makosz81

How much would it cost to buy the whole set up (bike not included) to go on a tour for 30 days? Reliable bike racks, panniers , all necessary tools, clothing with bike shorts, tent, mat. etc...

I am thinking of doing fully self supported tour around lake Michigan with some detours to visit some places I'd want to stop by.

Also about how much would it be each day?

Thank You

MassiveD

My wife did a summer bike tour with world famous a-frame tent, bike she picked up from a charity etc... She had a great time.

If you want some credible version of "real" touring stuff:

Bike 1300-2000, There is also the windsor tourist etc... or second hand
panniers, assuming 4 100-200.
racks assuming 2 50-200
tent 200
bag 100
foam pad 10-30
misc gear like post stoves, lights etc, 200 and up.
Clothes. I wear regular clothes, but made inserts for the seats, and use cycling sandals. so call it 100-200, gloves 20

There is really no upper limit, once you enter the custom everything,a nd bike jewelery, rancy camping worlds. You could spen 10-20K pretty quickly.

It is really hard to know what daily costs are. That is a regular thread item. I found it expensive because, while I am cheap, a bike trip takes about 10 times longer than an equivalent car trip, so that is 10 times everything, except gas. Some people say they can do it for 10 bucks, but there are also places where that is the cost of a cup of coffe. Like if you are on the road and had a red bull and a coffee, that's ten buck. I don't drink energy drinks or store coffee at home, but whatever you want on the road, is pretty much going to cost something. I don't drink bottled water, pop, etc... at home, but if it gets hot enough, and I can't scam some water, I may end up buying 10 dollars of gatorade.

There may be offset items that you don't do at home. Like if you are paying your own way in life, the rent is still payable, or taxes, but the food you would otherwise eat, or entertainment, eating out. Magazines, movies, are at the very least going to move somewhat to that budget item called your trip.

You can also go gear snob and sorta cheap out. Ray Jardine is a huge gear snob, but in his book he is ahead if he uses a poly tarp, rather than a tent. Look at his various bike trips at rayjardine.com. He basically bypassed the whole touring thing, but going ultralight with one bag. And he uses cheap bikes, though that didn't always pan out for him.

Tourist in MSN

Have you considered going to a store that sells bikes and also sells camping gear and looking at the prices and talking to the sales staff?

I have seen people tour with a whole setup that probably cost less than my panniers and racks alone. It depends on your desire for quality and light weight. I think my gear is in the middle of the cost range, there are bikes out there that cost more than my entire package.

BigBlueToe

This is too difficult a question. There is such a wide range of stuff available and different people want different levels of quality, different features, etc. I'd give it a try if you asked about one thing at a time - racks, panniers, tent, sleeping bag, cooking gear, clothes, tools, etc. If you do some searching on each of these you'll probably find some discussions on this forum.

My personal taste is to buy good quality stuff. It's nice to have good stuff, and it will last for years. It might be expensive up front, but you can take the same stuff touring for the next 15-20 years if you want.

john426

Dear Mako:

Go on craigslist to buy stuff. I got a rear rack for $ 15, front and rear light for $10, fenders for $ 10, panniers for $ 20 and a winter weight sleeping bag for $15. Now is a good time to look becuase people are not using this stuff and you can often get it for a song. Do not get bike shorts, comfortable regular shorts work just fine (plus you will not look like a bike nerd). I went on my first self supported bike tour in Quebec and spent less than $ 200 (including the bike!). However I did have all the camping equitment and tools already and it does not bother me to have used stuff. I rode an old Super Bike in Quebec (a Canadian brand) and that bike started more conversations than my American accent in rural Quebec. Your trip sounds like lot of fun so have fun finding your stuff on the cheap.

John

Cyclebum

I started cheap not knowing what I was doing and whether I would enjoy touring. I did. In hindsight, I wish I'd spent a lot more up front on quality stuff. But, how's one to know that at the onset?

One approach would be to buy quality up front. If touring turns out NOT to be your 'thing', then quality is easy to resell. Would be like you had rented the gear. A set of slightly used Ortlieb panniers would sell immediately on Craigs or on www.crazyguyonabike.com. You could maybe recouped 60-70%.

