@RyanFrog what kind of tyre clearance are you looking for? Your current bike looks very suitable to me.
I toured India on a hardtail mountain bike and I'm slowly collecting parts to build my ideal rough stuff tourer.
26" steel frame
120mm coil forks with lockout
Drop bars
a) because it's extremely dull riding across vast plains into a headwind
b) your fingers and forearms will thank you
stem extender (steerer extender thingy)
mechanical road disk brakes (simple and light enough to take a spare)
3 x 8 speed chainset 22 / 32/ 44 was a bit too low geared, I'd experiment with 46t big ring
Mavic 719 rims XT hubs were fine
2.1" semi slick tyre rear
2.1" mtb tyre front so you can scramble onto the gritty verge and avoid trucks
Inner tubes!
spare folding tyre
Rear rack that won't rattle apart but can be removed quickly to gain access to rear wheel / unclutter the bike when you're stopping somewhere for a while.
frame / bar bags, nothing on the forks
Clip on mirror
Big fat comfy Selle Gel Saddle
Kit:
Not all my best kit but the things I can can afford to ditch along the way. Cotton cargo shorts, safe the world over. Clothes I can ditch, cut up and abandon as things heat up. Go to African markets cheap clothes rather than lug expensive mountaineering kit all over the tropics!
I'm not sure if Africa is the same but plenty of people in India were generally excited by, and wanted to touch my bike, play with levers, shifters and anything left on the bike mirrors lights etc. I opted to keep most of my valuables and accessories in a belly bag / handlebar bag.
I've also toured with a clip on front basket which was great with 700c wheels, this is the kind of thing you can afford to experiment with on tour, bike mechanics and kit is generally much cheaper.
Just my take
I toured India on a hardtail mountain bike and I'm slowly collecting parts to build my ideal rough stuff tourer.
26" steel frame
120mm coil forks with lockout
Drop bars
a) because it's extremely dull riding across vast plains into a headwind
b) your fingers and forearms will thank you
stem extender (steerer extender thingy)
mechanical road disk brakes (simple and light enough to take a spare)
3 x 8 speed chainset 22 / 32/ 44 was a bit too low geared, I'd experiment with 46t big ring
Mavic 719 rims XT hubs were fine
2.1" semi slick tyre rear
2.1" mtb tyre front so you can scramble onto the gritty verge and avoid trucks
Inner tubes!
spare folding tyre
Rear rack that won't rattle apart but can be removed quickly to gain access to rear wheel / unclutter the bike when you're stopping somewhere for a while.
frame / bar bags, nothing on the forks
Clip on mirror
Big fat comfy Selle Gel Saddle
Kit:
Not all my best kit but the things I can can afford to ditch along the way. Cotton cargo shorts, safe the world over. Clothes I can ditch, cut up and abandon as things heat up. Go to African markets cheap clothes rather than lug expensive mountaineering kit all over the tropics!
I'm not sure if Africa is the same but plenty of people in India were generally excited by, and wanted to touch my bike, play with levers, shifters and anything left on the bike mirrors lights etc. I opted to keep most of my valuables and accessories in a belly bag / handlebar bag.
I've also toured with a clip on front basket which was great with 700c wheels, this is the kind of thing you can afford to experiment with on tour, bike mechanics and kit is generally much cheaper.
Just my take
