General: 90s Cannondale track fork equivalent

Rake is some confusing shit. This is the most thorough description I have been able to find.



Does the clearance look tighter to you? I don't know. Anyway, the Rush has a steeper head angle. Soma makes three forks: straight blade track (41mm rake), threadless track (38mm rake), and threaded fork (not track, 41mm rake). I have seen their threaded for advertised as a "track" fork, but in reality it is not. They don't make a threaded track specific fork, as far as I can see. You could have the threadless fork threaded, I guess.

I just got up so any or all of this could be wrong.

Thanks sd. Those pictures seem to make it a little bit more clear. I've always understood fork rake as, according to the diagram in that article, the distance (in mm) between the the line down the center of the steer tube extended to the ground, and the parallel line to the right of it going through the center of the hub (i.e. the little line that forms an "H" between two said lines, connecting them). And even though 6mm (the difference between the rake on the Kilo fork and the Rush fork) is very small, those pictures do make it appear as if the bend in the Kilo fork is slightly greater than that of the Rush.

Posted By: voulksguy
Go with the rush fork.... I have a 92 cannondale and the rush fork more so resembles the cdale fork....

Hey thanks a lot. I was leaning more towards the Rush fork anyway, partly because it comes in chrome, which would better match the silver frame.

Yeah, I don't know for sure about the forks. Either Soma doesn't have it listed on their site (doubtful), or bike sites are selling the fork on mistaken information, or retailers are threading the threadless forks. I don't know. You could ask Soma, or Universal.

As for steer tubes, that's a tough one. Typically it is measured head tube length + headset stack height. I don't think you'll be able to order the exact right size though. Measure and see, I guess.

You're right, the crown race and internal diameter are different. The crown race matters for headsets and is the outside diameter of the steerer at the fork crown (both forks have ISO races, don't worry about that, just get an ISO headset). Internal diameter is self explanatory, but the measurement matters for quill stems (most are 22.2, also not something to worry about).

The length of the head tube + headset stack height measures about 175mm. The Rush fork comes in 170mm, which I assume is good. The steer tube length cannot be greater than the head tube length + headset stack height, correct? But a couple centimeters shorter will work? I'm hoping I can just reuse the Suntour Superbe Pro headset that is currently on the bike with the new fork. And good call, I will contact them to see what the deal is with the differing rakes between forks.

Posted By: terrible_one49I think the original fork was a TANGE track fork. Look them up.

The Rush fork is also Tange, but I would like to keep the rake and resulting clearances very similar to stock. And if I'm not mistaken, stock Cannondale track bikes came drilled for brakes, both front and rear.

Yea, an Alien fork is probably exactly what I want. Those have 28mm rake, correct? How did you get that black one for your yellow frame, jaiden?

I see that Alien framesets come with a 1" threaded 27.0mm race JIS headset. So these forks are set up for JIS 27mm race, and not ISO 26.4mm race? It will still of course work, being a 1" threaded fork, but I fear that it may be limiting in terms of headset choices and stem compatibility. Is there a 1" threaded track fork with an ISO 26.4mm race and 28mm rake out there somewhere??

that all city track fork at bike island looks decent, and its got a 30mm rakeand its iso

A Wound-up fork would look siiiick.

Posted By: quidoseThat's a good option, the Tange Levin headset. And so is that All City track fork if I end up deciding to go threadless. But I still wonder how to go about choosing a steer tube length. Lykqid says to measure exactly, but then again, threaded forks only come in certain lengths. If the Alien fork ends up not being available with a steer tube length of around 175mm, then I guess I could always resort back to the Rush fork and a standard ISO hset.

If you order an Alien fork just order one a little longer than you need and have it cut down. I did that. Joseph from Alien just sent me an unpainted one and I kinda piggybacked the thing onto someone else's powdercoat job for like $20.

Posted By: iron jaiden
If you order an Alien fork just order one a little longer than you need and have it cut down. I did that. Joseph from Alien just sent me an unpainted one and I kinda piggybacked the thing onto someone else's powdercoat job for like $20.

I contacted Joesph as well, and he has one that would be nearly perfect (it would need to be cut down 3mm at most). But what I wonder about is a JIS fork and headset (which is what Alien is and requires) on an ISO headtube? How did that work out for you, Jaiden?? I'd really like to know, because I was one word away from having Joseph send me an invoice for it, but backed out at the last minute because of incompatibility fears. Did you also order and use of his (Alien brand) JIS headsets?? Thank you.

Posted By: Aaron C

Posted By: quidoseBut what I wonder about is a JIS fork and headset (which is what Alien is and requires) on an ISO headtube?

don't worry about it. the sizing difference is only in the fork crown race, and that is made up by using the correct size headset.

So as long as I use a JIS headset (27.0mm) with the Alien fork, all should be good??

i would say a used njs fork from http://njs-keirin.blogspot.com/ i got one when mine bent and it was super low rake and under 50$

You can do a certain amount of mixing and matching with JIS and ISO headset parts, but seriously, the easiest thing is to have the fork machined down to a 26.4 race. A frame builder or a good LBS can do this easily. That way you can run ISO totally safely.

Yeah. If for some reason you can't get it done, I have seen a couple of methods for JIS and ISO combinations. But fixing the race is the way to go.

Damn. Well, Harris has a Tange hybrid. Harris also has the Levin(s?). I know they make it in both ISO and JIS, but I don't know if they make it mixed from the factory. You could certainly call/email and ask about the cup size on it. Otherwise, I can't confirm it.

What I'm wondering is if you can simply throw a 27.0 crown race on there and use an ISO headset. Assuming the race is compatible with the headset. I've never had to deal with this directly so I can't say.

Or you could just buy a different fork. Or something.

I'm not sure how Cannondale did their sizing, but it's about 60cm c-t, 53cm c-c, and has a 141mm headtube.

I was wondering about a 27.0 race with an ISO headset also. Going through all the possible combinations on how to make this Alien fork work on my frame led me to this, but I'm starting to think it's not going to work easily or (entirely) safely.

And yeah, so a different fork may be the only answer, which I guess would be a threadless Soma. Oh well.

side note: NJS forks have JIS races as well, correct?

Posted By: quidoseside note: NJS forks have JIS races as well, correct?

Manufacturer dependent. Most are ISO these days.