sonatageek

In my continuing saga in search of a good, not too expensive, used tandem I have found a 1997 Cannondale Los Dos model that appears to be in really good shape. The owner states that it only has about 300 miles on it and everything works great. He wants $600.00 for it, which seems pretty reasonable to me -- but I am looking for some feedback as it is about a 3.5 hour drive from my location. I know that I need to take it for a test ride -- but I am trying to create as complete a picture about this style of tandem before making the trip.

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mrfish

You have a bargain. IIRC the Cannondale tandem frame has not changed that much over the years, and the condition of the bike looks excellent, so you are effectively getting a near-new cannondale tandem for $600. Also I like the colour

Do take a close look at the fork. Is it aluminium or steel? Single 'dales of this roughly this age used their welded aluminum Pepperoni aluminium fork which had massive blades and is has the distinctive aluminium welds at the crown. I can't see clearly enough from the photo, but it looks as if the colour is the same. In any case it's worth asking if the fork is original and about crashes. No doubt TG will know the year and fork that the bike should come with. A non original fork is not a problem as long as it's a tandem fork and wasn't replaced because the bike was crashed.

The components on the bike are mid level off road - the STX group is 7 or 8 speed IIRC, and I'd say is about equivalent of Sora, so works fine, but is not the shiniest / lightest. The flat bar gripshift stuff also works fine - my wife had it on her MTB at university. The wheels use rims that are a bit heavy for single bikes, but are ideal for a tandem.

Basically for leisure rides, light or heavy touring or light off roading on gravel roads, the bike is perfect as it is. For faster road riding, you could always change it to drop bars and lighter tyres.

All in all, it looks great. Just check the frame and forks carefully for cracks and run your fingers over it to find impact ripples before going for a test ride or parting with cash, especially the head / down tube area. Even if the frame is toast, the components are still worth the $s if you can reuse them.

Before the test ride, check the shifting, particularly the rear deraileur limits and that the brakes work and are securely put together. You don't want to wrap the deraileur round the rear wheel or find you can't stop on your test ride. For a 300 mile bike, things should be pretty un-worn, so a 10 minute tune-up should be enough if anything is out of adjustment.

Then take it for a spin one-up, and if all is correct do the same two-up. If you buy it, it's probably worth stripping all non-cartridge bearings and repacking with grease as the original stuff will probably be on its last legs 10 years.

Fenlason

I am not sure.... this bike has been ridden with the cranks out of phase. I am not sure I would buy it.

It looks like a great value. It is a decent bike, and it looks to be in great shape. The only real question would be the fit issue.

I hope it works out for you.

glenn

ang1sgt

Looks like a fine bike for the price. Some of that parts on that bike I have upgraded on my Fisher. The Two Finger Servo-Wave Shimano brakes will work. I would check the pads before riding though.

I see that the crank arms are out of sync and some folks do this for a reason. It is something I just mention.

The STX RC Rear derailluer is a very nice unit. Much better than the Normal STX. The Saches shifters I have set-up but not riden much so I don't know how they have faired in service.

Looks like the Stoker has a suspension seat post on it and that is a nice thing for some folks to have and for some a must have on a tandem.

Ask if they have one of the Replacable derailluer hangers for the rear derailluer. It's a nice feature to have on an Aluminum tandem, but it does no good if you can't find one. Hopefully this is an item that Cannondale has kept unchanged over the years.

All in all, it looks to be a well taken care of bike and a deal at that price.

Chris

Fenlason

At around that time. [late 90's] I chose those shift levers, for a custom off road bike I was building. I still have them and still like them.
glenn

TandemGeek

If you don't buy it I will.... An exceptional value for a great bike.

FWIW, all of Cannondale's mountain tandems were called 'Los Dos' through 1997, but there were different grades, e.g., MT900, MT1000, etc... That one appears to be the MT900.

To Mr. Fish's comment, it should be and looks to be a Pepperoni fork.

Only things to be attentive to would be cleaning and relubricating the rear hub's cassette mechanism if it's a Coda-branded (901) unit as well as servicing other key bearings as already suggested.

Seriously, if you pass on it let me know.

Artmo 

Buy it, if it fits you. We had a '94 Los Dos which I bought new for $1000 and sold a year ago for $525. We didn't ride it very much, but we never had problem with it. It's still going strong with some friends who ride it much more than we ever did.

TandemGeek

So, did you buy the thing? If not, PM the sellers contact info.

TandemGeek

Well, apparently someone bought it...

zonatandem

If it fits, get it!
A pair of nice tandem road wheels will cost you a lot more than the asking price!

sonatageek

PM sent to Tandem Geek. The bike was still up on CL as of today.

TandemGeek

As of Friday afternoon the owner stated it was "sold". I'd hoped you had snagged it. My interest was for our son and his family.

FWIW: On a hunch I went ahead and Googled "los dos $600" and it was the first item to come up. When asked via Email reply to thead if it was still available I was advised it was not. Not sure why he hasn't pulled it from Craigs.