Most Drool-inducing Road Bike?

I have this bike, or something close to it.  1986 Cannondale with Diore XT derailers, Sugino AT cranks, 50/48/28 chain rings on a 21 speed, Avocet saddle and the usual 80s fare .  I rode a lot of century rides back when on it.  I just took the wheels in to be trued and replace the rubber.  Anyone think its worth bringing back?  So, I am probably due to update the quiver, but my latest 2-wheel drive has a 1500 cc engine and weighs 705 lbs.  I am interested in getting back to using a bike but really don't know where to begin.   Oh yeah, the bike is 26-inches (66 cm) from crank center to top of the seat tube.  Kinda tall.

CR,

With the wheels trued up and some new rubber on them, why not just get out and try a few rides to see how it feels again after all these years. You've got the triple front so the gearing will allow you to work yourself slowly back into cycling form. Come next spring if you are still bitten by the cycling bug, you could always explore a newer bike then if you feel the need.

btw, the bike in the picture is circa 1994......

Thanks Rossi, good idea.  Now to show you just how out of touch I am on this, I have another question...

What do I do with the toe clips?  I don't see them too much anymore.  

I took the wheels to the bike shop and got some interesting comments.  The old tires were 1-1/8 and the nearest replacement is 1-1/4.  The tires were vintage 1989 and I last used them a year ago.  Very scary to be my size and ride 20 year old tires on 20%+ downhill grades..

So aside from the competitive issues and owning the latest gear, which I totally relate to in skiing, why is a bicycle with an aluminum frame and decent (20 years ago) components not a relevant bike?

So not seeing the whole bike it's difficult to conclude, but given the fan belt it's obviously a single speed, or possibly even a fixie, which would take inspiration from track bike geometry, and hence the short stays.  I don't see many 'real' road bikes with that short of stays (or at least one that I would buy). I'd have to think most of the well known brand road bikes ridden in the tdf have ~41cm stays.

41cm is just fine ... I don't think I'd have any issues putting on 28's ... if I had to, but for the comfort/feel/speed it's hard to ever beat a Vittoria CX 23mm (I actually find too high of pressure to be slower because I don't usually ride on glass smooth surfaces).

My cyclocross has 43cm stays, and I have 2 sets of wheels for it with 28's for road and a cross tire setup.  I ride it as a rain bike with the 28's ... sure it's comfy, but no more so than my Madone ... though it would be downright terrifying in a crit.

Don't worry about it.     The toe clips are only a PITA when starting from a standstill on a big uphill.

Al frames are dissed.   Anything older than 8 spd is worthless since it is based on old over-locknut spacing of less than 130mm and cannot be cold-set like steel or carbon can without cracking.     Newer Al frames have a rep of lasting about 2 seasons of full-on use before they develop too much sag and cracking.    And lets not even discuss the whole 130mm BCD / old BB config. with no oversize OR outboard bearings, shall we?

(me : 401, 403, 403, 420, 420. 434 mm)

Hehe ... I rode no less than three of those original Cannondale road frames (not the one pictured but the full rear triangle version) over ~35,000 miles, and hated them for 34,000 miles of it.  They rode like a stick.  Straight gauge aluminum was lighter weight than the 'standard' steel frames of the day, and stiffer as well, but also in the ways you DON'T want it to be stiff.

I cracked the first two at the BB/stays, and eventually sold the third.  That's going back to when Cannondale had some quality issues and they were called crooked-dales by many.

Nothing wrong with riding it now to get your legs back, and allow you to move on to the next thing if that's where it takes you.  Just think how cool it'll be to drop those guys on the latest of latest whiz bang bikes ... (a lot of the 'kids' won't even know what those down tube shifters are).

As far as relevance ... just like skiing a lot has changed with materials, computer aided design, blah blah blah.  Newer bikes are both stiffer, and more compliant and comfortable at the same time. It's all about efficiency, which is something you won't notice as much when you're starting out.

CR...the toe clips will be fine. It actually gives you the flexibility to use a variety of shoe type depending on the riding you will do on any given day (if you will be stopping and walking around)
A pedal (and shoe) upgrade could be done at any time, and would be transferable down the road to a different bike if you go that route down the road. As for tires, all sizes of the old 27" size are still available. The 27 x 1  1/8" Panaracer Paslea are a fine riding tire, they are available at Harris Cyclery    http://sheldonbrown.com/harris/tires/630.html

Comprex, you've got a few REALLY tight rear triangle bikes there! It's funny but I do remember those Rigi frames . Two years for alu frames? Mine is going strong after 15, I really enjoy this bike too. And don't get me started on outboard BB's either.

Woodee, I've ridden that '94 C'dale at least 1500 miles a year since I put her together. I find the ride to be surprisingly lively and comfotable, but I am no lightweight (185lbs). I really find cross bikes very versitile for alot of the kind of riding I do.

Heh, RS, I mostly agree with you, I'm just trying to explain to CR how the bike shop guys think.

Actually now that I think of it I had two of the mid-80's frames, and the second broken one was replaced by the 90's frame with the updated rear triangle that did make it ride slightly better ... but I wouldn't call it lively.  Tubies made a world of difference back then, but it still rode like a stick

I always say that if I could only have one bike (the horror) it would be a cyclocross bike with two sets of wheels.  They make a great touring bike, obviously handle the cross portion with aplomb, and can make do as a road racer ... just give yourself a little distance for the less than stellar braking compared to top-line road brakes.

