Recommendations for a small touring bike

[Kathi]

I'm 5'2" (almost) and do touring with organizations that sag my gear. I built a custom road bike and use it for all my riding, including tours. Unless you're planning on sagging your own gear a good fitting road bike will work. I really appreciate the lightness of my frame on a 70 mile day.

[Littlerider]

I'm 5'2" (almost) and do touring with organizations that sag my gear. I built a custom road bike and use it for all my riding, including tours. Unless you're planning on sagging your own gear a good fitting road bike will work. I really appreciate the lightness of my frame on a 70 mile day.

Kathi, what are you riding and what is it made of. I've been told that for long rides that I'm going to want steel.

[Kathi]

I ride a carbon/ti Serotta. Yes, steel or carbon especially if your lightweight. A handbuilt wheelset over the stock wheels is an invaluable option for a lightweight rider. The builder can tune the wheels to your weight instead of a 180 lb rider yet they will still be strong enough to handle the rigors of touring.

My wheelset is 650c with 23 width tires. I use Michelin Pro Race tires.

I've been told that aluminum frames have changed but my mid 90's aluminum Cannondale beat me to death even with a carbon fork.

[Crankin]

I built a custom ti road bike with couplers that will be used for travel and touring where I do not carry my gear... although I can put 2 panniers on this bike. I've ridden it with one pannier for shopping and it would do fine for a credit card tour.
I am 5' 1" and I also have a carbon road bike. Both bikes are awesome, but the ti feels very smooth and plush. The bike is almost as light as my carbon bike. I don't have super light wheels and they are 700s, not 650s. I've been riding this bike quite a bit, so I am used to it for my trip in August. Anything I haven't liked about this bike was more related to things I chose myself, i.e. the bars, pedals.
I looked at real touring bikes and it didn't take long for me to figure out that I could never use bar end shifters. The bikes were heavy and kind of ugly to me. I'm never going to do loaded touring, and since I'm used to riding a very light bike, this was a great compromise. I use the bike for regular riding and, it can be broken down for travel.
That, and the fact that when I went to Harris Cycles, of Sheldon Brown fame, they were kind of condescending and were back in the Dark Ages, when it came to fit. I left there rather quickly.

[Sky King]

Littlerider, You can not beat a surly LHT in the price range it falls into. Even Grant Petersen of Bridgestone now Rivendell fame touts Surly as the best bike for the price. Hope you enjoy test riding.

[Kathi]

I built a custom ti road bike with couplers that will be used for travel and touring where I do not carry my gear... although I can put 2 panniers on this bike. I've ridden it with one pannier for shopping and it would do fine for a credit card tour.
I am 5' 1" and I also have a carbon road bike. Both bikes are awesome, but the ti feels very smooth and plush. The bike is almost as light as my carbon bike. I don't have super light wheels and they are 700s, not 650s. I've been riding this bike quite a bit, so I am used to it for my trip in August. Anything I haven't liked about this bike was more related to things I chose myself, i.e. the bars, pedals.
I looked at real touring bikes and it didn't take long for me to figure out that I could never use bar end shifters. The bikes were heavy and kind of ugly to me. I'm never going to do loaded touring, and since I'm used to riding a very light bike, this was a great compromise. I use the bike for regular riding and, it can be broken down for travel.
That, and the fact that when I went to Harris Cycles, of Sheldon Brown fame, they were kind of condescending and were back in the Dark Ages, when it came to fit. I left there rather quickly.

Besides the looks and weight of touring bikes I too was concerned about the fit. I don't know how Surly's fit but at one time I looked at the geometry of touring bikes and realized that because of my size I'd never get the fit I need.

If you need to take weight off a bike the recommendation is to lighten your rotating weight with a lighter wheelset. Plus, a wheelset built for a 180lb rider will feel stiffer to a lighter weight rider.

I had my bike built for 650's because I didn't want any compromises on the fit of the frame. My fitter said he would not have put 700c's on that small of a frame. Besides, the 650's look proportionally nicer on the small frame.

People ride all kinds of bikes on the tours I do. My best advice is to buy a bike you can afford and be sure it fits very well. A good fitter will help you with this. If your bike doesn't fit well you will feel it on back to back days.

[Kathi]

One point about the Surly is that you can run wide tires on it. That's great if it's something you think you will need but on the tours I have done I've had no need for wide tires. Occasionally you'll run into road construction or a detour that could be gravel for a short distance but not enough to require wide tires. On tours that need wide tires, like the Mickelsen trail in S. Dakota, I use my mountain bike with light trail tires.

Also, I have no desire to add weight to my bike so I don't load it down with unnecessary stuff. When I do need extras I use my Camelback which holds everything I need.

[jezbael]

I just bought a Surly LHT in anticipation for my first big tour this summer. I love it. It's technically a little big for me -- I'm 5'5", and the bike is 52" -- I can just clear the topbar when I'm standing. However, I like the fit for my reach, and I don't even notice the height because I'm almost never standing straight up over the bar with both feet on the ground. I'm almost always at an angle with one foot on the pedal.