1992 StumpJumper FS, minus the FS. Put on thick-ish slicks (I go 1.4 or 1.5 inch) and a rack. It's my "ride to work" bike (I don't do it quite often enough to call myself a commuter) for my 10-mile ride to work. Last year, I decided to go up into the mountains here in Southern California, and kind of forgot that I didn't have knobbies. It really wasn't an issue on a nice buffed singletrack. I biffed a couple of times, but I think that was more a matter of my rusty bike-handling skills on dirt. I also spent over five weeks touring on it, fully loaded, spending about a week of that on US Forest Service dirt roads. I used Avocet Cross tires (2.4 inch with an inverted tread) for that tour. No flats, broken spokes or trouble of any kind.
But I'm bad at (big) maintenance, and have let the bottom bracket go for too long. I'm starting to think seriously about replacing the Stump. I will probably look at the Surly touring bikes. I'd like another flat-bar, 26" wheel, triple-chainring steel beauty with rim brakes. You'd think that wouldn't be hard, right?
Oh, just re-read the part in your post about the handlebars. You may want to look at the Jones H-bar or something. A flat-bar with bar ends suits my needs quite well, but lots of options out there now. Good luck, let us know how you come out.