I bought a Cannondale in 1985, used it a lot then.... didn't. Recently moved to a biking friendly neighborhood, got new tires and a tune-up for it and have really enjoyed using this bike again. As I recall it was kind of a big deal in the day.....fat tubing OMG 😱. Does anyone have more history for me? It's 21", Shimano 600 shifters. Thanks

Here is a link to the 1985 Cannondale catalog.

https://vintagecannondale.com/year/1985/1985.pdf

Is your bike an ST400?

I have a 1986 SR400 and an ‘88 Criterium.

If yours is a touring model (ST) it has a slightly shallower head tube angle, longer wheelbase, cantilever brakes, and a triple crankset.

Here is my readers digest history…

Originally made in USA, sued by Klein in the 80’s, Cannondale won 90% of lawsuit due to 70’s college class with oversize tubing. Lost the oval seat stays so they went to their cantilever dropouts. Had notorious issues with the design. Klein bought by Trek and had no interest in dropout lawsuit and Cannondale returned to vertical dropouts. Changed the railroad head badge to the current wrench “C”. Introduced Coda parts line. The owner, and therefore the company, got heavily involved in motorcycle racing and that put them into bankruptcy. They got bounced around to different parent companies. All frames are now imported, but they are a viable bike option.

John

Edit added: In the late 90’s/2000’s Cannondale came out with one of the most bizarre products… the Lefty fork. While it is suppose to work quite well, I could never get my head around only one fork leg.

FWIW, the earlier STs had caliper brakes and 27 inch wheels. Easy swap to long reach brakes and 700 wheels. Comfy geometry with clearance for 32s.

The Golden Era of ‘Dales in my opinion...the finish and care put into them was really unique...

Cantilevers were added ‘89. When did they end?

The 1985 st400 is a great bike. The brakes reach to 700c rims, 32s fit comfortably

thanks! Very helpful. I think it must be the ST400, that seems to be the only one that has shimano 600 components.

thanks for the reply - agreed, it's a great bike.....can't believe how much I'm enjoying getting back on it. Yes on the caliper brakes and shifters, they work fine for me! Reason for changing out the brake system? I'm only running a few errands and short distances on it at the moment. Any thoughts how much risk there is for theft? It's not a collector's item is it?

I wish I had the bike I owned in '85. If I did, I wouldn't change a thing. As far as theft, a bike doesn't have to be a collector's item to make someone want to steal it. I would take precautions against a grab and dash.

thanks - will do

Not a collectors model so just use whatever lock you think is appropriate.

The great thing about the Dales from 1984/5 to 1989, the only thing that separates the models is the component choice. Frames are identical from what I was told....