The BD bike has a 48 11 .. silly high gear is a waste . never felt a need to pedal down hill .

maybe fit a 24 t third ring as the low matters more .. or fit a MTB crank on instead, 44 11 is high enough,
the 22 34 may be welcome, heading over a mountain pass.

Wonder what Motobecane got for selling out their brand name to be applied to an Asian mass manufacturer.

if you got one , I'd take it apart and put it back together to know it was done right,
before heading out on the grand odyssey..

You will have to swap out the fork if you want eyelets to attach a front rack and/or fenders using the eyelets. However, they state that they are providing the replacement fork for free. It appears that they goofed on the specs and got bikes with threaded braze ons, but no eyelets.

The Turismo is the bike I would buy for the price range. Don't know anything about the Vuelta wheels, but it otherwise looks like a good set of components that should last. The only things I would replace right off would be the saddle and pedals. For $700, it is a very good deal and you have money left in your budget to pay a bike shop swap the fork and set it up.

I think the Surly CC is fine for the price. Make sure it fits. it seems that you will have half a bike with all the extras the seller is throwing in. Also it gives you some options of selecting the drive train and gearing and brakes.

Pete S and his crew took 3 Tourists across the US a few years back and had generally positive reviews of the bike. Perhaps he'll chime in, or you can do a search. My wife has a Tourist, and has done about 1000 miles of touring on it. There have been no problems. Her wheels were true and adequately tensioned right from BD.

Advice to check true and tension for virtually any wheels is good advice however since practically all wheels you're likely to encounter will be machine made.

On a loaded tour with big hills, you may want to consider lower gearing for the Tourist. Meanwhile the Gran Turismo already has lower gearing on the better quality crank, as well as an 11-34 cassette (11-32 on the Tourist). OTOH, the Turismo has less expensive bar end shifters than the STI shifters on the Tourist. I have no problems with bar ends for touring, but there is a dollar value difference.

Not to veer slightly off, but you can certainly get new 27" wheels and tires that work fine for touring. I did maybe 900 touring miles last summer (some fully loaded, some relatively light) on both road and crushed limestone trail on a set of cheap-o Sun CR-18s with a generic freewheel hub (cost: about $100) and Conti Ultra Gatorskins (which cost almost as much as the wheelset). You can also get Panaracer Pasela Tourguards in 27" sizes. I am about 200 pounds and not a light packer by any stretch, and the wheels are still perfectly true and running smooth. I also don't have problems swapping fenders between my 27" and 700c wheeled bikes, as long as they're wide enough. So if you've got your eye out for an older used touring bike (Trek, Miyata, etc) you don't have to rule them out automatically. Though you certainly can, you should get something that you're happy with.

Ever since I saw that Motobecane Gran Turismo, I've been trying to think of an excuse to buy it. Does anyone have any real life experience with it?

Since you're in Toronto, I'll suggest you go down to Europe Bound on Front Street. I wandered down into their bike shop one day and they had a row of 2007 Opus Largo touring bikes sitting there. I know they planned to bring them to the fall bike show and sell them all (I bought mine in October, right before the bike show) but since they're a 2007 model I suspect they were probably unsuccessful. I picked mine up for less than $800.

No, but my friend just bought a bike from BD and is happy with it. They don't have a stellar reputation for assembly, but if you have some friends that are more tech savvy than you, they can check it out for you. Or, you can have a local shop go over it.

Thanks Chris. You've got mail.

Never heard of that one. Had to look it up. It appears to have been a dept store bike retailing for about $179 (saw one forum post indicating it was on sale somewhere in 2005 for $105). I guess it had front suspension. Definitely sounds like a low-end bike.

I've never toured on anything other than my Hard Rock, so I can't really comment on how it compares to an official touring bike, a road bike set up for touring, or even other mountain bikes, for that matter. But it works well enough that I see no need to look for anything else. I really love this bike.

I'm pretty much sold on the Gran Turismo.
http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/...an_turismo.htm
You guys have been immensely helpful.
I'd love to hear some suggestions on upgrades that could make it even more "Toury" without breaking the bank.

