EJS

First forum ever. I've been browsing on here for the last year and there seems to be a-lot of helpful advice, (some not lol) but in general a good community for questions/support and enthusiasts alike!

I came across a barn find that I'm excited about and am looking to build it out. It's and 88' Cannondale ST400 in the 27" frame size which is great for me as I'm a little over 6'7 and a heavier rider.

My first question is about the Nitto stem and trying to find a wider set of drop bars. I could be wrong on all of this so apologies in advance but I think the stem is listed as a 26mm diameter clamp, does that mean I need to find drop bars that are of the 25.8mm to ensure that they fit?

I spoke with Zinn Cycles out of Boulder, CO and the tech suggested that I may need to replace the fork and stem if I wanted a wider drop bar. I've done some looking and it seems like there are a few alternatives out there, wasn't sure if anyone had an idea for where to look/recommendations on what might work. would prefer to not have to replace the original fork.

Hopefully someone sees this and thanks to all who find time to contribute!

cb400bill

Thread moved from Introductions forum to Classic & Vintage forum.

bboy314

For a wider handlebar, the easiest approach might be something modern with a 31.8mm clamp, and a threadless stem adapter and stem. This will let you keep the original fork. If you wish to use your current 26mm stem (you should double check this measurement, it may also be 25.4) then you’ll need a 26mm handlebar - I believe Nitto still makes wider drop bars in this clamp size.

Here is an example of a threadless adapter:
https://velo-orange.com/products/vo-...s-stem-adaptor

ehcoplex 

Well, the first thing to do is quickly get up to 10 posts so that you can upload PICTURES!

I had an ST600 in '90 or '91 that I really loved. Have a '97 T900 now, though spend most of my time on a '72 PX-10.

The suggestion that you may need to replace the fork in order to use wider bars seems a little extreme to me. As BBoy314 says, a threadless adapter might be the easiest way to go & will open up a big selection of 'modern' bars.

If you haven't already checked it out, worth looking around over at vintagecannondale.com, too. There's a pdf of the 1988 catalog there.

smd4

Cinelli makes bars in 26mm too.

shoota 

You don't need to change the fork, that's crazy talk.

EJS

I figured as much about changing the fork! I respect that company but I think they were trying to upsell me a bit? I'll do my best to get more posts up, would love to share some pictures. I like the idea of the threadless adaptor. will look and see what I can find. this is going to take me some time due to finances atm but I really appreciate the input!

RB1-luvr

threadless adaptors work well. I used one on my touring bike so I could get the handlebars I wanted and dial in the length and rise better.

shoota 

One thing you'll learn about shop's advice as you as go, some don't understand vintage bikes, some don't (won't) do anything outside of what is in their precious little handbook that Trek corporate gave them, and some others won't order anything outside of what shows up on their supplier's website. In all of those cases come here and we'll show how to do what you're looking to do.

Pompiere

Congratulations on your ST400. I think you are really going to enjoy it. I found one last fall, but it was definitely NOT a barn find. But, when all was said and done, it was worth the effort. It really rides great. It had a 27 inch front wheel and a 700 rear, which meant the rear cantilever brake was replaced with a center-pull Dia Compe. The crank arms were also mismatched. And, it was covered with a lot of road grime and electrical tape residue. I just finished building a set of wheels from the hubs and spokes that came with the bike.


1990 Cannondale ST400

You shouldn't worry about getting an undersize bar to fit a 26 mm stem. There are a lot of handlebar options for 26 mm. Stems are normally either 25.4 or 26 mm.

ehcoplex 

Well, heck... I'll add to the aspirational show-and-tell....



They're pretty great bikes- there are those who rate the ST as the GOAT as far as sport-touring bikes go. I'm not really sure how much the geometry changed between the ST and the T versions, but I do remember liking the ST I had in the very early 90s a little more than this T- but that might have more to do with an aging body than the bike(s)! The early ST bikes have the Tange forks which are a lot more attractive than the later uni-crown forks. At any rate, they're great bikes!

RiddleOfSteel

Hi @EJS and welcome to the forum! So glad you got a properly sized bike for yourself, and a vintage Cannondale ST at that--fantastic bikes that ride plenty fast.

Like others have said, you don't need to go through all the fork swapping business, which can be pricey, a lot of time, a lot of hassle, and leave you with a fork that doesn't match. You have a Nitto stem with a 26.0mm clamp--that's a great place to start. (stems will match bars, so if a stated 26.0 stem, that means it is to work with 26.0 bars)

There are 26.0mm bars that run wider than the normal larger sizes of 42cm and 44cm (center-to-center here). Nitto's Model 177 ("Noodle") comes in 46 and 48cm sizes, though there's a bump in price for the extra work that goes into making sure it's not an actual noodle when used by an ostensibly larger and stronger rider. Since gravel is big and crazy looking bars are in vogue, there are some folks that make some super wide stuff. As a 6'5" guy, I find super mega mondo flare handlebars to be impractical and unbecoming, but that's just me.

Soma has Highway One bars that come up to 46cm (26.0mm clamp). I'd think Nitto and a few others have 44+cm bars in other models. Do you have an idea of the width you'd like to go with? (ok if not) 31.8mm clamp diameter bars open up endless possibilities, and one can do stem adaptors or an Innicycle headset (which are awesome and super easy to set up), but both of those will depend on how high you want your bars (or technically, how high you want your brake levers). In the photo below, that stem is much taller than normal, and Nitto sells a Technomic model that has lovely polish and has plenty of height. I have a couple now, with one on the way..



