gibtuck

Hi-

Been reading this forum for a while, as well as beating up on my dad's ancient Shogun race bike. I am now moved back to school and am looking for a bike to use as a ~8-10 mile commuter. I found a 1990 Cannondale R400, in "good condition."

When asked, he gave this info:
>>The bike was purchased in 1990 and has been on a few long rides but has not been
riden hard. It has never been dumped. Tires are new and cables were
replaced about two years ago but never adjusted after so needs a good
tune up. The frame is 54 cm or about 23 or Med. Saddle has a small
tear so I do have a cover on it.

I am not well versed enough in bicycles, nor have I purchased one before like this, so I came here to ask about the size/value of this bike. I am 6'1" and I wear a 32" inseam. I have been searching the forum and reading about people who have bought this specific model, and have gotten a general range of 56-60 for comfort for someone of my height. Is this correct? Is there anyone out there my height who rides something like this or smaller.

When I told the guy I was worried about the bike being too small, he said it was good until you had longer than a 36" inseam, beyond which you would become uncomfortable.

Now, $100 for a Cannondale seems like a damn good idea, though I have to drive 9 hours round trip to pick it up . How much would the "general tuneup" run me?

Pictures of bike:

robotkiller

I wouldn't trust anyone who said a 54 cm bike would fit someone with a 36" inseam.

The bike is probably too small for you, if I had to guess.

BookFinder 

Within broad parameters answers to sizing questions will be "all over the chart." Also, one size up or down seems to be an acceptable margin to wriggle a bit.

So based on what I read at the following link you should be okay.

https://bicycling.about.com/od/howtor...ike_sizing.htm

FYI, my Giant is slightly small for me, but it does not cause a problem. Seat adjustments took care of the few tweaks I had to do.

Finally, in my opinion, the $100 is a decent price for the bike. Where I live a general tune up is $55 but those prices vary widely.

gibtuck

Thanks for the response, this is what he actually said:

BookFinder 

If I read it right ,the OP has a 32" inseam which should be a match with that frame.

The seller might be uninformed, but that does not negate the match between the potential buyer and the bike based on inseam length and frame size.

IMO.

robotkiller

I'd hate to drive a long way for a bike on a guess, with regard to fit. For what it's worth, I have a true inseam of 33 inches (not pants inseam) and ride a 54 cm Cannondale.

I still call bullsh*t on the 36" on 54cm bike, though.

robotkiller

That's what I read too

skylla

OP didn't say he 'has' a 32" inseam, he said 'I wear a 32" inseam'. So he's almost certainly talking about pants inseam. True inseam will be at least a couple inches longer, depending on how he wears his pants.

I'm about 6'1" with a true inseam of 34.5". I wear 32" inseam pants. I ride a 58cm Cannondale, though with a 90mm stem so a 56cm frame probably would have worked as well. I would expect the bike you describe to be uncomfortably small.

Then again, my focus has been on comfort over longer distances, and my understanding is that people who want to go really fast get smaller frames. And maybe this bike has a long top tube. So who knows. But if it were me, I wouldn't make the trip.

Oh, and one more factor: having used down tube shifters on my daily commute for more than a year, I can safely say that I don't like them.

khatfull

If you don't buy it, let me know where it is and I will...hopefully close to MN

Mr. Beanz

6'1 and I also ride a 58 Cannondale CAAD3 (1998). A 54 will be way too short in the toptube. You will be cramped and more than likely have have back pain. Eventhought $100 sopunds great, it would be a waste of money to you!

Wife had a 54 bike ad no way could I do more than 20 miles on a bike that size. Heck, I felt cramped riding up the street to test the shifters!

Plus the saddle would be so much higher than the handlebars that it would be painful on the arms and wrists with the steep drop.

gibtuck

thanks for the responses; I was referring to my pants inseam. I'll try my luck closer to the cities.

khatfull- it's in harrisburg, SD. mapquest says 4.5 hours one way from Minneapolis, give or take. If you go to the South Dakota, Sioux Falls Craigslist and search "cannondale", the listing will come up.

zoepup

same here. 32" pants in-seem. I ride a 58" Six13. I would be 'ok' on a 56", but a 54" would feel way too small

Phantoj

I think it's a little too small for you. Don't buy it. Perhaps you have a shorter friend who owuld be interested?

Regarding the seller, it's not his business to decide whether the bike will fit you or not; he just wants to sell his bike.