Mountain Biking - Can someone identify this Cannondale?

I bought this from a friend who needed money. I don't really need a mountain bike so I plan to sell it. The problem is, I don't know what model it is. I've looked at pictures of all different kinds of Cannondale bikes and I see several models that look like this... F400's, F500's, M300's - they all look alike (at least to the untrained eye).

Can anyone help? The only numbers I've found on the bike are on the bottom of the frame, under the crank. They are as follows: F1088 ; 09250 ; B5W17

Thanks in advance!

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1096/962364649_2cdab39c5d.jpg?v=0

Have you tried calling Cannondale?

So you bought off of a friend who needed money and now you're going to sell it for a profit. Is that the plan?

You rock in that case

You rock in that case

Or are a scumbag. Why not just loan your friend money and charge a ridiculous amount of interest? Or is loansharking not legal where you are?

Well - I'm not sure about loansharking in my area. It was actually my brother whom I bought it from. He mentioned in passing that he was taking it to a bike shop and that they were going to give him $150 for it. Being ever the quick thinker, I assumed if they were going to give him $150 for it, they intended to sell it for more than that and turn a profit. So, I told him I'd buy it, list it on eBay, and give him half of anything over $150. Win win situation as long as I can get at least $150 for it...

I wrote down what looks like an ancient scroll of part names that are on it. I'll list all those in the ad, I just don't know what model the bike is. I think the previous owner (before my brother) must have removed the factory stickers or something?

Ok, not as shady as I thought. As far as the model, I am not familiar enough with Cannondale's mountain bikes to comment.

I think that's the Abomination MkIII.

If you call Cannondale they should be able to tell you by the serial number. The first two digits are the frame size, the next 6 digits are the date of manufacture, and the remaining numbers are the unit number (of how many were built that day).

Hey 53flattie,

Cannondale serial number strings have changed a bit over the years, so Bockman's information is correct if the bike was made between 1986 and 1992. Your serial number looks like those being used between 1993 and 1999. I also noticed that the logo on the front is one C'dale was using between '90 & '96. So that narrows you bike down to somewhere between '93 & 96. My guess is that it's a 1995 F500, the paint job is the same as that shown on the '95 F500 in the '95 Catalog. If you go to www.vintagecannondale.com you will find serial number information and how to decode that string of numbers on the bottom of your bike. You will also find .pdf files of old Catalogs.

Good Luck

Thanks so much for the information Haptown!

I actually just got off the phone with Cannondale and your suspicions are correct. It's a 1995 model, size 17. Unfortuantely, that's all they could tell me about it. They were not able to tell me the model based on the serial number. (which is a little surprising to me)

You are correct though - it does look like an F500.

Thanks again for everyone's help!!!

Glad to help, good luck selling it.

Cannondale often used the same frame for many bikes, you could get 4 different versions of a CAAD 3 at one point.

My cousin has that same bike. His is an F500 model, so I think yours must be also.

Hey 53flattie,

Cannondale serial number strings have changed a bit over the years, so Bockman's information is correct if the bike was made between 1986 and 1992. Your serial number looks like those being used between 1993 and 1999. I also noticed that the logo on the front is one C'dale was using between '90 & '96. So that narrows you bike down to somewhere between '93 & 96. My guess is that it's a 1995 F500, the paint job is the same as that shown on the '95 F500 in the '95 Catalog. If you go to www.vintagecannondale.com you will find serial number information and how to decode that string of numbers on the bottom of your bike. You will also find .pdf files of old Catalogs.

Good LuckI aware this is old thread since 08-01-07 stopped to reply their posts.. anyway thank you for link of vintage cannondale what i learning..