Classic & Vintage - 1980's (-early 90's) Cannondale road bike

Hello,
I'm new here and wanted to know if anyone could help me figure out what bike I'm riding. I just picked up what I believe to be a mid 1980's Cannondale road bike. The thing was in really good condition and I couldn't pass it up, because I have wanted to get a road bike for some time, especially an 80's one(they look cool). Plus since it was used I got it for what I felt was a good deal, $200. It has all the original parts with only minor rust on a few things. Everything is within working order. I got it out the door for $200. All I had to do was properly seat the brakes and it has been really fun riding this thing; coming from only mountain bikes.

Let me know if you can tell me what this bike is(I can take more photos if any are requested) or if anyone knows of a site that could tell me(haven't had much luck with google).
http://www.parts4vws.com/images/members/redventoglx/DSCF0139.JPG

Thanks

What's the model name? Should be on a chainstay and should be " R or SR followed by a #.

What are the components?

I put together a SR600 in either 1985 or 86. I bought frame only and used a Shimano 600 group. That's about as early an aluminum Cdale as you could get. If the components are friction shifting you're right at the beginning aaround 1985 or so. SIS will move you to a few years later and into the 1990s.

Of course Cdale might answer your question for you. Try emailing them the seerial #.

Is that a dent in the left chainstay?

No. Early Cdales were so oversized they had to crimp the stays to guarantee crank clearance.

Is that a dent in the left chainstay?

there are identical "dents" on both sides in the exact same space, so i figured something like this.

nothing on the chainstays. right where the rear hub mounts to the frame on the left side there is a circle with RH written inside it. this was stamped into the frame before it was painted.

parts:
Dia-Compe brakes, Nitto stem, St. Etienne bars, Suntour Cyclone gearchangers and levers, Sugino GLP peddles, Sugino gears, Rigida wheels, Panaracer 700x25C tires(rear one is getting worn), Sugino seat post, and a Vetta seat. replacing the seat with one i bought off ebay http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=42319&item=3675184642&rd=1
http://i15.ebayimg.com/02/i/01/bf/ea/10_1_b.JPG

what do you guys think? do these sound like the original components and are they decent? how about that seat im getting was it a decent deal?

Looks like a mid 80s as the rear dropouts are not the 'outrigger' type that appeared later. Components sound correct except for the St. Etienne bars. Don't believe Panaracer tires were on the bike either as that brand appeared later.
Owned several C'dales, including a numbered and limited production racing bike (only 150 individually numbered bikes made) that all tig welds were hand filed and looked gorgeous. All came in a blue/silver color except one that was done in black.
Overhaul/grease that C'dale and it will serve you well.
By the way, have a real gem of single for sale: a 1975 Fuji Professional (the first year it came out) with gorgeous lug work and all original stuff (including the 6 speed alloy freewheel) and drilled out crank set; wheels were changed out from sewups to 27" clinhers. A real collectors item for $350 + shipping. It just won best of its class last year at a local bike expo judged by Gord Fraser (the racer who beat some super Italian in the sprint last .
zonatandem@hotmail.com

Is it a steel frameworks? (know little about road or Cannondale really)
Looks very sweet, If it rides as good..nice old pipe.

Noticing the lower rear triangle indent shape for the c-arms- Why are mtb cranks set out further on the BB\ frame?

Hi,
I had a Cannondale that was even older than that one. Had a harsh ride. I would use a seat with some shock absorbtion like my SI Trans Am XLP (Selle Italia makes several saddles with the shock absorber that I have on my XLP. It has a louvered appearance), the biggest tires that will fit, and some sort of handlebar pad. I have been trying the Marsas Pad ( http://www.wallbike.com/oddsnends.html ). I'd get the Audax version. I wrapped shock absorbing bar tape over the pads.

this stuff @ http://www.wallbike.com/oddsnends.html
is pretty cool. i need new bar wraps anyway. notice they are orange, they were originally red... :)

thanks for the info guys.