I measured myself up last night for fitting, and I noticed I have a standover height of about 32" so I'm going for the 54cm frame. However I found a formula for calculating my ideal top tube length on this site http://www.cptips.com/bkefit.htm and calculated my TT should be 565mm. This is the length on the 58 cm frame, which has a standover height which is too large for me. The 54 cm frame has a 2cm shorter top tube, is this going to give me comfort issues? Will I be able to adjust something to be a better fit?

Thanks again for any info.

If you are fitting yourself, go to a site (do a search) that is more comprehensive in the measurements. Stand-over height alone is a recipe for ordering the wrong bike. As you see, you already have a 4cm discrepancy.

I have, I think I've got all my relevant measurements here.

Standover height (with shoes) 32"
Inseam 32" (54cm seat tube)

Trunk 26", Forearm 13.5", Arm 27.5" (top tube 56.5cm)

Besides those pcs. of info, how tall are you? They always recommend going one size larger on touring bikes.

5 foot 9

If I get the next size up ill have to wear huge insoles in my shoes to be able to stand over the top tube, I think.

Edit: actually I just measured the bike I'm currently riding and it has a standover of 31.4" with a little clearance. I'm gonna get some 1 inch blocks of wood and put them under the wheels and see how that feels. I anticipate it will be "Snug" to say the least, but if I can standover it without crushing my good bits too badly, should I shoot for the 58 cm frame with 32.5" standover? That would bring the top tube length directly in line with what my measurements say it should be.

Okay so I did the little experiment I mentioned and brought the standover height of my current bike up to a little more than 32.5", and I was surprised that I could standover it ok. The top tube was pretty much the exact perfect point to be touching my pubic bone, but with absolutely no pressure... Meaning I could standover it without discomfort, but it was exactly as deep into my crotch as it could be without discomfort. another 0.1" or so and my weight would be firmly on the top tube. So basically... I could definitely manage it, but I've heard that you should have at least 3cm clearance for the top tube. Any thoughts here? Would it be better to sacrifice that 3cm clearance to have a slightly larger bike for touring and have the top tube length that's ideal for my body?

Do you know the reasoning behind this? Is it better to have a bike which is slightly too big than slightly too small?

Thanks again for the helpful replies btw. :D

Everyone is different but here are some info from other sources that explains the reasoning behind it. Sounds like you're following the manufacturer's recommendation for sizing. Hopefully, that sizing is specific for their touring model, not for their general road bikes. If you want to make absolutely sure, you should pay a visit to your nearest bike shop (that carries touring bikes) to get fitted before placing your order online. You won't regret it. Based on your height and other specs, I'd say you're on the borderline between a 54 or 56cm frame.

http://biketouringnews.com/?page_id=344
http://www.bikeforums.net/archive/index.php/t-321.html

The Turismo doesn't come in 56cm, so you'll probably have to go with 54cm if that is the bike you decide to buy. The next size up from 54cm is 58cm, which will likely be too large. I ride the same frame (on a Tourist) in 58cm size, and I am 6'1".

You might consider a new saddle of your choice that will be comfortable all day. Brooks B17 is recommended by many (it is what I have), but everyone's backside is different. The pedals that come with it have clips. It would be much better to get some clipless pedals and matching shoes, or just get simple platform pedals like the MKS Touring. The rack that comes with it is OK, but a Tubus Cargo rack is more stable with a heavier load. Fenders are nice to have. Planet Bike Cascadia or Harcore Hybrid fenders are inexpensive, light, and durable. A rear blinkie is a good idea, like the superflash. A front blinkie is also a good idea, or a proper headlight (expensive!) if you will be traveling after dark on unlit roads.

....There is really no end to what you could spend money on. :)

I have experience with the Kenda tires that come with it. They didn't last long for me, but I am a heavy rider (>200 pounds). I switched to Schwalbe marathons when my Kendas wore out. The Schwalbe tires have been great. I've since worn out a few of them as well, but they are way better than the stock tires on that bike.

