I am nowhere near as proficient at touring as most here but I do have a little experience with Bike Direct bikes and the Windsor Tourist model. I didn’t buy mine from BD but found it on craigslist in nearly new condition from someone that bought it and it was a bad fit for them and I figured at half price I would give it a try, and it was nice having the opportunity to ride it and look it over first. I had thought about buying on line from them but the reviews and lack of bike shop support kept me away.
Here are my honest assessments after a couple years with the bike. The components listed in the spec sheet by brand name are all of good quality and I saw no issues with. The frame I believe is the same as the Fuji tour, it seems quite strong and well built, no issues. The items not spelled out by brand names are of fair to good quality kind of generic brands hubs, bars etc. There has been a widely reported problem with spokes. Some people have seen them others not. I broke 2 spokes the first season I had it and after 4 in the first two weeks of this year I said enough and had them professionally rebuilt with DT spokes. The wheel builder said the hubs were ok and of good enough quality he didn’t see a issue using them over same with the rims. I actually strain tested the old spokes in a lab and found them to be as strong as the DT's the heads were not as thick. But I really think it was more of a case of poor assembly than the spokes. At very least I would recommend getting the wheels trued and tensioned from the beginning by a qualified person and maybe consider spokes.
I wasn’t happy with the gearing from the beginning 52-42-30 and 11,32 in the back. I first dropped the granny to a 26 and added a chain minder. I used it all last year in that mode and this spring changed the cassette out to a 12,36. I also experimented with a mtn crank on it 44-32-22 and didn’t like that setup and went back to 52-42-26. I do plan on dropping the 52 to a 48 and that will be my final configuration. I mention this because you said you wanted to tour but also use the bike as a commuter also. That is the same thing I use the bike for and that’s how I found I like 42 as a center gear across the 12,36 range and having the 48 across the 12 thru 24 will work nicely for commuting.
I replaced the seat and stem but those were personal preferences as I wanted a higher drop position to suit my riding style.
The rear rack that comes with it is fine although a bit light duty for heavy cargo. I ended up altering that also only because I had some special requirements I needed. I would say the rack would be fine for light touring and if you plan on heavy loads upgrade the rack system.
All in all I have about $300 in upgrades with the wheels and gearing. I may have been able to avoid some of that had I bought something new and custom. Then again I most likely wouldn’t have known then what I know now about what I wanted without the Windsor to experiment with.
Here is a photo of my Windsor about half loaded. I am happy with my outcome even though there was a learning curve. Of the models you listed the only one I would consider for touring is this one. Many bike shops don’t have real Touring bikes on hand. If I were to buy new from BD I might try and find a local shop tell them what you want to do and ask them if they might work with you doing some of these things and fitting you to the bike before actually purchasing it. I personally haven't had any issues with getting the two LBS in my town to help me out with the bike.
PS things I forgot:
I did have a set of fenders on hand salvaged from a old bike that had lots of room to mount. Something you will find harder to do on non touring models.
This is the only bike I own that I put a kickstand on, somewhat controversial on a tour bike. Using it as a commuter it comes in really handy though. The plate behind the BB is made to take a kickstand but there is a spare spoke storage area there to hold 3 spokes and it makes mounting the kick stand a bit of a problem.
I may have misspoken above, I hadn't seen the Motobecane Gran Turismo you mentioned before. That actually has gearing more to my liking. I might have opted for the bar end shifters over the STI's at the time, but now I really love the STI's even though I lowered them taking the hood position out of play. That again was just a preference I have for riding in the drops and having great access to the leavers. you also mentioned that you liked the cyclocross type brake on the tops. Those could always be added and I added a single front brake to the top position on mine and use it all the time when I'm up there.
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