Haven't rode a bike in a long time but was looking to get back into it. I started searching for affordable electric bikes wich made me realise very quickly i just cant afford one. Next thing i started looking at lightweight conventional bikes and came across a good looking Cannondale Prophet SL Lefty. The seller want 350 bucks and it comes with all the papers, tools and an extra set of tires. How bad of a choice would this be for someone who hasn't rode a bike in a long time?
Also take a look at the picture of the rear shock.. the rubber seems damaged. Is that from bottoming out or just wear? And would this be an issue?
by mellowthug
5 Comments
Might be a can of worms. I’m assuming that servicing that fork and rear shock could be a challenge. Whether finding rebuild kits or someone with the proper skills, locally, affordably etc
My .02 would be to spend a little more upfront to get something more modern. In my local market I certainly see decent and more recent bikes under a $1k.
Generally if it has a dropper post, 1x drivetrain, hydraulic brakes you’re likely looking at something that would serve you decently.
Things I would also look for would be tapered head tube and air fork.
Best of luck getting back at it.
Go find a newer hardtail.
For its age it was quite a progressive bike. I bought one of these 10 years ago that was hardly used. The rear shock died in no-time. I had it serviced and it died again. Replaced with a more modern one, added an angle set to make the headset slacker and put some offset bearings in I so could fit 27,5” wheels in. It was a fun bike. Probably better without most of the mods I did. Biggest downside is that it has a 27.2 seatpost making it harder to find a dropper that fits.
There are worse options. The biggest problem would be parts availability and the state of the fork/shock internals. That asking price isn’t totally insane as long as it’s in good condition and the suspension components are well cared for. That’s a big if though.
If the shock is blown, you can probably find a decent replacement for under $200. The fork though, that’s a different story I think. The steerer tube on modern bikes of this caliber are almost all going to be tapered. You can still find straight steerer tube forks, but they’re harder to come by for the higher end models.
tl;dr: I would really want to give it a good look before committing to purchasing it, and I would haggle over the price.
Knowing the Prophet really well, there are some serious considerations here:
1. I wouldn’t worry about Lefty stiffness, but it’s going to absolutely need a service and depending on which damper it is, it likely has a sponge inside which is a horrible design to replace a bladder or gas chamber. Over time, the sponge fills with oil and the damper locks solid. Basically, the suspension degrades really fast. Then the Lefty service is horrible unless one has the tools. People talk about the rubber bands, the zip tie tricks, whatever. It sucks and is not great with the Cannondale tools that only more recently became available to the public in different markets. I’m not 100% sure, but the fork may not be fully extended
2. The rear end is extremely flexible to the point I had the experience that it kept bending derailleur hangers and could never figure out why
3. The geometry by today’s standards, even for an xc bike, is not good, plus the high BB makes the single-pivot swingarm feel worse by comparison to today’s bikes
4. 27.2 seatpost
It could be a fun bike only for the right buyer, but that thing was introduced around 21 years ago and that might be about 19 years old, so do the math. The person who owned the Prophet is now riding a titanium hardtail and hammering trails they could never do on the Prophet, so more math to consider.