It looks very much like my SR800 (I don't know the year). It has been rebuilt with Shimano 600 components. It does ride a little harsh but I'm really a mtb'er and use it for some training and triathlons.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=58091&item=3676741990&rd=1

this looks a lot like my bike frame, though slightly larger.
http://i23.ebayimg.com/01/i/01/cb/27/6e_1_b.JPG
http://i13.ebayimg.com/02/i/01/cb/1f/33_1.JPG
http://i15.ebayimg.com/01/i/01/cb/3b/db_1.JPG

here is a second photo of my bike(first is at the top of the thread):
http://www.parts4vws.com/images/members/redventoglx/DSCF0157_edit.jpg

http://www.parts4vws.com/images/members/redventoglx/bike.jpg

new seat, rim reflectors removed, pump mounted.

wow. i emailed cannondale with my Serial # asking if they knew what model my bike was. this was over a week ago. wonder if they are really backed up or simply dont plan on responding because they dont know.

Got the same bike, taller size, bought it from a guy who hardly rode it, for $50, hardly any scratches, didn't even bargain, even the tires were still excellent. Completly overhauled it, re-greased all bearings, trued the wheels, etc. Put a new freewheel (that tells me it's an 80's), new chain, cables and housing, and a new saddle (of course..), total = $120.00, and... it's a nice bike. I also e-mailed the serial number to Cannondale a couple of months ago and no reply, I guess there's no-one at the the other end of line. Ah, well, still I like the bike. I originally intended to resell it but decided to keep it :p

nice you got it really cheap. ya mine is in great shape. way better shape than my old mountain bike. it seems like a real nice bike, good choice on keeping it.

i think i figured out what it is:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=58091&item=3679240837&rd=1

Criterion with the "Shimano 105" on the chainstay. mine doesnt have the chainstay sticker, but the frame and components are identical.

It is probably an SR600, from 1986. I worked there at the time, although details are a little hazy. All models of road bikes used the same frame, so the lower priced models were a great deal because they were worth upgrading components here & there. the "SR" was for the road bikes, "SM" were the mountain bikes & "ST" were the touring bikes. The numbers after the letters ( 400, 500, 600) stood for the approximate retail price at the time. Yours looks like the first or second year of road bike, in which the color choices were red, white & black (I think). Your components don't all sound original, but I really don't remember the specs that well, and Cannondale was mixing & matching from various manufacturers, and later went to spec-ing "gruppos".

Photo tip ..... take the picture from the crank & derailleur side

I just purchased a simular model cannondale and do not know much about it. It's a cannondale shimano 600 SIS. It is blue with white writing. Can anyone tell me anything about it (year, value, ect...).

There is a code in the serial number which gives manu date - but I don;t know the sequence - some of the vintage guys do... but the coding may not have gone into affect until end of 80s.
This is likely an 86, since it has:
1. Seatstay attached into rear dropout - I believe it was 87 ? and on when the seatstay came down and attached forward of the dropout by some 2 inches, directly to the chainstay.
2. Has the steel semisloping crown fork - was replaced because of a 'recall', with a fullsloping unicrown fork, believe that was late summer 86 ? when that recall happened. 87 and on would have unicrown as 'stock'.
3. 86 models went to black nylon TT cable guides, 85 and before had alloy guides.

I just rebuilt my Red SR900, bought by me in 85 (Suntour Superbe/Cyclone mix), and gave it to my son - he luvs it (it still has the same semislope fork as yours - no worries, if they lasted a season, they'd last a lot longer). I never did the fork swap, having already raced it hard for a season, I liked the fork and figured if it hadn't broken over some 30 odd races and quite a few thousand hard training miles, then it wasn't gonna. Built like a tank, this bike munches cheap/weak wheelz.
I also remember them being different colors for different 'models', but the frames were all the same - models varied by component mix, as did the price.
... as I remember... and that ain't certified

Hello,

if you want to have a look at an 80's Cannondale-Catalogue, try www.mtb-kataloge.de , they have a 1988 one online, including roadbikes. Couldn't find yours (but didn't look hard *g), but maybe some general input helps ?

