I think he also has a one-post-per-thread limit too.

Trek 620s are nice, purpose made touring bikes, only made as far as I know for a few years in the mid 80's. Switching bars is relatively easy, but not as easy as it would be with a threadless stem. See if the shop will swap out some wider bars from their parts/take-off bins for you. Those bikes take fenders pretty easily, are there super fat tires on it? If everything is in good shape, the only thing to think about is wheel size - Trek 620's came stock with 27" wheels, though with the right brakes you can switch to 700C wheels if you really want to. As far as I'm concerned, between Conti Gatorskins and Panaracer Pasela TGs there are very good touring/commuting tire choices, so I keep 27" wheels on my bikes that were originally equipped with them.

In Chicago, $350 for a 105-equipped 620 would be gone in a heartbeat. Not sure what the market prices are where you're at.

People tour the Oregon Coast on all sorts of bikes, 'touring' soon becomes a adverb.
An action done rather than a thing to be bought..

They offered to put on tires.... that's it. I'm leaning toward new bike.

Good idea Tarwheel, but no dealers within 500 miles.

A bike with 132.5 mm rear drop outs would allow you to put a road wheel (130mm hub) with thin tires (e.g 23 mm) for good weather commuting, and change to a 135mm mtb hub wheel with stronger rims and wider tires for touring.

I agree with this from my experience. My LHT is so comfortable but I get so paranoid about leaving it. The Cannondale with the IGH is much easier to shift and operate in traffic and my fear is eased when I leave it.

This is what i commute on ......... http://www.konaworld.com/road.cfm?content=sutra

Trek 620 pics
 

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I'll try to attach pics here of used Trek 620. I've ridden it, it runs well. I wonder if I will have trouble finding parts? They'll give me new tires. 25.5" frame, 35" standover. I remeasured my standover, I'm at 36" without shoes.
They want $329 for it.


I'm down to about the same 4 bikes.... this one above,
Raleigh Sojourn
Surly Cross Check
Bikes Direct Windsor Touring

Most of you have recommended the Surly, having trouble coughing up the cash without seeing the bike, the LBS has to order it. They said they will "work with me" if it doesn't fit well.


Any suggestions welcome.

I belong to a Touring Club. The most forgiving bikes for long trips are the Trek 620's and 520's, IMHO. The Surly LHT is right up there too!

However, my favorite of all times is a Soma Saga that's got Shimano Deore Derailleurs, Shimano 8 speed V-Brifters, with 700cc Weinmann wheels, and 700 X 32 Panaracer Crosstowns. Rides like a Dream.....

There's a Casseroller in the group too who swears by Salsa!

PS.

Commuting on a Trek 620 is like driving a Bentley to High School.

You shouldn't have any trouble at all finding parts for the Trek. At 1/3 the price of the other bikes on your list (1/2 in the case of the Windsor Touring, though that's obviously another one you can't ride before buying), to me it's a no brainer - get the Trek. Of course I'm cheap, and partial to 80's Treks. Interesting that someone replaced the cantilever brakes with sidepulls, though it does look like there's enough clearance for fenders/fatter tires. Pretty easy and cheap to switch back to cantilevers if you want maximum tire and fender clearance.

Of course, if you really want a brand new bike, you should just do that. These 1980's sport/touring bikes are great commuting/touring/road workhorses though, and at a much cheaper price.

I am 6' 2" with a 36" standover height with shoes. I also have 36" sleeves. I look for a frame based on top tube length. I have found that a 24" top tube with a 12 cm stem length works well for me. When I was looking for a touring/commuting frame last year, I finally decided on a Salsa Vaya. It is available as a complete bike or a bare frame. I got the bare frame and built it up. I am very happy with mine. I am also 63 yrs. old and 250 lbs and never did climb hills well, so I like low gearing. I buy 94/68 cranks from ebay these days so I can get a 20 tooth granny. Old age is a *****.

That's funny Slim.