So I Went To A Yardsale…

So I recently went to a yard sale. And came home with 5 bike frames. Whoops!

A friend sent me a posting advertising a yard sale in my area. Normally I don’t pay these much mind, but one of the photos in the post had a stack of old looking frames. I could see at least two Cannondales, a Raleigh, and a couple of other cool ones. I decided that ‘hey, what’s the harm in looking?’

After getting down there I realized that the gent hosting the yard sale was the same guy that I had bought the donor Canondale M500 frame that became the Hers Ketchum Krewzer from two years ago for $20. I never followed up and let him know what had become of his old frame. I showed him what it had become, and he was stoked to see that it had been given a new life.

I picked through the frame pile and found a few frames that I thought would make for great Shitbike candidates. The guy was excited not only to get some of his garage space back, but also to see that the frames were going to an appreciative home that will give them a second spin around the track. I ended up walking away with five frames for little more than a song and a promise to be better about letting him know how the projects turn out.

Cannondale F3000 - 1999 (?)

This ‘Dale is in roughish shape. It has clearly been ridden pretty hard, and has the scratches, paint chips, and chain suck gouges to prove it. The Ultra Fatty Head Shok is in need of serious attention. It’s not frozen, but will need a complete rebuild. I am not sure if I will keep it or convert the bike to a conventional fork. This frame and fork have disc brake mounting tabs, so we may eventually have the first hydraulically braked Shitbike!

Cannondale F400 (?) - 1995

This Cannondale is also in need of some serious work, definitely including a paint job. Similar to the F3000 above, it was clearly well used, but should have life left! This frame also came with XTR crank, LX pedals, a cool seat post and a Flite saddle.

Raleigh Eight Hundred Pro - 2000-ish

This Raleigh is in overall good shape. It’s surprisingly light, and I’m a big fan of the teardrop shaped aluminum tubes. It’s also on the larger side at a measured 58cm. I’m thinking this could be a prime candidate for a slick paint job and a single speed conversion.

Rocky Mountain Altitude - 1993

After a little research, it seems this was once upon a time a very nice mountain bike. Decked out with Syncros, Race Face, and Shimano XTR components, it would have been a sweet ride. This is a surprisingly light steel frame, and the chain device on the forward section of the driveside chainstay is interesting.

Unknown - Unknown

A few years ago, a local shop experimented with the idea of directly sourcing Chinese carbon frames and building them up for customers. I don’t believe that program is still active, but this frame appears to have once been a part of it. It looks to be a mostly-modern 700c gravel frame of some kind. It has internal cable routing, disc mounts, and a head tube that takes a tapered fork. It is also stupid light. When I brought this one in the garage my wife said “Ooooh, you’re going to make that into a cool gravel bike for me, aren’t you?”