Road Test/Bike Review (1986) CANNONDALE ST400
 

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kicking myself for nearly giving one of these away last year!

Thank you for the reminder - I had been thinking about selling my Frankenbiked '86 ST400 I rode for last year's Clunker Challenge, but now I think I'll keep it and bide my time while slowly assembing better parts for it.

My ST400 is a 1989 model, but it looks like the only difference from the earlier ones is that Cannondale switched over to cantilever brakes to match the ST1000 and ST600. It came to me with a real mish-mash of parts, but the frame was solid. I tried to keep the spirit of the original with the parts I replaced. I used an SR Oval Tech triple, which shifts well with the Sun Tour XCM derailleurs and AccuShift levers. It had mismatched wheels, so I built new wheels from the hubs and spokes. A Brooks B17 tops it off. I haven't got to put a lot of miles on it yet, but so far, I like it a lot.

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1990 Cannondale ST400

I don't know how I missed this thread. I think my 1985 Cannondale ST 400 is one of the finest road bikes I have ever ridden. I agree with the review that the combination of a long wheelbase and the overbuilt aluminum frame makes for a wonderful ride once you use reasonably fat tires (I'm running 700 x 32c tires). It came to me with virtually all of its original components (Shimano 600) but I rebuilt it so that the only parts that are original are the calipers, headset, seatpost, and rack:

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This 88 ST 400 came to me in 2014 as a basket case with worn out parts and tatty paint. Restored, powder coated and with modern-ish 10 speed components, it gets more miles than any other bike I own.

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Thanks, SpeedofLite , after reading the road test and remembering how well this bike worked even in full Clunker Challenge/Frankenbike mode, I pulled this from the market moments ago -

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This was how I ran it for the Clunker Challenge - fortunately, I still have what are apparently the original brakes and what may be the original cranks. For the time being, I think I'll mothball it until I get other matters resolved ...

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Wow! The bike I thinking about buying is siting in the used bike section of my local bike shop. It's a Barn find that the shop bought. It's still bright Red after all these years. At $375.00, it seems like a deal. But I'm still thinking it over. To convert it over to a 700c wheel size would be, pop a 700c wheel on it. Is that right?

If it's a sidepull equipped ST, absolutely. Mine is an '86 ST400 and I ran 700C wheels on it. It had already been converted, which was pretty much change out the wheels and lower the brake pads 4 mm or so.

Now to find the right fork for mine. The unicrown pictured was a replacement by a previous owner, and while I DID locate a good fork, it was one for a 25-in, which would have meant cutting and threading - which the LBS would do for me, but for significantly more than the fork itself!

Yeah, it's an easy conversion to 700c; the brakes should reach (the original shimano 600 calipers on my bike did). I dunno if I'd say it's a deal at $375 but it is an excellent bike and bike shop prices are never cheap. If the bike is in excellent shape with all the original bits, this is an acceptable price. It's not as if these bikes pop up all that often on your radar screen.

I’ve contemplated the ST. A flipper in my area had an ST600 for not real cheap, but nice shape. Searching here pointed out the limited tire size room. If it comes up again I may take a look, but it is 50 miles away. Currently a couple of my bikes have 35s on them which is much better on some of the rough country southern Michigan roads I occasional get on. 32s on most of my others, but those 35s are nice. Not sure if I could be happy limited to 32s on one of these, but I have never been on one so curiosity does come into play.

Beautiful bike. You talked me into buying my '85 ST 400.

I was curious, too. This 25" ST400 showed up in a distressed state (RD was awol) on CL under Bike Parts. A bath in Dawn, some black Rustoleum, parts from the bin and 35mm Paselas on 700c wheels:

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It's possible the 35's fit only because the frame is so tall. With a late 1988 build date, I'm calling this one a 1989 model. It's friction shift at the moment but a SunTour XC comp just arrived so I may try Accushift.

Dang! Now I kind of want to try one!


...if you get the itch to move that one along, maybe drop me a line.

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1988 or 89 ST400 Size 19"
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700x38 tires

This is a bike I set up for my wife, it's an '88 or '89 ST400 19" sized frame. There is currently a 38c tire up front, and a 32c out back with fenders. I set it up for gravel, rain, potholes, and crappy city streets. (Wrapped the TT so when it's locked and leaning on a post it's got a little armor)

The back tire is limited to 700x32 by the chainstay width.

For an all conditions bike I like having a slightly larger and more aggressive tire up front. Set up this way, the rear end is more likely to slide out before the front reaches it's grip limit. It's a LOT easier to keep a bike upright when the back end slides out. Lose the front end and you're just instantly down.