Classic and Vintage Bicycles: What's it Worth? Appraisals and Inquiries - Cannondale SR800 Value and Fitment Questions

Hi all,

I've been riding my track bike all this time, but I would like to get a road bike for commuting in the city.

I've always loved the look of the Cannondale track, so I looked at the older Cannondale road bikes.

I came across a classic SR800 on Craigslist, size 53. It looks to be in very good condition. Has all its original Suntour Superbe Pro components with Mavic tubulars.

He is asking $299. Is this is a good deal or overpriced? Coming from the track bike scene, SSP components are highly sought after, and very expensive. Is this the same for the road bike scene?

In addition, I usually ride a size 52, but would a size 53 fit me? I ask this because I do not know the sizing for Cannondales.

Hi all,

I've been riding my track bike all this time, but I would like to get a road bike for commuting in the city.

I've always loved the look of the Cannondale track, so I looked at the older Cannondale road bikes.

I came across a classic SR800 on Craigslist, size 53. It looks to be in very good condition. Has all its original Suntour Superbe Pro components with Mavic tubulars.

He is asking $299. Is this is a good deal or overpriced? Coming from the track bike scene, SSP components are highly sought after, and very expensive. Is this the same for the road bike scene?

In addition, I usually ride a size 52, but would a size 53 fit me? I ask this because I do not know the sizing for Cannondales.

Hi scooby. I would say that's a pretty good deal, especially if you don't mind learning to deal with tubulars. The "SR" means it's one of the Criterium frames, which are very stiff and fast. I rode one for about 6 months or so before selling it for a steel road bike. Mine had an aluminum fork and I actually found the ride to be almost too harsh. For comparison, I have a 90's Cannondale track with the steel fork, and even given the considerably steeper angles it yielded a softer ride. Some of the early Criteriums came with steel forks though, I believe.

Regarding size, if it's a "Cannondale" 53 I think it will fit you. They generally had short top tubes for any given "size."

Thanks for the quick and detailed response!

I'm guessing it is a "Cannondale" 53. I researched more and the 53 comes with a 21.8 inch top tube. I converted that and it's about a 55cm. That seems a little too big doesn't it? My current track bike has a top tube of 53.5cm. Do road bikes have different fitment?

Also, I don't know if I would want to deal with the tubulars. How hard would it be to change the cassette to a new clincher wheelset? Sorry for my lack of "road" knowledge. Thanks!

Thanks for the quick and detailed response!

I'm guessing it is a "Cannondale" 53. I researched more and the 53 comes with a 21.8 inch top tube. I converted that and it's about a 55cm. That seems a little too big doesn't it? My current track bike has a top tube of 53.5cm. Do road bikes have different fitment?

Also, I don't know if I would want to deal with the tubulars. How hard would it be to change the cassette to a new clincher wheelset? Sorry for my lack of "road" knowledge. Thanks!

Hmm, well you may need to just ride it to see how it feels to you.

Changing to clinchers would be pretty easy. You may also need to buy a new cassette or freewheel though. Road gear clusters came in two basic designs: the older ones used "freewheels" which screwed on kind of like track cogs; the newer design is a "cassette" which uses a splined system. The rear dropout spacing also changed over time - from 126mm (older, usually 6 or 7 speed) to 130. Not sure what year the bike you're looking at is but if you bought a replacement wheelset you'd want to take that into account. Spreading aluminum is a bad idea IMO.

I'm a HUGE fan of the older Cannondale frames. They were the lightest frames in the world and the stiffest. If you're coming from a track background I suspect a steel bike would feel all wriggly in the bottom bracket and you'd be frustrated by how inefficient they are during your big efforts. Nothing is comparable in terms of acceleration and climbing to a vintage Cannondale.

Even new Cannondale's have made significant compromises to accomodate the perception that they are too harsh. However, no bike compares to the almost telepathic connection they give to the road, the road feel is uncanny, and the performance is off the charts. You won't find a similarly comparable bike even amongst the multi-thousand dollar carbon offerings.