As for fit, your bike shop can probably help a lot. Small adjustments in saddle and handlebar positions can make a big difference in comfort. The bike has a quill stem, which isn't that common these days, but you can still find many quill stems of different sizes if fit is a problem.

I've been exploring all my options and found something that looks really good at near the price point I want. It's also from a local LBS so I wouldn't have to deal with all the bs of shipping from the states.
http://bikedepot.com/product/fuji-touring-64459-1.htm

I've noticed that it doesnt have extended chainstays, just the standard 440mm, but I don't think that will be an issue. I've been touring with panniers on a road bike with standard chainstay and didn't have problems with my heels hitting the bags. So this is probably what I'll end up getting... Can anybody tell me a bit about what they think of this bike... maybe anything you would modify on it? Think it's a good purchase and I'll be happy with it?

I've got some nice fenders sitting around waiting for a nice bike to be put on, I've got a headlight and rear blinkey.. I've got a jandd rear rack that's served me well but which is damaged and ziptied back to life. I'm going to look at this tubus rack you mentioned. I've kinda lost interest in the gran turismo now with all the logistics and costs of getting it toronto. If you could tell me how the Fuji Touring I linked above stacks up against that gran turismo, in your opinion, I'd be very interested to hear it.

Fuji looks like a very nice bike. Only thing I'd consider is replacing the 50tooth chainring with something smaller, a 50/11 is a waste of a cog.

I mentioned this up stream, I ride a Fuji Touring 2010 and I really like it. Comes with decent components at a reasonable price. I can confidently recommend the Fuji Touring. Have put more than 1000 miles on it since getting it and much of it was fully loaded. About the local bike shop, that is a plus also, in my opinion.

I have added SKS silver fenders and front blackburn MT-1 rack, Brooks Flyer saddle and Cateye computer. Something that came on it that I really like is the additional brake cross levers for riding with hands on top of drop bars, very handy. The rear rack that came on it has worked out just fine, when I load up, I load up, usually have about 40 lbs. or so on the rear, panniers and trunk and 20 lbs. or so on the front rack and bar bag.

I have been very happy with the bike, I can and have ridden it all day long. Good luck in your search.

Agreed, I love those cross levers, since I usually only drop down for massive uphills or headwinds. A lot of bikes don't have them, and I didn't even realize this one did, which is a big plus for me. The rear rack that comes with it doesnt seem to be anything special, and I found this from another local bike store and think I'm gonna ditch my old jandd rear rack for it.
http://www.ucycle.com/products/acces...reamliner-road

Any thoughts? The weight capacity seems higher than average, and seems to be specifically for bikes with shorter chainstays which should be perfect with the fuji. I've got some brand loyalty for axiom too.

One other thing I'm wondering, I know a 50 tooth cog is ridiculous for a touring bike, any idea what it would cost to swap that out for a more suitable one? (ballpark)

I'm surprised they market this as a touring bike with its short chainstay and big gears. The geometry is correct though right? Your positive recommendation has pretty much sealed the deal for me in any case.

44cm isn't short, it isn't long, it's in the ball park.

searching around you should be able to find a Salsa chainring for $50.

Regarding the Axiom Streamliner Road DLX I'd pick the regular Streamliner DLX and replace the tube seat stay struts with flat ss. straps. It's what I did on my Cross-Check and it made for a SOLID rack. I then rely on the adjustable mounts on the Ortlieb bags to move it back to clear my size 11 feet. The rack still supported the panniers along the vertical struts. The DLX Road rack with the far rear mounts is a necessity for road bikes with shorter chainstays, the Fuji should be fine. The regular DLX should be more solid given the vertical support down to the eyelets and the double seat stay attachment. I used flat straps because the stock tubular ones mounted too low to the fenders. Also I had mounted an Axiom Journey on a bike and wasnt impressed with it's flexibility. The regular DLX mounted level on my CrossCheck put it about 3/4" behind the brake wire. Short attachment and very solid. This is a 56cm CrossCheck, not sure but I'm guessing it should be similar to the Fuji.

I gather you don't need much of a platform if you're looking at these narrow racks. The weight rating is ridiculous, no one is putting 110lbs let alone 50lbs.