calling all 1980's cannondale peps

So after dropping the Kuwahara frame off for sandblasting and powdercoating, I headed up the city to pick up a prospective deal...



Its cannondale, has diacompe canti brakes, suntour thumbies, sugano cranks and thats all I could really check out before it got dark...

Any clues here guys?

i looked at that, great deal you got there.

it will or should have a serial number that will tell the model and year information. i reckon it 87ish

you need to paint it red like a fire engine !

get the serial no
i'd say a 89 m 800 , but thats just by the colour
check vintage cannondale for specs and dating
theres a roller cammed 24/26 er from 1988 in the link below

Looks like that is designed for a 24" rear wheel to me (brake position on seat stay.)

Rod_Saetan":i5ax4ddi said:

Looks like that is designed for a 24" rear wheel to me (brake position on seat stay.)

Click to expand...

it might be

ok, closer inspection reveals its a 26/26 frame, not a 24 inch rear as suggested. Phew. I'm thinking 1988-ish, SM500?? Unfortunately the serial numbers have been - ahem - doctored...

Both derailleurs are pretty much stuffed - rusted and badly worn. Indexed thumbies (3 and 6-speed) are retro-cool chic tho'!!!! Clumsy, huge, but sooooo cool.

Frame generally in good nick - its been spray-bombed in a more green tone than the original and has a couple of small ali-rot patches but very restorable.

So I'm thinking refinish the frame in a suitable colour powdercoat, replace the derailleurs with a more modern and reliable item, retain the 3x6 drivetrain, new pads on the 'compes, new bottom bracket and headset (rumbly...), new perch and bars, brake levers too (classic, but huge and ugly).

Then ride!!!!

Pictures here

that one of mine is a hugely ugly bike , think the fact that it's a 20" dont help, but there's something very attractive about it too

tart it up and ride it

OK, got it nailed - its an 18" 1987 SM400 - bottom of the heap but still pretty cool imho.

Plan of attack remains the same overall but I'm thinking about an internal rear hub and single chainring...