# 1991 Cannondale SE1000



## Mr Cabletwitch (Apr 16, 2009)

I've been looking for the right early to mid 90s mountain bike to ride around town and rail trails. This was on craigslist for a while and I'd though about it but it was just a bit too much for me at $250, so my buddies little brother has turned into a little collector and seller so he picked it up for $200. Which in my mind was still too much, so now he had this and he really wanted to get a 29er after riding mine. So I offered him the 200 he paid plus a bunch of parts I was never going to use. and home it came. I haven't gotten anything apart yet but it rides the way it is I rode it around his pump track. I'm kinda excited because I have some parts from that period. Most of the parts on it are not original so I think I'm just going to fix it up with parts from time and enjoy it.


----------



## Mr Cabletwitch (Apr 16, 2009)

Forgot to ask my questions. I have a Deore LX front and rear der. from another bike and some 200GS shifters and brake levers. would they work well on this bike or should I look for higher end stuff. For now the crank and brakes have to stay but the rest will get replaced with stuff I have or find. I'd love to find a set of force 40 brakes but I'm not sure thats going to happen. 

Let me know if you have any suggestions of what to do with it. I want to more or less fix it up with stuff from the time period but not get crazy with a restoration as I do plan on riding it some.


----------



## Mr Cabletwitch (Apr 16, 2009)

I got it home and partially torn down. Looks like the build will go as follows:

1991 Cannondale SE1000 w/ original pepperoni fork 
Late 90s Tioga XC wheels w/ Parallax rear hub and generic radial laced front hub
92 Shimano 7 speed triggers
Shimano Deore LX front der.
92 Shimano Exage 400LX rear der.
92 Shimano 200GS crank biopace
C-Star Red brake levers
Unknown alloy canti brakes (seem decent)
Kenda Kinetics 26x2.1 tires
Koski Seat
Thomson 27.2 seatpost
The bar and stem which aren't original will have to stay for now.

I had an absolute blast riding this thing around yesterday and am really hoping it will see some light trail use.


----------



## mechagouki (Nov 30, 2007)

Ride it as it is, replace stuff when it wears out. Putting anything sub DeoreLX on a bike is a downgrade - donate your XXXGS parts to your local co-op and be glad to see the back of them. You can pick up an M732 XT rear derailleur for less than $25 without too much effort, some Deore thumbshifters would make a functional upgrade to whatever is on there now (there were no 7 speed "trigger" shifters in 1992, only 8 speed XTR).


----------



## J_Westy (Jan 7, 2009)

Mr Cabletwitch said:


> I had an absolute blast riding this thing around yesterday and am really hoping it will see some light trail use.


Probably not worth restoring per se even though it's probably relatively rare, but you can certainly have fun with it :thumbsup:. The design was likely 1-year-only for a reason 

Guessing you probably have the link to the 1991 catalog , but if not:
http://sanaandterry.com/cannondale/year/1991/1991.pdf

I agree with the post above, refurb it with ebay parts as things stop functioning well and have fun. NOS Deore LX stuff is readily available and pretty bullet proof.


----------



## Shayne (Jan 14, 2004)

*St-m095*



mechagouki said:


> (there were no 7 speed "trigger" shifters in 1992, only 8 speed XTR).


There were XT Raplidife+ 7spd shifters in 1992


----------



## mechagouki (Nov 30, 2007)

Shayne said:


> There were XT Raplidife+ 7spd shifters in 1992


You are correct sir, consider me duly humbled. XT 8spd in 1993 then?


----------



## Mr Cabletwitch (Apr 16, 2009)

I actually have a 92 Raleigh Crest that I am stealing some of the parts off of (shifters, rear der.and crank) . The stuff thats on there now is awful, its a mix of newer super low end stuff. The exage 400LX rear der. I have is in like new condition so I'll just use that, I'd like to put a crank on it that isn't biopace but the wife was pretty pissed about the purchase so I have a $10 budget to rebuild so any parts for it need to be either from my parts pile or free. 
Everything that is on my build list is in my possesion. 