Remember that when these hit the road every frame on a Tour de'France bike was not only heavier but remarkably less efficient.

With access to a cheap 155g Carbon seatpost (Performance Forte), Carbon 1" forks, and even carbon bars and stems I think its ridiculous that these bikes get discounted. They flat out are amongst the fastest road frames ever made.

I ride my old Cannondale without carbon anything. On the original fork, even.

I don't think its overharsh, or even harsh for that matter. Then again I come from a mountain biking background. I think a lot of roadies grew up on wriggly and cushy steel bikes and aluminum bikes are a different thing altogether. Many believe that 'steel is real'. I've always found 'em to be very flexy, inefficient, and just not fun to ride.

The Cannondale is a rocket. If you like to ride, and ride fast it will handle precisely and nothing will ever compare.

I'm a huge C'dale fan with the classic Cannondale road bike, Cannondale tandem, and Cannondale mountain bike.

I couldn't recommend this bike highly enough.

However, an Italian handmade steel bike it ain't. There is something to be said for riding on a handmade Italian frame dripping with Campy components on epic 100k or 200k rides.

One other thing, every Cannondale frame was the same back then. The only difference between them was the paint and the components. You get the same frame on every bike.

Also the cantilevered rear triangle (what people refer to as the Criterium frame) wasn't different than the others. All 3.0 frames were Cantilevered. It made the bike stiffer, faster, more efficient, and lighter.

Perception amongst roadies, even those that have never ridden a C'Dale, has been engineering compromises into Cannondales ever since.

One other thing, every Cannondale frame was the same back then. The only difference between them was the paint and the components. You get the same frame on every bike.

Also the cantilevered rear triangle (what people refer to as the Criterium frame) wasn't different than the others. All 3.0 frames were Cantilevered. It made the bike stiffer, faster, more efficient, and lighter.


The Criteriums had larger downtubes and different geometries.

The Criteriums had larger downtubes and different geometries.

Patently untrue. Try reading the catalogs...

This is a complete falsehood that gets perpetuated for no good reason. When the 3.0 frame made its debut there were three frame styles offered. The mountain frame, the Criterion racing frame, and the touring frame.

Every road bike in the lineup received the cantilevered redesigned rear triangle referred to as the 'Criterium Racing Frameset' .

To reiterate EVERY road bike had the Criterium frame:

SR 2000 Dura-Ace bike
SR 900 Campy Athena bike
SR 800 Ultegra bike
SR 700 Suntour GPX bike
SR 600 Shimano 105 (7-speed) bike
SR 500 Suntour Edge bike
SR 400 Shimano 105 (6-speed) bike
SR 300 Suntour Blze bike

The ONLY bikes in the entire Cannondale lineup that didn't have the cantilevered 'Criterium Racing Frame' were the mountain bikes, and the three loaded Touring bikes:

ST 1000
ST 600
ST 400

Again it a complete misnomer that there were 'two styles' of road frames offered by Cannondale, the Criterium, and a non-cantilevered version.

The ONLY non-cantilevered frames that weren't mountain bike frames were hard-core loaded touring frames with lower bottom brackets, a heavier and stiffer frame (than the 3.0 Criterium no less!), triple water bottle bosses, bosses for low-riding fork mount panniers, eyelets for fenders and rear racks.

Again these were the touring frames.

Every bike was a Criteriium early on, that is every bike that wasn't a mountain bike frame, or one of three bikes designed for loaded touring.

I tried attaching the '89 Cannondale Catalog in .pdf form but there seems to be a limit on the file size of attachments.

Patently untrue. Try reading the catalogs...

This is a complete falsehood that gets perpetuated for no good reason. When the 3.0 frame made its debut there were three frame styles offered. The mountain frame, the Criterion racing frame, and the touring frame.

Every road bike in the lineup received the cantilevered redesigned rear triangle referred to as the 'Criterium Racing Frameset' .

