Boing! 1990 Cannondale SE2000

[mynchiboy]

I have been accumulating some projects recently to crack on with once my head clears a bit - too much looking after my little one (not a bad thing) and working/van driving has been the norm lately! Here is the first

I made a deal for this via a local Facebook ad. TBH I was planning to use this as a parts harvester for another frameset I have, but it has turned out to be in great condition and largely original. This is also a very early version which is 1990 stamped, this has the same spec as the SM2000 of that year and therefore has a few differences to the '91.

Here is is at the moment. The slick tyres need to be taken off ASAP, it should have Ritchey Megabytes but I will probably find something of a similar vein, as I'm not a huge fan of those. I've already found a replacement Turbo of the correct vintage, I just need to source the Flexstem. Brake levers and front mech are also Suntour XC Comp/Pro. They seem to have been fitted from new, so I might leave or swap to the correct M73* Shimano.

As an aside it has also always lived in my local area, if the dealer stickers are anything to go by... I really love the Cycle Traders decal!

 

[Mod-Master]

@carlsoundwave is selling some megabite tyres I think if they haven’t sold already.

It looks great and can’t imagine what it’ll look restored. I really like these deltas especially in this pink and green colour.

I have a suede turbo on my cannondale, I wouldn’t go with turbo though, especially the black railed ones, like riding a horse

How much did you get it for?

Looking forward to updates

Edit I haven’t tried the non black railed turbos and I’ve heard they’re more Comfortable.

And yes, the dealers decals are a lovely addition to the frame. It gives the bike personality and an accent. Mines a geordie.

 

[mynchiboy]

@carlsoundwave is selling some megabite tyres I think if they haven’t sold already.

It looks great and can’t imagine what it’ll look restored. I really like these deltas especially in this pink and green colour.

I have a suede turbo on my cannondale, I wouldn’t go with turbo though, especially the black railed ones, like riding a horse

How much did you get it for?

Looking forward to updates

Edit I haven’t tried the non black tailed turbos and I’ve heard they’re more Comfortable.

Thanks, I too really like this particular era of Cannondale and this particular colour combination rocks. Fortunately I like Turbos too, it's pretty much these or Flites for my bottom. I have a correct 1990 stamped version and already have the same saddle on another bike, so I know it will be comfy.

It's so close to OEM that it will be a very light restoration, more a good clean with the incorrect bits replaced and some decent tyres. It was up for sale at £150 but it was kicking around for ages unwanted, I managed to negotiate it for a fair bit less than that

 

[raidan73]

Great pick up Joe! IMO it was worth the asking price, so I reckon you did really well. Looks like it will clean up a treat too. Looking forward to seeing more of it as things progress

 

[mynchiboy]

Great pick up Joe! IMO it was worth the asking price, so I reckon you did really well. Looks like it will clean up a treat too. Looking forward to seeing more of it as things progress

Thanks Adrian! I think I definitely got a bit of a steal here, it has hardly been used by the looks of things.

I'm thinking it might have been a City gents' toy back in the day and it was then mothballed for a few years. I bought it from a lovely little lady who simply couldn't make it small enough to fit her.

A couple more details, some unmarked Wolber AT18's specific to the 1990 (rather than the Ritchey Vantage on the 1991) and a rather nice Nitto post has been fitted to this, which I am hoping will polish up a little. Cannondale did spec their high end bikes really well at the time. Force 40 parts are all present and correct

Has there also been a cooler early 90's decal than on the Pepperoni fork?

 

[mynchiboy]

Some of the replacement parts I have so far. ODI Attacks, the Turbo which I will refresh a little, and some extra neon courtesy of bicyclist.cc / Mr Saetan!

 

[elite504]

Nice. Even still has the clear protective sticker on the thumbies.
Got to be a good candidate for a catalogue-correct resto. It's never going to be as competent as a modern full-suss, so I'm glad you're embracing the era and looking for the flex stem. IIRC, weren't they specifically green for this model?

 

[mynchiboy]

Nice. Even still has the clear protective sticker on the thumbies.
Got to be a good candidate for a catalogue-correct resto. It's never going to be as competent as a modern full-suss, so I'm glad you're embracing the era and looking for the flex stem. IIRC, weren't they specifically green for this model?

Yep, it is helping restore my mojo, I can't take my eyes off it at the moment!

I'm certainly treating the suspension as a bit of a curio but would like to have the flexstem. I've seen many of these that have had the Pepperoni junked in favour of sus forks and a conventional stem. No doubt it helps reduce the harshness, but it seems a bit of a shame.

Oddly the OEM Flexstem was the dark graphite grey type colour and doesn't really match the rest of the colour scheme. It is also one of the earlier versions with the steel quill. Annoyingly I briefly owned a SE1000 last year with a cracked frame that I bought as a parts snotter, but I fitted the (correct) stem it had onto another bike that I then sold on!

I have an eye on one across the pond at the moment, but I may have to look at the later alloy quill versions to get this over the line I think.

 

[27motorhead]

Love these full-susser Cannondales (if you call a Flexstem suspension!). For me they just looked just right and always thought the colours were great too. A also love the look of the first generation Offroad Proflex built by Serotta. Good luck getting the right Flexstem without paying a small fortune (if State-side). Oh and sounds like you had a bargain!

 

[raidan73]

Thanks Adrian! I think I definitely got a bit of a steal here, it has hardly been used by the looks of things.

I'm thinking it might have been a City gents' toy back in the day and it was then mothballed for a few years. I bought it from a lovely little lady who simply couldn't make it small enough to fit her.

A couple more details, some unmarked Wolber AT18's specific to the 1990 (rather than the Ritchey Vantage on the 1991) and a rather nice Nitto post has been fitted to this, which I am hoping will polish up a little. Cannondale did spec their high end bikes really well at the time. Force 40 parts are all present and correct

Has there also been a cooler early 90's decal than on the Pepperoni fork?

I can't remember - were these a mid-1990 release? I can't remember then being in the catalogue until 1990, by which time the spec had slightly altered