I can pick up the LHT frame for $400, throw some spare parts on it, and call it a day (for the time being at least).
My cost for a Long Haul Trucker = $400

The DT frame is $420, $130 for BB7 brakes, and then I'd have to build/buy a set of disc wheels for it ($200).
My cost for a Disc Trucker = $750 - selling my non disc wheels = $650

Primary uses would be 300k+ rides and road touring (me plus cargo = 300lbs).

So for my question; is the Disc Trucker at least 62.5% better than the Long Haul Trucker for my purpose? I've never had disc brakes and I've never really felt the need to have them.

Edit: Can someone with a 700c Disc Trucker or a 700c LHT measure/guess the distance from the fork crown hole to the rim? Another option would be to get the Disc Trucker frame now and run long reach calipers until I build a set of disc wheels and shell out the money for disc brakes.

Personally, I'd say no. I have a non-disc LHT from 2009 (purchased as a frameset), set up with linear-pull brakes and appropriate levers, and I've always felt like the braking is excellent. I've ridden through the Cascades and Appalachians fully loaded and have never had even the slightest sense that I needed better brakes.

That said, if you read through the forums you will find others who feel strongly that discs are much better. And, if you ever think you might wish you had discs, then the upfront cost now is certainly cheaper than changing your mind down the road.

Disc on rear, rim up front. Best of both.

For the disk version to be worth my while, I'd have to routinely do lots of rides in the rain on dirt or gravel roads (so that the grit would not be a problem wearing down rims). Alternatively, I'd have to lots of descending on long, twisty, 10% grades, so I wouldn't have to worry about brake fading. I say lots of those, because on occasional rides I can stop and let the brakes cool, or wipe off the rims and pads.

Your bike, your choice.

You going to park this bike and ride something else when not on a summer tour?

Year around use in foul weather Discs will be a benefit..

Just using it on summer tours? , rim brakes will be fine.

I went disc but only because it allowed me to take the parts from my MTB and toss them on the frame... had I not had all the parts specifically for disc I would have gone standard LHT... as it stands I'm pretty locked into my current setup (MTB titec Jones H bars, shimano dual control MTB with hydro's)... if I want to change my bars to drops I need to goto mechanical brakes and figure out another shifting option all parts that add $$$ quickly...

I like mine.

Brakes are amazing.

I have lots of mountains and lots of rain in Japan, so I went with the Disc Trucker. Depending on where and when you plan on riding, they might not be necessary for you.

Being a heavy guy (330lbs) I will never buy another bike WITHOUT disc brakes. I can only imagine wet rim brakes trying to stop me with a fully loaded bike.

I was one of the ones who favored disc brakes. After 47k miles, I can think of only a few times when I MIGHT have been slightly better off. I still had rims cracking from time to time, but no thinning, of course. In retrospect, I think it doesn't matter. If I were to do it again I would buy discs because I finally figured out how to mount my rear rack...

I'm a big fan of disc brakes and most of my bikes feature them, including my touring bike. My current lightweight road bike doesn't... but my next one might, especially if the new hydraulic road discs are all they're cracked up to be!

It's too bad that Surly didn't have the foresight to make the Disc Trucker's forks compatible with both rim and disc brakes...

Disc front and rim rear is the best of both worlds.

Short answer is no.

From the OP, it sounds as though he is asking, whether the upgrade is worth it. Reasonable question, and by the way, I thought there was a multi page post on this recently... It isn't upgrading as far as I can tell, it is product extension or segmenting. They have the most popular touring frame, what if they miss out on a move to 26 inch wheels, disc brakes, S&S, or maybe gear hubs. Or what if they could simply capture those segments. The fact 26" wheels, discs, and S&S came later doesn't make those things upgrades, it makes them non-core options. The actual classic bike is the LHT, the other stuff is for people with special needs. It's like ultralite camping gear isn't less than a really big tent for car camping, other than on the scale.

Second, while I like the idea that the Disc Trucker is 62% more expensive, and should therefore be at least worth 62% more... That isn't really the calculation. How much in braking worth? Would you spend 62% more to get a bike that could mount brakes, vs one that couldn't? I would. So Disc people come in three flavours: 1) They actually use their bikes in mud etc... where discs have an advantage; 2) They actually believe other brakes don't stop bikes; 3) They are used to buying 4K and up MTBs, etc... and the cost of the Discs is a non-issue. I live in a non-biking part of Toronto, where the bike lanes are like booby traps. But we have a few local bikes stores, and guess what they sell 4k downhill bikes. No mountains in the whole province. But the people with the cash think nothing of spending the 4K.

noted in Shops, doing Repairs, Owners dragging the rear brake more , wears out that rim first.

so the disc fork in a rim brake frame is not universally perfect.

If you like how it handles it's worth it, disc or rim. If you don't know how it handles I'd suggest test riding it and few other bikes.

The price of a stock Disc trucker is ~$1550 while the stock LHT is ~$1350 which is ~15% increase. I know it is not the exact same scenario but if you were going to buy a stock bike the numbers work.

There was a guy over on the Fifty Plus forum that had a review of sorts of his use of the TRP HY/RD road disc system.

Made a lot of sense to me and if i were going for a new tourer frame, would go this route.

https://www.trpbrakes.com/category.ph...1198&catid=206

That's not a system I'd want to trust for a heavy bike on a long descent! Braking with a disc can generate quite a bit of heat. Having the hydraulic fluid which actuates the brake in such close proximity to the caliper would have me worried that you might overheat the brake fluid and experience dramatic brake fade during a long descent. Personally, I'd stick with a tried and true MTB-style hydraulic system, if you need hydraulics: fluid reservoir near the brake lever, connected by a long hose to the caliper.

Pretty much this.

Once I went with disc brakes I liked them to the point that I wound up putting them on almost everything I have.

I have a Disc Trucker. I like that I can swap tires from my MTB for long hauls on gravel. I did bend a rim that would have made for a sporty ride home, but was saved by having discs.

Leave the Bar end shifters on and you can use the full hydraulic brake set.

https://www.trpbrakes.com/category.ph...1207&catid=206

ham, When disc brakes appeared in the automotive and motorcycling worlds, the advantages were pretty apparent. In bicycling the advantages are less apparent, but are there in favor of discs, primarily braking performance when wet. Marketing strategy will assure more bikes are disc braked.

That written, I have nothing against disc brakes yet have no desire to equip, nor replace, my rim braked bicycles. If disks give you some extra assurance, the added expense is worth it.

Brad

Well, I think I've answered my own question. After taking the LHT for a test ride I've decided that it's not for me. I'm sure it handles great under load, but unloaded, it just wasn't "fun" to ride. Seeing how I'd be using the bike both for touring and longer unloaded rides, I've decided to go for the Straggler (which is disc only) instead.

Get the LHT disc. I was running cable disks on my disc only monstercross and, frankly, they suck. Yes, they are ultimately stonger than rim brakes but they are horrible the rest of the time, fingernails on blackboard grinding sensation. I am now running hydraulic MTB discs on an "alt" bar and they are the sweetest brakes ever. If you don't like the idea of an "alt" bar TRP makes a hydraulic brake set for drop bars but shifters are not integrated into them, a lot of people run bar end shifters anyway. Putting hydraulic discs on my bike convinced me that it is the way to go. It made my bike so much better to ride and so much more comfortable.