Innicycle headset on my 65cm Trek 620 (with about 1/2" of height cut out of it):



1990 ST400 that I used to have:

curbtender

Always good to post your area. You may find a forum member that shares your interest local. You can post pictures to your album so we can see them. If you haven't been here already, here is a link...
https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...ondale-44.html

Soody

+1 nitto noodles

jdawginsc 

Agreed with @shoota Changing the fork is crazy talk. Unless you wanted the dampening properties of CArbon fiber to soften the ‘Dale out.

Threadless adapters are a great idea. As a taller bigger rider with wider bars, you might consider converting to 31.8 for added stiffness. I am guessing you will be torquing them when riding fast or going uphill.

Another possibility is getting one of the very fine cheomoly stems from 3ttt or ITM. They are pretty cool and very stiff.

I would imagine you would need 46mm width.

ehcoplex 

When I decided to get back into cycling I got my T900 mainly out of nostalgia for the ST600 I had in the early 90s. A couple days in and I was like, 'oh, man, was this a mistake...?' The roads where I am are uniformly AWFUL and my joints were having a really hard time. I went through progressively wider tires, and it got a little better each time- but a set of Rene Herse tires were transformational. I don't know what the clearance is on the 80s models- they're VERY tight on my T900, but RH 38c tires feel amazing on it.

Pompiere

From a visual standpoint, next to the fat Cannondale frame tubes, I think the uni-crown fork looks better than the Tange fork. For normal sized tubes, the Tange is better.

rccardr 

Congratulations on finding a most excellent bicycle! I've owned dozens of ST's and 88's are my favorite. They are a great foundation for building up any way you want and will accept any vintage or modern component group.
Here's the one I've had the longest- an 88 built in 2015. It's been all over the USA on vintage rides, travels well in an EVOC bag, and is equipped to take on just about any road condition (except rain- not a fender guy) or incline.
Compact Sugino crankset with 50/34 rings works well with the Deore derailleurs and 12-34 10 speed cassette, shifted by Dura Ace 10 speed DT shifters. Brake system is Tektro 539's and RL200 levers. Wheels are Ultegra hubs laced to 700c Open Pro rims. Currently has Vittoria 30mm tires but have also run Conti GP 28's. The limiting factor on tire size is the chainstays- they are pretty fat.

You had questions about bar width- here I've used Cannondale C3 series seatpost, stem and 45mm shallow C3 bars with a threaded-to-threadless adaptor. Works great, very stable combination.

Please keep us posted on your Cannondale build!

EJS

Really appreciate all the feedback!!! I've went ahead and started a local thread as well, but while I'm at it, what type of wheel sets might you all recommend. was thinking of running the traditional 27" x 1 1/4 size but if you think 700c is more practical then maybe I should go that route. my main concern with components is durability. I realize parts break and need to be replaced but I've had too many blown spokes, stretched chains and frames that flex as a larger rider. I'm mostly going to be using the bike as a commuter/daily driver but its nice to have some reassurance when it comes time to stand on the pedals and romp. I'll likely be looking for extended crank arms as well. any and all advice is welcome! seems like rccardr has a setup that works well and RiddleOfSteel has some sweet build outs for a taller rider. Thanks again for all the help.

RiddleOfSteel

700C will be considerably more practical as it's the default road/bike tire size, plus your standard reach (47-57mm) brake calipers should/will reach 700C rims. Plenty of wheels built strong enough for bigger and stronger riders. There is a Clydesdales & Athenas subforum and among other things, choices of sturdy wheels comes up. We are Clydes simply due to our height and resulting natural weight. 32H hubs/rims minimum, 36H if desired--that should get you going. Straight gauge spokes (14 gauge or 2.0mm) hold up very well. Velomine sells a number of wheelsets. I have a set of Shimano R7000 105 hubs laced to DT Swiss R460 rims. 32H. ~2000g. Very sturdy for me at ~210 lbs.

Since brakes REALLY matter for us big guys, you can swap the marginal-at-best single-pivot brakes for something like Shimano R450 or R650 dual pivot calipers, or various Tektro dual pivot calipers (R536, R539, R737). You could stay with the Tektro pads or upgrade to Kool Stop pads. I run R737s (because they're gorgeous) and Kool Stops on my '82 Trek 720 and they work excellently.

I don't know your budget, so let me/us know. 11-speed chains do stretch a lot easier than 10-speed, which makes sense given the thinner plates. That's alright because Shimano makes Claris in 8-speed form (R2000 generation) and that stuff not only looks great, but works well. I've said for a while that one of the really nice things about modern Shimano road groupsets is that they all possess the current generation of STI (brake/shift lever) 'brifter' design, which is really comfortable and has a longer body for larger hands. 8-speed or 8-speed chains should be nice and stout, as should the cranksets be. As far as longer than 175mm, that's either Dura-Ace or more specialty makers. Sigh, it's not cheap being big/tall, but it also means we don't have to play the $$$ weight weenie game because we by default can't!

I'm presently building up a 1985 Schwinn Voyageur SP in full Peak Touring Bike (TM) spec. It came with Wolber Super Champion 36H front and 40H rear wheels. For 'ol Riddle, that's a lot o' spokes. They're staying on the bike, but wheelsets from earlier times can work, though as time went on, double-wall rims replaced flexier single wall rims, alloys got better etc, so 32-36H is a good place to start.