Submitted by
Charlesc3357
a Downhiller
from Cincinnati, Ohio
Date Reviewed: July 26, 2010
Strengths: Light As a FEATHER! Nice smooth, fast, quick climbing bike. Like someone said back in 96', i'm faster on this thing than on a street bike, with slicks. I have a rockshox front suspension fork, which makes it amazing on speedy downhill decents.
Weaknesses: Stock grips & side bars leave some to be desired.
Bottom Line:
A+++!!!!! Its a 14+ year old bike, and it STILL tears it up with mostly all original parts. Amazing craftsmanship. Can't wait til' I can afford a brand new one!!!
Submitted by
hotar
a Cross-Country Rider
from SHREWsbury you say?
Date Reviewed: July 1, 1999
Strengths: light as a feather...um...no, a bit lighter. responsive without being squirrelly, quiet for aluminum.
Weaknesses: CODA parts (saddle, brakes, bar-ends), gripshift 8.0? shifters, onza pedals, value for price*
Bottom Line:
the best aluminum frame i can imagine! absurdly light and strong!! yet not brutally fatiguing!!! older cannondale frames were more rigid and the body fatigue factor was high (contributing to long-term soreness and inflammation). i rode a sm1000 until it was stolen, rode another until the frame cracked (the weld at the joint of the head tube to the lower side of the downtube; an easy crack to miss because that spot is often muddy/dusty: ALWAYS check your older aluminum frame for cracks). the cannondale rep okayed a GREAT frame credit for my fairly beat-up bike, i think it was $550! so i put it on a year-old m900 and ended up putting down very little cash, plus replacing the crappy onza pedals. (thanks to the great guys at west hill shop in putney, VT! they were the stylin' posse who modelled the cyclocross gear in Mountain Bike)the upshot was a SWEET deal on a sweeter frame. the frame is vertically compliant so it soaks up more vibrations than the older ones, and it tracks and climbs extremely well. but it's stiff in the lateral direction, so there's no flex or slop. and it's as light as anything out there at any price. i rode it for awhile without suspension and found it to be considerably less fatiguing than the older frames, though still a lively ride to say the least. then i added a rockshok indy sl, and now it is a DREAM to ride. i feel confident hammering downhill and leaving my buddies in the dust, because the bike goes EXACTLY where i point it, tracks like it's on rails in turns, etc. climbing is also considerably improved by the shock, which helps reduce the boing-boing factor. but i can't bring myself to put waterbottle cages on it, cuz they would make it so heavy, hehe. the downside has been the CRAPPY CODA parts. the brakes pisspoor design made the simplest adjustment difficult, and they seemed to need it FREQUENTLY. the bar-ends have a shiny fake-titanium anodized finish that doesn't offer a secure grip like a knurled surface or softer aluminum would. the gripshift + XT match-up really sucked and i was happy to punt the sloppy shifting (and long throw on the left) after i broke the left gripshift (plastic, feh!). with the new XT shifters and v-brakes, a VAST improvement. also, the onza pedals were just a flat-out joke. on an entry-level bike, okay, but on a bike selling for this kind of price, not acceptable. i guess the problem may be that they build the frames in the USA, which costs alot more than Taiwan...but i still would expect better components at the price. five chilis for the frame, 3 for the cheesy CODA stuff
Bike Setup: judy sl 97, specialized body geom comp saddle, shimano XT pods and v-brakes, ritchey logic pedals
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
archie
a Cross-Country Rider
from broussard, La
Date Reviewed: June 13, 1999
Strengths: weight(lack of it) accelration carving ability weight(did I mention that?)
Weaknesses: -bar is flexy -crank is too -brakes (force 40+)are hard to adjust when not in the mood
Bottom Line:
Nice bike frame weight:3.1 lbs. can be made really really light. I really like mine fast.I am faster on it than I am on a road bike(I really like that!!!)
Bike Setup: -Judy dh -platform pedals(I jump and fall enough by my self I don't need things locking me in) expensive tires -avid ultimate levers
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Jack E Kleiner
a Cross-Country Rider
from PA
Date Reviewed: April 30, 1999
Strengths: Super stiff Light weight
Weaknesses: CODA crank Onza pedals
Bottom Line:
The bike climbs great. Hauls ass on the road with slicks, love catching and passing roadies. 1st one had a frame misalignment, and Cannondale swapped the bike. Total turnaround time 3 days!
Strengths: Super light, stiff, replaceable drlr hanger, beautiful in yellow
Weaknesses: originally equiped with cantilever brakes, no shocks and a creaky (but extremely light) CODA crank.
Bottom Line:
If you can find one of these CAAD 3 frames that has not been ruined for the Headshok nonsense, then grab it - there are still examples of new '95-'97 bikes in bike stores because the bike was way overpriced at the time. I piked up a new '96 on winter close out for $500, put the above parts on it (some new some just kicking around) and this is an absolutely incredible hardtail. Stiff, very light, very good handling and drop dead looks - it really is lighter than some titanium bikes with fancier kits. I don't love the shifting on the crank, nor the occasional creak, but there are few cranks on the market as light as these CODAs so I cannot bring myself to swap it. This bike is the last great conventional hardtail C'dale ever made - now it is all headshok stuff, which is too bad. This bike even rocks on the street with 700cc wheels and skinny tires. Outstanding value - if you can still find one, grab it and put a couple of parts on it and prepare yourself for greatness far exceeding what you paid.
