1993(?) Cannondale B.O.T.E frame/fork project build

[sparkybhp]

Picked up this f/f on Saturday after purchasing on e-bay. Was a bit of a punt tbh - the seller had it listed as a ‘Scott mountain bike frame’ because it had a Scott sticker on it. I could see it was a beast of the east so chucked a bid in at the last minute and won it at the starting price. Had to drive to south London to get it though.
There were no details on size in the listing and it measures 18” c/c or approx. 20” centre/top, not sure if that makes it a large or an XL - from what I understand they sized these differently due to the high bb? Any advice?
Anyway it’s all there and no cracks, although plenty of chips and scratches. Put a couple of wheels on to see how it sits and I’m happy with the look of it.
I have LX and XT components knocking about so it’ll get assembled and ridden - see how I like it, paint will be touched in for now. Possibly might re-powder coat and fresh decals in the future.
Hope you like - any thoughts/comments welcome, will keep the thread updated as I go.

 

[sparkybhp]

Update

Got the paintwork all touched up and built the bike up with components I had in the spares box. Just waiting for a front mech to turn up but other than that it’s all there for now.
First impressions are good, nice and light bike, long stem and narrow bars give an old school feel to the ride which I like.
I’d love to find a set of the Cannondale cantilever brake set up, let me know if anyone has a spare set kicking about.
Thanks

 

[krakhaus]

Very cool. I loved my BOTE. Hard bike to wheelie though because of the bottom bracket height.

 

[legrandefromage]

Its a biggie!

Never tried one of these - had plenty of smaller ones so if you get bored of it...?

 

[sparkybhp]

Re:

I know! I’m used to seeing these in 16” but this one is a big’un! I normally stick to steel framed bikes but I’ve always had a hankering for an M800 so couldn’t believe my luck when I found this.
Cheers, I want to put a few miles on it and see how it goes, got some Panaracers coming for it and the front mech too.
Will update once it’s finished.

 

[sparkybhp]

Update

Almost finished now, front mech came today so that’s on and fitted, Panaracers turned up earlier in the week and they look the business (thanks Jon Smith on here).
I’ve also got some Deore LX hubs in black that I’m thinking of lacing on to these Ritchey rims, not sure.
Had a dig around the forum and worked out that this is a 22” frame from November 1992.
Going for a decent ride on it tomorrow, see how it performs.

 

[sparkybhp]

Update

Had a few rides on this now, briefly put it on eBay as it’s a tad big for me really, took it off again and decided to do a bit more to it.
Converted it to take the Deore LX cantilever brakes instead of the v-brakes, works better with the brake shifters I fitted. Also re-laced the rims on to some Deore LX parallax hubs which I had.
Biggest change was to cut and shorten the stem by 25mm or so, this helped make it less of a stretch to the bars for me.
Overall it’s looking pretty good now, and it’s doing a good job as my go to winter bike. Think that’s about it for now, might go back on eBay when the weather gets a bit better - see how it goes.

 

[RD4130]

Nice - that front end looks jacked!

 

[sparkybhp]

Re:

Ha, it is! The head tube is crazy long - check it out next to my Scott which is a 19” large..

 

[brokenbloodybritain]

Great stuff, i'm here if you ever think of selling it!