Regards, Bavarese.

I ride a 1986 SR400 that had a number of upgrades at the time of purchase: Suntour Superbe Pro pedals, Mavic GP4's laced to Campy Record Hubs, and Brooks Team Pro saddle. That was cheaper than going up in model numbers to get what I wanted. The brakeset is Dia Compe Gran Compe with Aero levers, Cinelli bars and stem, Suntour Cyclone FD-RD, Suntour Shifters, Sugino GLP crank set, and Sugino seat post. I don't remember if I upgraded the bars and stem or if they were standard. After all these years the bike still goes down the road very well with all of the original components except for tires, front rim, chain, freewheel, brake pads, cables, and bar wrap. The paint is starting to bubble in a few places on the top tube, but otherwise is in great shape. I have the owners manual and I will scan it if you want it. I even have my receipt, but I wonder if Cannondale will honor the $150 no-questions-asked frame replacement offer that came with the bike and what they would replace it with. :D

I bought one of these on ebay last year ($200). I replaced all the cables, installed new pedals and toe clips, new Shimano Tiagra front brake (Dia Compe on the rear is in good shape, the front one had been bent somehow), put on new handlebar tape over gel strips, and recently upgraded to heavier duty touring wheels mostly to switch out and update the rear hub to a hyperglide with a cassette with better gearing for hill riding. Great bike. Good for a whole day of country riding. Not particularly fast, but really dependable. This one fits great and I tend to grab it first for anything except city commuting (friction shifter is harder to use in noisy town traffic)

Mine is painted black - but had better original equipment than the original C-dale "Black Lightning".
When its cleaned up it really looks good. Great value if you can find them stored or lightly used. If you spot one for sale, look closely for Suntour Cyclone derailleurs. If the derailleurs are in cleanable condition, they are worth the ride.

I enjoy the old school style with the friction shifters and toe clips.

I sold an R400 that looked a lot like yours, except for the color. The later R400 were very stiff and rough riding, but very responsive. The one you have should be a little smoother.

I have a Cannondale R800 from about 1994 or so. Right now the components are on a different frame. The Cannondale did have a pretty harsh ride, but was light and fast. One of these days I am going to put the components back on the Cannondale frame and ride it again. The 105 group is pretty nice and never misses a shift.

does anybody know a site that has Cannondale Catalogue's? the one above is great! but there are only 2 Cannondale Catalogue's. im looking for mainly late 80's and 90's

Sorry vr6ofpain, I can't offer help with ID'ing your bike. After reading all the posts, I just wanted to add, this must be the year for buying used Cannondale road bikes. I just picked up mine, an SR500 with headshock. I never knew road bikes came with a shock absorber. Now I own one. Anyway, that is one great looking bike you picked up. I think the price was good. What really matters is, are you happy with the bike. IT sounds like it's in great condition. Good luck with it.

Cannondale serial # decoder ring: first two digits are the size, next 6 are date of manufacture, remainder are unit number. For instance: SN#54021787121 indicates a 54 cm frame, built on February 17, 1987, #121.

and from what time frame to when do they use that system? is it still in effect?

from inception till now. anothe good Old School reference is the headtube sticker- the really old cannondales (like mine) have a cottage on the headtube.

well, i have a 1993 M700, a 1999 F900 and a 2003 Jekyll, and the serial numbers are not like that. i had an 1988 3.0 series. and the SN was like that.

my 93 is like this:

EE------- 05380
0370 ------- L5W20

well, i wasent sure i had a 93, so i just emailed cannondale with the SN, and like 10 mins later they emailed back and said it was a 93. so.... who knows about that code... o well.

so... cannondale says 1993 is when they went to the crazy SN on the BB.