Similar Products Used: Klein Comp, Kona cinder cone, Trek 8000
Bike Setup: My bike has a 98 Judy SL, new LX brakes, superlight wildgripper sprint tires and a USE XCR shox post.
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
fred gittes
a Racer
from toontown, ma
Date Reviewed: April 20, 1999
Strengths: cheap
Weaknesses: that's because it sucks
Bottom Line:
If GT is the McLaren of mountain bikes, the Cannondale must be the Ferrari. try this: If you are the a$$hole of cycling, then the Cannondale M900 must be the big misaligned aluminum dildo that has penetrated you and torn your tender parts. 1 star for cannondale because they have the guts to ask you to pay for this crap.
Bike Setup: I used Shayla's Exciter Lube and a Jeff Stryker Butt Plug II
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Juha
a cross-country rider
from Ostro-Bothnia, Finland
Date Reviewed: January 20, 1999
Bottom Line:
I´ve A C´dale M900 ´95 ( VIPER RED) that I bought as a second-hand bike 5 months ago, in fact I´m the third owner of the bike. The C´dale has some 1 500 km in odometer, and I have ridden circa 300 km of the total. Okay the bike is light as everybody has said and also the frame is vvvery rigid. That's why there is Manitou Mach 5 SX ´96 ( that came with the deal ) with a speed springs update hanging in the front. For the next summer I´m going to renew the transmission; rear cogs, chainrings and the chain. Also the original tires ( Panaracer Dart and Smoke- kevlar sided ) have worn nearly out. In this area of Finland it is very flat. If fact here MOUNTAIN BIKING = mostly FOREST ROAD AND HARDPACK BIKING. I´m going to put the new Geax Sedonas or Reverts on. Okay the bike is RADIENT ( quality, style, image). (If GT is the McLaren in mountain biking, then Cannondale must be the Ferrari !!?)
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Alvin
a weekend warrior
from Singapore
Date Reviewed: January 11, 1999
Bottom Line:
Featherlight weight, super stiff frame, ultra reliable components from a well known brand; Cannondale. Controltech stem and magura brakes have been installed to punch up its performance, and this bike really kicks.
I've rescently bought a Carrera Hellcat full suspension mountain bike for £700.It has 461 DH front suspension ,a shock works rear shock and a sachs group set.It's the best handling bike i've ever had because it takes in all the bumps and shifts well to,I recomend it it's BRILLIANT.
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Nisse
a cross-country rider
from Sweden (smaland)
Date Reviewed: November 22, 1998
Bottom Line:
I´ve had my share of bikes the last 14 years (starting with a real 3-gear clunker), but this is so far the best frame I ever rode. The LX/XT combo gives a accurate and stable approach and the CODA components (brakes, front hub and chainring) are fair enough - although a set of v-brakes would probably be more...safe! And...a suspension fork would do the trick on those tricky swedish singletracks...
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
The Sid
a weekend warrior
from The Netherlands
Date Reviewed: November 5, 1998
Bottom Line:
I have got my M900 for 2 years now and it still goes like hell. The frame is super (stiff) and I like the components. That's also the main thing why I bought it in the first place. I also love the look of it and I am happy that C'dale isn't very well known in my town, I have a pretty exclusive bike although it really isn't. I give it five burning peppa's.
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
paul
a weekend warrior
from minneapolis,mn
Date Reviewed: August 29, 1998
Bottom Line:
i bought my m900 at beginning of 98. it was a 97 model that was about half off what it originaly retailed for. for the same money i could of bought a bike with a suspension fork, but it would have been less of a bike. i getting ready to put a z-2 bomber on it. the components are ok, but i want to upgrade to xt. this bike is super light and climbs awesome. all in all, another great cdale hardtail.
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Stewart McCracken
a cross-country rider
from Edinburgh Scotland (UK)
Date Reviewed: August 7, 1998
Bottom Line:
What a pile of S**t, great bike, shame about the attitude of the european service and backup personnel when it came to warranty claim. I had an 18 month old bike that fractured immediately behind the chainstay brace... that was August 1997. Cannondales idea of an acceptable time scale for replacement (up grade to a suspension frame which I might add involved considerable additional investiment from myself) was Decemenber 1997,a full 5 months without a bike?! Clearly unacceptable for a company who ...care about our customers. I don't know what your service is like in the U.S.A., but your representatives in the U.K. a serious change of attitude. An example, having receieved little/no help from Cannondale Europe directly (nobody on the end of the customer services phone line, I attempted to locate a frame by spending my own time and money in scouring the U.K. bike shops for frames. I got a HOSTILE ! response from Cannondale who told me that I should not be doing this. As a result I have now got a 957 Pro-Flex, what a fantastic bike.
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
chuck norbert
a cross-country rider
from minnesota
Date Reviewed: June 18, 1998
Bottom Line:
I have this bike, the frame cracked last year, but cannondale was cool about replacing it. the bike is great for speed on flat terrain, and for climbing, however, it is not the best descending bike. the caad 3 frame kicks ass...........I like taco bell sometimes, punk rock, veggie smmiches, nd pop rocks are nice. I dont like ignorant people with opinions that are clearly rediculous.