I live in Pa and love the fact that it was built less than an hour from where I live and the fact that its pretty rare makes it all the cooler. I always wanted a cannondale but could never justify the higher price. This was the top of the line bike in 91 when I bought my first MTB which was a schwinn.


----------



## Mr Cabletwitch (Apr 16, 2009)

It also doesn't ride too bad. The spring is pretty stiff so doesn't bob when pedaling the only time you notice any bounce to the back is through washboard stuff. My only fear of taking it on the trails is that I'll break it. After all it is a cranknfail


----------



## da'HOOV (Jan 3, 2009)

*similar bike*

This is my wifes ride and she won't give it up. I built it with parts I had around the shop. It has just the right amount of "bounce" to make it comfy ;-) Certainly not the best design, but then again the little lady's happy with it....so it's perfect :thumbsup: .


----------



## Rumpfy (Dec 21, 2003)

da'HOOV said:


> This is my wifes ride and she won't give it up. I built it with parts I had around the shop. It has just the right amount of "bounce" to make it comfy ;-) Certainly not the best design, but then again the little lady's happy with it....so it's perfect :thumbsup: .


Would you say she rides more...or less than you do?


----------



## proto2000 (Jan 27, 2007)

She rides him less than you do.


----------



## Mr Cabletwitch (Apr 16, 2009)

Put it together with the above build and there is no way this thing is gonna see a trail in its current condition. Considering just throwing a chain tensioner on it, V brakes, and newer tires and use it as a SS.


----------



## mechagouki (Nov 30, 2007)

Mr Cabletwitch said:


> Put it together with the above build and there is no way this thing is gonna see a trail in its current condition. Considering just throwing a chain tensioner on it, V brakes, and newer tires and use it as a SS.


Sorry, but that ain`t going to work. One of the most serious problems with the design of this bike is that the rear axle moves in an arc that significantly alters the distance between the axle and the bottom bracket - you could use a dummy derailleur tensioner like the Paul Melvin (expensive) or Shimano Alfine (fiddly to set up), but if an SS is your desire a hard tail is the best place to start - URT full suspension bikes work too, but let`s not go there.


----------



## Mr Cabletwitch (Apr 16, 2009)

I was going to use an old der. for a tensioner. 
I just noticed the junk crank I put on is bent so thats the first thing to replace. The gears will stay for now at least.


----------



## Mr Cabletwitch (Apr 16, 2009)

Well I finished the build for now. Things never go as planned. I had the old 7 speed stuff on and decided it was junk (exage 400) so I upgraded with a 9 speed drivetrain I had lying around. The only part left on the bike from when I picked it up is the old LX front der., tires and the seat.

The build:

1991 Cannondale SE1000 Frame

Rock Shox Mag21 (found this in the trash at LBS cleaned it up put oil in and its been holding air for a week now)

Coda Crank, Sram 970 cassette, Xt rear der., Lx front, Deore shifters.

Avid Fr5 levers and some soon to be replaced tektro V brakes. I'm hoping to find something from the 90s

mavic 238 rims laced to STXRC hubs, Specialized Hardrockr tires

ITM 1" stem, Coda performance bar, thomson seatpost, koski saddle.

It rides pretty well and will see some trail time since I wrecked my 29er and broke a few things


----------



## TraumaARNP (Oct 13, 2005)

I've been looking for a NOS, or slightly used SM 2000 frame for the longest time; gotta' love the made in the REAL USA Cannondales. Nice find, btw.


----------



## Mr Cabletwitch (Apr 16, 2009)

TraumaARNP said:


> I've been looking for a NOS, or slightly used SM 2000 frame for the longest time; gotta' love the made in the REAL USA Cannondales. Nice find, btw.


I really wanted to find a higher end mid to late 90s cannondale hardtail with a headshock(volvo team replica ideally), but when this came along I figured it was a start.

Just a note, I'll trade for what I really want


----------



## lucifer (Sep 27, 2004)

da'HOOV said:


> This is my wifes ride and she won't give it up. I built it with parts I had around the shop. It has just the right amount of "bounce" to make it comfy ;-) Certainly not the best design, but then again the little lady's happy with it....so it's perfect :thumbsup: .


No way would I let my wife ride an mtb that ugly....


----------

