bark_eater 

I picked up a 1990 Schwinn Voyageur the other day.


I haven't had a chance to go over it or get pictures but it looks like its in pretty good shape but has definitely had some miles put on it. its got a Suntour XCE groupset with indexed bar ends. I'm sort of planning on cleaning up the frame and building it up with everything from my present attempt at a touring bike, a noodly Koga Miyata City Liner:



Its not a very good photo but its got a heavy 700c NoBS wheelset , VO Crazybars and a 7 speed Shimano Exage/Deore trigger shift group set.
The Koga Miyata deserves a lighter wheelset and more of a "gravelbike" (whatever the kids are calling it theses days) set up.

Question is: Are there any quirks to the 1990 Voyageur that I need to know before Frankenstiening it this winter?

Thanks, Woody

rseeker

Wow, I love the look of a capable bike. I can't wait to see what's under the gear. Very nice.

bark_eater 

The Koga is a very nice frame, but fully loaded up with gear it was pretty much unrideable for the first 150 miles.... much better but not great, for the return trip after I dumped 15 pounds of luggage and moved everything heavy to the front panniers. It looks like a touring bike but really isn't up to carrying a load. The hope is that the Voyageur will be the real deal as far as hauling ability, and compatible with Koga's cockpit and running gear.

rseeker

Ah, so I guess that's the Koga in the picture? Yeah I missed that. I'm looking forward to seeing what you've got.

cog_nate 

The 1990 Voyageur is specced with 27" wheels, not 700C. So, you'll probably have to adjust the brakes. I had a Voyageur of the same vintage (90/91) and had to do so when I converted it over to 700C wheels.

The Golden Boy 

I haven't had a 90 Voyageur; I've had an 86 and have a 1984 Voyageur SP. The mid 80s Voyageurs have some interesting angles on the seat tube and head tube- they have their own ride. By 90- it looks like they'd gone to the 72.5/72.5 with a less steep ST. Touring bikes, in general, went to more stout frames- instead of trying to be the grand tourer of the mid 80s to entice rich people to buy the bikes to be show ponies- these bikes were specced to have more stiffness, and less snob appeal. That's a good thing in a bike- as you've probably noticed with the Koga-Miyata- Thin, lightweight tubes- no matter how prestigious the make or maker- can only be so stiff and strong under load.


BTW- here's the awesome Schwinn Voyageur Comparison Chart Sandro Fouche created- it's been off since Sandro's site has been down- someone grabbed it and hosted it.

cb400bill

I briefly had a 90/91 Voyageur. I found it to be too small and sold it. The only issue that I ran into was setting up the XCE cantilever brakes. But, I'm not much of a mechanic. Here is a link to a thread that I started 8 years ago.

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...er-brakes.html

cb400bill

It's back.

https://sandro.knot.org/wp-content/u...comparison.pdf

https://sandro.knot.org/bike-stable/

The Golden Boy 

I'm glad.

I know he had some health issues- I was hoping his domain name lapsing didn't mean something really bad.

Lascauxcaveman 

I'm not familiar with the City Liner model, but to be fair to your Koga, that looks a bit over loaded, so I'm not surprised it feel noodley under all the baggage. Especially the big bag hanging from the bars; that looks like a lot weight to be carrying up high like that.

For carrying a lot of heavy stuff, you want to go with a very stiff aluminum frame, such as a Cannondale ST.

bark_eater 

I took this picture when I got back to my house, after cutting weight and shifting everything possible to the front panniers. I kept the handle bar bag pretty empty except for what I realy need. like this the bike handled ok. with all the weight forward I could stand up for hills or to sprint crossing highways. I weighed about 250lb when I started.

It was way better than when I started the trip. The first half of the trip I needed to keep a solid grip on the bars or the bike would veer off. It was also impossible to ride out of the saddle.

I would take this bike out again, but this was a summer tour with no extra cloths and an ultralight sleeping bag. I'd like to be able to haul more cold weather gear for the shoulder seasons, so I was sort of resigned to picking up a Long Haul Trucker frame, but the Voyageur popped up in my path. I'd defiantly like to know if its going to be a significantly better weight hauling frame before undoing all the work that went into the Koga.

Ged117 

I own one. It is an excellent bicycle and has a fantastic ride feel. I inherited mine from my uncle. He bought it new in 1990. The remaining Suntour components are in great shape. I replaced the freewheel and cassette with a good shimano unit since the cassette was worn out. After the minor work and a new chain, it shifts perfectly. I've gone through with a big maintenance overhaul with fresh grease and bearings in the hubs and bottom bracket in preparation for years of short and long tours. I'm about to take it on a week long ride with camping from Toronto > Ottawa. With 27 inch panaracer protite tires freshly installed, it is ready to go. I put the regular paselas on my Peugeot. I find the cantilever brakes very reasonable to set up and deal with. They work great. If the suntour gear is in good shape, I would keep it on the bike. There are also great options for 27 inch tires, including folding ones. The colour isn't my favourite, but the price was right, and it has some sentimental value. Peak road touring era machines are also hard to find in my part of the world, and are quite expensive. Have fun with yours. I don't have a decent photo but here goes:




This is an older shot. I've since fitted a Nitto Technomic stem since the frame is a bit small and a new seatpost. It is very comfortable and fit for long rides now. The day here was rainy so I had the cover on the brooks saddle. I was visiting a colonial era cemetery on Wolfe Island in the St. Lawrence River / 1000 Islands area.

bark_eater 

I will try and get this bike overhauled and ride it a bit before committing to the frame swap, but I do have a very clean Bridgestone T700 that is going to be my 27" "vintage" touring bike. The Voyageur looks like its a better candidate for 700c wheels as far as cantilever post spacing and such.

Ged117 

Definitely. It has room for any size you wanna place there and fenders and what not. The frame is among the higher tier of road touring bicycles of the time, and I wouldn't hesitate to load it up for a cross-continent trip and be off. If anything, the ride is surer when a well put together load is placed on it. At least that is what I have found from my testing.