To reiterate EVERY road bike had the Criterium frame:

SR 2000 Dura-Ace bike
SR 900 Campy Athena bike
SR 800 Ultegra bike
SR 700 Suntour GPX bike
SR 600 Shimano 105 (7-speed) bike
SR 500 Suntour Edge bike
SR 400 Shimano 105 (6-speed) bike
SR 300 Suntour Blze bike

The ONLY bikes in the entire Cannondale lineup that didn't have the cantilevered 'Criterium Racing Frame' were the mountain bikes, and the three loaded Touring bikes:

ST 1000
ST 600
ST 400

Again it a complete misnomer that there were 'two styles' of road frames offered by Cannondale, the Criterium, and a non-cantilevered version.

The ONLY non-cantilevered frames that weren't mountain bike frames were hard-core loaded touring frames with lower bottom brackets, a heavier and stiffer frame (than the 3.0 Criterium no less!), triple water bottle bosses, bosses for low-riding fork mount panniers, eyelets for fenders and rear racks.

Again these were the touring frames.

Every bike was a Criteriium early on, that is every bike that wasn't a mountain bike frame, or one of three bikes designed for loaded touring.

I tried attaching the '89 Cannondale Catalog in .pdf form but there seems to be a limit on the file size of attachments.



Rumors begin somewhere....

It looks like 1989 was the only year a single road geometry was offered. In subsequent years:

The 1990 and 1991 Cannondale catalog shows 2 distinct frame geometry charts, one for the 'Road' and a second for the 'Criterium'. Both frames are 3.0 and referred to as 'canilevered'.

Rumors begin somewhere....

It looks like 1989 was the only year a single road geometry was offered. In subsequent years:

The 1990 and 1991 Cannondale catalog shows 2 distinct frame geometry charts, one for the 'Road' and a second for the 'Criterium'. Both frames are 3.0 and referred to as 'canilevered'.

Okay, I looked over the 1990 Catalog and there definitely was a distinction between the "Road" frame and the "Criterium" frame in terms of geometry. I was wrong about that.

They both are cantilevered in the rear triangle, though.

The "SR" means it's one of the Criterium frames, which are very stiff and fast. I rode one for about 6 months or so before selling it for a steel road bike. Mine had an aluminum fork and I actually found the ride to be almost too harsh. For comparison, I have a 90's Cannondale track with the steel fork, and even given the considerably steeper angles it yielded a softer ride. Some of the early Criteriums came with steel forks though, I believe.

Regarding size, if it's a "Cannondale" 53 I think it will fit you. They generally had short top tubes for any given "size."

In looking at the 1990 Catalog both the cantilevered "Road" frame and the cantilevered "Criterium" frame were referred to with an 'SR' model number:

http://sanaandterry.com/cannondale/year/1990/1990.pdf

The 1990 Catalog shows the SR 'road' bikes coming with a steel (Tange) fork, the SR 'criterium' bikes iwth an aluminum fork.

As someone who has ridden Cannondales for years, I've never found the ride harsh, or even too harsh. I think you didn't like the ride of the aluminum fork, and may have been projecting that onto the bike, perhaps? If so, that's tragic, because we are talking about one of the lightest and stiffest frames ever made.

Thanks for the quick and detailed response!

I'm guessing it is a "Cannondale" 53. I researched more and the 53 comes with a 21.8 inch top tube. I converted that and it's about a 55cm. That seems a little too big doesn't it? My current track bike has a top tube of 53.5cm. Do road bikes have different fitment?

Also, I don't know if I would want to deal with the tubulars. How hard would it be to change the cassette to a new clincher wheelset? Sorry for my lack of "road" knowledge. Thanks!

You can buy modern cassette wheels with clinchers to replace your freewheel type wheels. Your spacing is probably 126mm, and new spacing is 130 mm. You can easily spread the rear dropouts by hand a tiny bit each time you insert the wheel. It's not recommended to "cold set" (permanently widen) the dropouts on aluminum frames.

I bought a used 8 speed cassette wheel (and new 8 speed chain) for my 3.0 and use the old downtube shifters

Cannondale threw around the "SR" logo rather casually. By 1995 "SR" stood for "Silk Road" and meant the road bike had a head shock.