1987 Cannondale and 1999 Klein Mantra

First up is what was until last month my regular daily ride- until I found you lot that is. Its was just an old bike which had been riden and enjoyed. Inspired by the amazing stuff on here I have turned this 1987 model Cannondale into my first retro build. Be gentle with us as we are new to all this malarky!!



It was originally Slate grey but the paint was poor- now its a case of 'to paint or to polish?? I had a stripped and polished 'Dale back in the early '90s that looked cool so I'm unsure.

There is a pile of goodies to go on it- Cook Bros Cranks with Syncros ti BB, Syncros flat bars and bar ends, Ringle post, stem and Skewers and a nice pair of Kooka brake levers. Just looking for a pair of XT Thumbies and we're there.

Would love to get her finished before the 22nd of Dec, the frame number has the build date on and it'll be its 21st birthday

Will keep you up to date on how it goes and post pics and a final spec as soon as its finished.

Next up is my other bike- not technically Retro but I love it to bits. 1999 Klein Mantra



Mods are, Bontranger Racelite Tubeless rims on DT Swiss Hubs, Magura HS33 20th Anniv Brakes, Race Face XC Crankset and Syncros Risers. It might not be a classic Klein but its still special and anyway with 2 kids and a Classic Alfa Romeo to run I cannot afford an Adroit :cry:

I love the Cannondale.
That Struts fork looks amazing, does it work well?
I have never seen the race edition before, looks realy good with the blue ano.

Polish the 'dale, it'll look cool...

Cheers for the comments guys.

Not sure if forks work well or not- I have had little experience of Sus to go on- there is little bob and I can ride it all day and not have knackered arms if that helps?? The Manitou's on the Klein are considered sh** by many so making a comparison is probably unfair.

They were new old stock and have done little work so far- they are aso quite light compared to modern stuff- I'm real happy with them.

Cannot wait to get this bike finished now- its a toss up between polished alloy and Yellow with blue decals. I've a new Ringle post on its way from the states along side a pair of Cook Bros E type cranks, a Zooka Stem and some Kooka Levers all in blue anno. Should look sweet whatever happens to the frame.
Only cloud on horizon is that I've just lost out on a 3rd pair of XT Thumbies on eBay in as many weeks :cry:

Both really sweet bikes....'Dale is best though (but i'm biased...)

The Dale as she looks now- almost complete. Klein has alas been sold and is boxed and on its way to a new life!

But, where did you find the decals for the C'dale ?

Looks nice

Didn't take you long to get it done, who painted it?

Chris.

Cheers

Painted it myself- its Ecurie Francorchamps yellow- a 60's colour.
The decals were the work of this forums very own Gil_M and they are bloody fantastic- good work that fella!

Si

OK !
I have contacted Gil for decals. I have given to him the illustrator filesfor my Cannondale EST.