1993 Cannondale Delta V 1500

[Maxipedia]

Good evening everybody!

It's been quite a while since I've been active on this forum, but a few minutes ago this bike popped up:

I've got the link from a friend on Thursday, got to talk to the seller, asked a good friend from the city where the bike was to pick it up and pay for it, asked a friend if he can keep it for a few days and now somebody came over and brought it to me. It was the equivalent of 125 EUR.

It is in an amazing shape, has rather little wear and even sports the original CODA grips. The fork doesn't move much, but I will take it apart to see what's in there.

The original tires are gone, but I have a Dart/Smoke combo on a 1993 GT Karakoram and think about putting them on. I plan to lose the barends or maybe put some 3DV ones that I happen to have lying around. I also have some Michelin Transalps in very good condition. I don't know what's up with the fork, but I have an air 2001 HeadShok from my Jekyll and maybe I can mix the two, so I can keep the looks, but upgrade the internals, as I am pretty sure there are some elastomers needed that might be hard to obtain. Advice in this direction is welcome, of course.

My plan is basically to keep her as original as possible.

I would appreciate any thoughts on this bike.

Cheers,
Mx

 

[ovlov440]

Re: 1993 Cannondale Killer V 1500

Good score at that price - especially if you can get the fork working for minimal money

 

[Maxipedia]

We'll see about the fork. I was interested to see suggestions or opinions regarding the bike, though.

Mx

 

[shirley]

You have yourself a classic, well done. I have ridden my Killer V for 18 years (touring mainly, but I need something that is fine when the road turns to track) and it is fast, light and bombproof. I am tiny (5'0") and mine sold at the time as a 14" frame - in my humble opinion (I'm happy to be proved wrong on this) still the smallest, highest quality frame available.

Watch the forks - if you don't get the suspension working, aluminium forks are a notoriously harsh ride; hence a lot of the rigid fork versions were upgraded to front suspension.

You can also find the old Cannondale back catalogues and other information if you want to date it etc at http://www.vintagecannondale.com/.

 

[Maxipedia]

Thank you, Shirley!

In the meantime I found out some not so pleasant things about the bike. The Ritchey cranks are incomplete and the left side is from looks like a 1997 Alivio. Bummer! I used this bike to move around the city for a few days and one night I felt something is holding me back on the rear. It seemed to be the back rim rubbing against the brakepads. I knew I didn't hit, but still couldn't figure out what was there. When I got home and tried to spin the wheel, I barely moved past a certain point. The rim was cracked and the tire pressure pushed it to the outside. A totally destroyed rim. Fortunately, I managed to find the exact same rim in NOS and the right number of holes and it should be here any day.

My plans with this bike is to take it apart, clean it properly, service the fork, put fresh cables and housing everywhere while keeping the old ones, changing the stem to a newer silver one (maybe), replacing the rim in the back, changing the crankset to M730 until I find a matching left arm for the Ritchey cranks and putting some Deore LX pedals on, as these here are mismatched. Can't figure out what to do with the tires, but I'll find a way.

Cheers,
Mx

 

[shirley]

Good plan! It's really worth keeping a frame of this quality on the road. Many modern bike shops (the ones who know their stuff) will tell you that it is a quality you can't get nowadays. There's a lot of gear on ebay at a decent price, especially in the dark winter months. Beware (I found this out when I rebuilt a Killer V two years ago) prices really go up when the weather gets warmer in the spring.

 

[Maxipedia]

I know from my personal experience that this a quality that you wouldn't find on the aluminum bikes that fill these days' bike shops. Mid 90's Cannondales are a comparison that I often use when I try to explain people certain things about bikes and how they shouldn't be overhyped.

As for the parts, I don't scan eBay too much, but I have most things I need over here. I also know about the tendencies of rising prices. Thanks for the advice and the moral support, though.

Now, what tires should I put on this bike...

Mx

 

[shirley]

You are a bad influence! Saw one (that is, another one) my size on ebay, and just had to have it; won it yesterday! Totally surplus to requirements....

 

[Maxipedia]

Oh... I'm sorry! I guess...