Seattle to the California border before the first spoke broke. But by San Francisco I was breaking them left and right.

I met a guy in Glacier last summer who was riding from Buffalo, NY to Portland, OR. He was on a Fuji tourer. He had bought it because he was on a tight budget and it was a pretty reasonably priced tourer. However, he had so much trouble with the wheels that he ended up replacing both halfway across the country.

If you figure the price of the bike plus two new wheels, would it be the same as a nicer bike? I don't know.

I have a Surly LHT and am very happy with it as a tourer. However, I wouldn't claim that it's the best tourer out there. I bought it because it was a highly-touted bike at a reasonable price. There are several others I'd consider buying, and would love to try.

Whatever bike you consider, pay attention to the wheels, especially the rear. You might want to have it professionally tensioned before heading out on tour. You might want to immediately replace whatever it comes with - maybe with a "guaranteed not to fail" wheel, such as one built by Peter White. You might even do what I did - buy a truing stand and tension meter and learn to service your own wheels. (Risky, but I made it on one tour with wheels I built and they didn't fail - knock on wood.)

I guess the point of all my rambling is that there might be reasons why you'd want to spend a little more at the outset. The best advice I've heard to prevent spoke breakage is not to carry so much crap, but I have a hard time following that myself. ;)

Dude, I would use your recumbent first.

honestly it has racks and bags- try it out. Only spend your cash on an upright if you like the experience, and through doing it a bit you realize you want to change to an upright... You might never want to make the change. I would love to do some long recumbent touring. :)

I think that was in March I believe, when REI has their anniversary sale, late Feb/early Mar I believe. At 20% the Safari is incredibly tempting. As has been mentioned most of the components are fairly low-end, but reliable. As mentioned in the thread I do have a few reservations about it, esp the disc brakes, but that would only be if I actually use it for an extended tour.

In all honesty while I'd love to do an extended tour sometime, in the foreseeable future the bike would serve mainly as an inclement weather/back-up commuter, in which case disc brakes make perfect sense. But then again, so would a hardtail mtb, which I could also take off-road. Decisions, decisions, decisions...

And I also think positron's suggestions is good as well: Why not use your bent? I've never ridden one, but understand they're way more comfi than an upright bike.

I got on a safari today. The size XL. seemed like a great bike. Tomorrow i will be going back to give the size large a try to get my fit perfect. I really liked the handle bars. And i would really like to buy an REI bike cuz if u have a membership they have lifetime satisfaction warranties. So if the sale price comes along at the later date i can simply bring in my receipt to get the difference if its within 30 days. And if not i can simply return the bike and get a brand new one at the sale price. If something goes wrong....i just have to bring it in. Having a lifetime warranty just seems great and their customer service is awesome hardly any qeustions asked with returns.

another reason i am selling my recumbent is that im selling it for $150 more than i paid for it, plus im keeping all the extras that i got with it which is another bonus. Somone is coming to pick it up in the morning. Im glad i had the experience with the recumbent, but i find myself wanting to ride daily...and its such a hassle to get in and out of the house. I just want to ride :)

edit: im 6 feet tall with a 33 inch inseem i think. Im guessing im going to be in between a large and XL and wondering if its better to go a tad small or a tad big?

brad, yeah the Safari is a really unique bike, at least for the US bike market. I can't think of any other mtb-based touring frames out there. As I've mentioned my biggest gripe is that it's disc brake-only. I'm not opposed to disc brakes, but would like the option of rim brakes (they'd probably be better for an extended tour b/c they're simpler and there are no rack/fender mounting issues). But if you'll be touring entirely or mostly in the US you'll probably be fine w/discs.

I really wish REI sold an upgraded version for, say, about $200 more.

However, if you did want to spend 2000 or more, this looks like quite a touring bike -

http://www.ifbikes.com/OurBikes/Road..._Independence/

and those prices are just for the frame and fork.

Well i test rode the Safari in a large and it appears i am in between sizes. I think ive narrowed my search down to a LHT in a 56 or 58 (not sure which one, im 6 feet tall with a 33 inch inseem and i heard these run a bit big so a 56???) or upgrading to a higher end touring recumbent like a bacchetta giro 26 as my vision is very bulky with full suspension and just a bit slow and old in general.

*and i would like to buy NEW from a companny with a good warranty and customer service.