So this discussion of chainstay length and Cannondales reminds me of my first mountain bike from 1985 ... I think it was an SM800 (?).  The funky design used a 24" rear wheel with a standard 26" front wheel, and every component was way over-built like it was going on a motorcycle (rollercams!), but what I remember most is what seemed to be 4' chainstays.  There must have been a foot of clearance between the tire and seat tube!

Thanks for the feedback.  I'm obviously way out of touch on the bicycle stuff.  If it goes well, I'll start a thread "Help me pick my bike" maybe this fall.  I think I'd rather find someone's used bike rather than pay the full tarriff at the retailer. 

It wasn't exactly clear that the opinions expressed were not your own. Truth that changes in standards, axle length and chainring bolt diameter, etc... as you mentioned can cause problems. The industry wants to make bikes obsolete. Should be able to special order 27"x1 1/8" tires though, I would guess. 

What is the proper frame size for a road bike? I've never had a true road bike, but the touring/hybrids I've had were about 9 or 10 inches less than my inseam length. I think he could make this bike fit him, I don't think it's really necessary to be able to put both feet on the ground at the same time, but I wouldn't want to ride a big frame like that purely for aesthetic reasons. Kinda DUI second offense looking if you know what I mean.

I'd ride it though if it was all I had.  Flip the bars, CR and ride. Sounds like all you need is rubber. Maybe brake pads too, examine them, lube cables and chain. Don't worry about how fast or how far, save that for the fall when you get a real bike. You'll go fast and far without trying, just get out in the air. It's like riding a bike, except without the stench and deafening noise. The helmets are much lighter and well vented. You don't need to wear all the leather either. Just on palms of your hands, and feet too I guess. (Although I wear sandals, a couple of incidents last week made it clear to me that it's probably not best choice for freight handler.)

Cirq, measure 12 links of the chain under tension. If the chain hasn't stretched too much, you can probably use the stock chainrings indefinitely, they only get damaged from badly worn chain. To save the gears, replace the chain as soon as it shows signs of wear.


Edited by telerod15 - 7/3/2009 at 01:02 am GMT

I had the wheels trued and I mounted some new tires, brake hoods and bar-wrap.  First ride out I realized that the bike that worked so well 25 years ago, really doesn't feel very good now.  Way too much weight on my wrists and arms, poor riding position, ergonomics for shifting the downtube shifters is difficult.  I can clear the frame standing flat footed, and the pedal stroke is good with about 20 degrees at the bottom 90 top.  A lot of the problem comes from a lot more upper body mass since I rode this style bike.  Rodney's idea of flipping the bars sounds pretty good.   

Since this has become a hijack of the bikes that make you drool, I need to start a new thread to find the direction I need to go on a bike that probably wouldn't make anyone drool.   However, I will offer that this one is working out great and after putting away the Cannondale, I went out and put down 200 miles.

CR,

How far below the saddle top are the top of the bars? If more than 20-30mm then you could invest in a Nitto Technomic stem. This is a high quality quill stem that has a much greater range of height adj.. You might want to go slightly shorter in length as well. This will make a big difference in comfort....losing some of that "a lot more body mass" is just a few thousand miles pedaling away! Like anything else, the body will need some miles to get acclimated to a new activity.
Personally I love downtube shifter better than anything else.

Look here;

http://sheldonbrown.com/harris/stems/index.html

Edited by Rossi Smash - 7/5/2009 at 10:06 am GMT

Although serious cyclist require drop bars, I haven't used drops in a long time. The first mountain bike I bought, I had the shop swap out the flat bars/shifters/brake levers for drop bars/bar-end shifters/road levers, but over the years I have come to prefer flat bars and even have risers  on a couple of my bikes.

At least you got a nice ride in!

Don't change *anything* except the saddle until after you have ~300 miles in on the bike.   Your body _will_ change that much as you pedal.

If you can get that much in in the next 3 weeks or less, you will know yourself what changes to make and whether you want a new bike (or not) 

Oh, and make sure to get your stretching in, especially the hips, back and hams.

This is drool-worthy - http://tour-de-france.velonews.com/photo/94636 

You just like the dazzle paint scheme.

 The TT bikes are really getting wild. Like F1 cars. They are getting tot the point where they would be useless to anybody other than a pro cyclist (and even the Bouygues boys couldn't handle them). That's kinda cool.

I'm digging Lance's stealth flat black one more.

I kind of agree with this, but they are pretty cool, eh!

 I wonder what makes the TT bikes so difficult to ride.

The geometry is radically different than a standard road bike, with a steeper seat angle.  Additionally, the top tube is shorter, which moves the torso further over the front axle, making handling a lot more squirrely.  Additionally, the aero profile of the frame and wheels makes the bike far more susceptible to crosswinds.

Basically, a TT bike of modern vintage is not a great everyday bike for 99.9 percent of riders.  They really are specialty weapons.

Especially on downhills.   And you really, really, really, don't want to brake one to a stop in the rain.

 Does this qualify as Drool inducing in your book?
It does in my book...


This bike was built by a local guy from an untouched Lemond Zed graphics frame.  Not a scratch on it.  Parts were taken from a 1990 cannondale (same vintage) road bike, with the exception of new cassette and chain.
It is showroom beautiful, not one scratch!
SIS shifters, double tapered spokes, vintage rolls saddle, 

 :drool

I picked the bike up tonight and was pleasantly surprised when he included some vintage Look pedals complete with clips, and the original handlebars  as seen in this pic.

I heart the Elite Ciussis + spindly cranks.

 Yeah, they look to me like Cook Bros Racing cranks.

TC...ALWAYS photograph a bike from the drive side.........ALWAYS!

More pics of the Drool inducing acquisition...