Figure on minimum of $15/day, free camping, no restaurants. That's with a bit of discipline, no surprises, tour time only. More realistically, $25 and up, depending.

Jude

You can always wear any clothes you already have (just make sure you have enough to keep you warm and dry), ride any old bike (just make sure it's either in decent enough condition to ride, has enough low gears to get you up any hills/through any exhausted last miles of the day, and that you know how to fix what goes wrong and/or are willing to pay for repairs and replacement parts if needed), and use any old cheap camping gear. A cheap tent will do you, just as long as it'll keep the rain, wind and bugs off you - or go for a hammock setup (www.hammockforums.net has all the info you need to know, also www.tothewoods.net is good). It'll just be heavier and not as durable than if you spent more money. A pad to sleep on will be a few bucks at Walmart, a cheap sleeping bag will again be heavier than necessary but serviceable, and a cheap stove and any pan from home will be enough to cook with.

Weight is the main place you'll be trading off for not spending enough money - also durability, but that's more of a long term concern. With stoves, if you want to save money in the long run, get the MSR Whisperlite Internationale stove. It's like 80 bucks up front (including a fuel bottle if you get it used) but you can fill it with any old gasoline from a gas station, which means it will pay for itself before too long (gas canisters are pretty expensive, comparatively). Plus its super durable and you can take it anywhere in the world. It's what I did and I'd recommend it despite it being inconvenient and that burning gasoline generates a lot of soot.

prathmann

Same here, and I think it was the right way to go even though I ended up replacing quite a few items over the years. But when I did replace them I had a much better idea of what I really wanted than I would have had originally.

First tent was a $15 A-frame from a big box discount store. It held up fine on many bike tours and backpacking trips, but I eventually replaced it with a better tent that didn't flap as much in the wind and didn't fall over if another camper tripped over a guyline - gave it to a friend for his kids to use for backyard 'camping'. First sleeping bags we bought were $20 each from K-Mart. They held up fine too but were bulky and heavy. Later got a down bag that weighs less than 2 lbs. and compresses very small. Am still using cheap panniers. Current set is Nashbar's 'Waterproof' model - they were on sale recently for $30/pair and have held up fine for several bike tours (also still have my original set of panniers to lend to friends). And I've never spent more than $20 for a bike rack, nor have I had any issues with them when touring.

So even buying new stuff you should be able to get by for around $100 - less if you're willing to check out used items. But you might want to spend more on items where you have a good idea about features that you want to have.

rodar y rodar

There`s something to be said for Cyclebum`s comment that schnazzy stuff would be easier to resell if you didn`t end up liking bike touring, but that could end up being a much bigger check than going budget the first time around. Look at your bank statement, then flip a coin if you`re still on the fence.

A few ways to cut expenses:
top of the list, use things you already have. It sounds like you already have a bike that you`re comfortable and confident with. Do you already have car camping gear? That`ll save you a bundle. If not, you might consider not camping. Warmshowers and Couchsurfing will probably be able to net you several nights stay on your route, if you shell out for a hotel on the other nights, your total outlay might not be too much. Also, not carrying camping gear would make it pretty easy to get along with just a big handlebar bag and a cheap rack trunk. As mentioned, "bike" clothes aren`t a necesity. In fact, many of us actually prefer clothes that weren`t intended for bicycling. If you do carry camping gear, a trailer is probably less expensive than racks and panniers. Do you need a stove? I do because I ain`t going nowhere until I get my coffee, but if you can do without that coffee, or can be sure you`ll always sleep within shouting distance of a gas station, you can save money, space, and weight by "going cold". Alcohol or solid fuel tablet stoves split the difference between white gas or butane stoves as far as cost, weight, and space goes. And you definitely can do without even the least expensive fancy cookset at REI or MEC. For sleeping bags and tents, remember that funcitonal is usually very cheap and more $$ mostly just reduces weight and bulk.

Unsolicited advice:
don`t worry too much about having perfect gear. Perfection doesn`t exist and most of us keep revising and evolving our methods and packing lists over time. Don`t put off going because (insert excuse here) isn`t right or you don`t know anybody to go with or you`re waiting for the next season to roll in. If you do that, you`ll never get beyond your driveway.