If you want the real vintage touring experience, don't use fancy equipment. Back in the day, most tourists couldn't afford 531 frames and TA cranks. A typical setup was a high-tensile or straight gauge chrome-moly frame, aluminum rims, Acocet seat, 27" gumwalls and Pletscher rack. Weight was carried in huge rear panniers and a big handlebar bar. (Had a horrendous shimmy going down Hwy 1 in Sonoma county and nearly went over the side. Later got one of those expensive Blackburns, and it was a tremendous improvement.) Gearing was usually something like 52/40 with a 14-34 five speed freewheel. I actually had a triple on my Univega with a low of 30"! I almost never saw anyone else with a triple. Did see humorless roadies with loaded racing bikes and corncobs. Bata Bikers and Skid-Lids were common. So was lots of padding on the bars: Grab-Ons or foam rubber covered with tape. One water bottle. Huret Multito counting the miles. Broken flickstand. Leonard Bulger The last night in my Ann Arbor house, bikes cocooned in pipe foam, boxes everywhere.