1986 Canonndale SM600 - parts bin special....rollercam content.

[Synthiaks]

My first 'build' in progess as such in as much as this was just a frame / forks (Tange TL-Q...) on arrival not a complete bike....ok, not completely raw it had a headset in bits (needle bearings) the rollercams (holey ones!) were also with it, but thats all, previously I've just been cleaning/fixing things, so nice to start with a semi blank slate.
I can now change a bottom bracket which was easier than expected as the old tange BB from a donor bike wasn't super tight to get off & fit the dale perfectly (at least seems to..).

I'm going for bits I like the look of & I already have in hand rather than being correct to spec or in the case of the stem I prefer this Nitto one to the original Suntour XC even though I have one in a box of bits.

Not finished yet, I think it'll be a bit of a test-bed while things settle, seat is a placeholder, i have Suntour XC thumbies, but they look too bulky, so re-thinking the cockpit, not sure what grips to use, modern lock-ons or retro foam... .... I need to flip the front wheel as just realised looking at the picture tread is facing the wrong way.

I like the green/chrome/silver/black vibe....

 

[27motorhead]

Looking pretty epic already!

Green/chrome/silver/black is indeed a creating a great vibe!

I think you need a seatpost with more setback!

 

[Synthiaks]

Ha.....I like these MTE100 seatposts...I have 3 bikes with them on!

Also love rollercams, not sure why they didn;t catch on they work so well.




I need some ferrules to cap the cabes..

 

[27motorhead]

Those MTE100 posts helps elevate a slack 80s MTB/ATB into an Uber-slack machine! They do look “just right” on an 80s MTB.

Roller cams are lovely and work well. Ridden them on other people’s bikes many moons ago, but never owned a bike with them. Did they have the same failings as U brakes with clogging and also not fully opening up to allow an easy wheel change due tyres catching? Plus they’d be heavier and more expensive to produce vs. cantilevers which if set up properly work really well...

Did you see Scant was selling these?
https://www.retrobike.co.uk/threads/suntour-alpha-sl5000-front-rear-thumbshifters.460443/Lower profile vs. XC that seem to rival Campy Euclid/Centaur in who can build the tallest thumbies competition!

 

[Synthiaks]

This bike will be mega slack.... look at that gap between the front wheel and the downtube!

mud etc might get into them if you're out in that kind of world, the mechanism is pretty simple so not much to go wrong other than rollers/cam wearing I suppose....I've seem little covers to go over that top part of the brake on some bikes, assume that was to stop dirt ingress.

I have other tatty suntours that are still a bit lumpy, also deerhead somewhere (probably lumpy too) & those `EM shimano ones, dunno yet...I'm trying to do this with bits I have...but those SL5000s are interesting.





Meantime added XC beartraps from the parts box this morning....I'll give them a bit of a refurb, but they run smoothly.

 

[Tsundere]

Nice, one of my unicorns. Had a red 24/26 delivered from the states, got robbed off my doorstep. Cheers Evri.

This one looks like a fun ride and it looks good in the green, not many bikes can pull it off.

 

[Synthiaks]

Nice, one of my unicorns. Had a red 24/26 delivered from the states, got robbed off my doorstep. Cheers Evri.

This one looks like a fun ride and it looks good in the green, not many bikes can pull it off.

Oh crap....sorry to hear that! they do leave things in stupid places.

I stumbled on this green one in my hunt for an early rollercam (for the Muddy Fox challenger I bought on here a while ago) I'm pleased i did, frame size is perfect - especially for aesthics & its being a lot of fun building it up. The colour is really pretty even though its quite beaten up, looks bit brighter in the flesh with a slight sparkle to it.

they also did a dark grey in that era which is nicely understated.....see pic below, I treid to negotiate for this one for a while ages ago plus some of the original parts (like the wheels), but was just too costly & shipping was crazy too....glad i didn;t as this one I have now is preferable to me.

 

[27motorhead]

It sure is a slack-angled beauty. Good job the original grey was too expensive as I think the one you've ended up is far superior with roller cams and that green would be 100% better in the flesh than it shows on here.

Loving those pedals too, not sure your shins feel the same if yer foot ever slips from them!

 

[Synthiaks]

Agreed....I'm more than happy with this one.

And yes, these pedals would do some damage! good thing they grip and that I'd not planning to do anything crazy on it.

 

[Synthiaks]

So, swapped out the Sakae bars for some Nitto risers, closer to what would have been on it originally.....not 100% sure this is the right decision, but it allowed me to try underslinging the XC thumbies, not ideal, but they almost disapear, still feel useable (not cabled yet) assume they will be in reverse? is this a crappy idea? I'll try some cables to check if the can be routed this way...


grips are just what I had to hand that weren't glued to another bike....trying to find a seat that works from my bits n bobs, I know I have something somewhere.
















Sparkles...