The Uber V

Got a old Cannondale Super V 500 from 2000 which hadn't seen too much use the last years. Took it for a spin a few times earlier this year, but realised the bobbing from the spring FOX Vanilla rear suspention was a bit annoying. Also, the bike was equipped with V brakes, and the rims wasn't perfectly true anymore. As I didn't know much about these bikes, and the fact that they go back as early as 1993, with the current shock setup since '96 or '97, I started looking for info and reviews to see if they were still in use today.

Super V at Fløyen. Not very nice to see people littering at one of Bergen's prime locations.

As it turned out, some guys on the MTBR boards are still using their Super Vs today. They are also modifying the bike by replacing the rear swing arm with a later model from a Cannondale Jekyll or Raven to get longer rear travel. This allows a modern 6" air shock to be fitted. (Note: You might have to modify the mounting tabs on the main frame, but luckily I did not.) The modified Super Vs got the name Uber V from their claimed excellent performance as XC and trail bikes.

Got interested in doing this modification to my Super and started weighing the pros and cons. What made me decide to go for the Uber was the brakes. The V-brakes had poor performance, and upgrading to discs meant replacing the hubs and wheels. Also, the old Vanilla would be far inferior to a modern air shock with Pro Pedal to eliminate pedal-bobbing. Just replacing these things would be a major change to the bike, so I went full out and upgraded the whole bike.

The decision was made, and I started buying parts from Chainreactioncycles and ebay. Got a deal on a CAAD4 swing arm from a guy in Sweeden who had been using it for his Uber.

I've nearly completed the build, and looking forward riding the bike. Hopefully, I've saved a lot, and the performance will be comparable to a new quality XC bike.