# Going to check out a 1993 Giant Cadex CFR-1 in a few hours, looking for advice



## TotalRefill (Jun 20, 2011)

So I found a 1993 Giant Cadex on sale for $200 on Craig's List after months of searching for a decent commuter bike. Setup is stock so essentially THIS, potential highlights being a carbon frame and old Ultegra components, for a lighter ride and some decent performance for an older bike.

Going to look it over in a few hours for damage and make sure it's still functional, is there anything in particular I should keep an eye out for? Is a carbon frame this old gonna plonk out on me in a few months? Otherwise, I'm excited to find a bike I can try to work on and tweak, without being afraid of it's price tag.


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## TotalRefill (Jun 20, 2011)

Nevermind haha. It's about 2 hours before I was going to go check out this bicycle and the owner called me saying he just sold it to someone. I feel bad for cluttering up these forums but I don't have anyone to consult about bikes, so there.
Kinda glad this fell through, I was a little iffy on a bike built just 3 years after I was born...


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## Dave Hickey (Jan 27, 2002)

For what it's worth, if a bike is on Craigslist and it's a good deal, it will be gone by the time you post here....... 

If you are going to be successful on Craiglist, you need to be very aggressive.....drop everything you are doing and tell the buyer you will be right there...

There are deals out there but you need to act quick....

Reading your previous posts, you are looking at the right bikes....Find one that fits and buy it....don't wait for us to tell you if it's a good deal...


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## TotalRefill (Jun 20, 2011)

Thanks for the vote of confidence Dave. It's tough being a college student without a car, I need to wait for volunteers before I check anything out but I'll definitely step up my game.
Seems like the "deals" are coming more frequently as it gets closer to the holiday season/dead of winter so I'm hopeful for a few more chances!


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

TotalRefill said:


> ... I'm hopeful for a few more chances!


Given your price range and the 'vintage' of the bikes you're apt to look at, one suggestion I have is (if possible) find a steel framed bike or (second choice) aluminum frame. Either (IMO) would be preferable to a mixed materials bike like the Giant you posted about, because you don't have the potential for bonding failures at the alu/ CF joints. 

I'll qualify the above with the fact that no frame material is perfect, so in some climates rust is a possibility with steel. In those cases, a closer inspection is required. OTOH, because of its inherent strength (more accurately put, absence of finite fatigue), steel has the potential to outlast an aluminum frame.


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## TotalRefill (Jun 20, 2011)

Nice, thanks for the help as always PJ. Your posts have done their fair share of building the little bit of cycling knowledge I've acquired over the last couple months, though you always use acronyms I've rarely seen used so I always have to google 'em 

The material was both a plus and a minus for me on this bike. I'm trying to avoid getting a 30 lb behemoth (my parents probably have 6 or 7 of those lying around in their basement for the taking) so the lighter Carbon fiber seemed like a nice bonus, but the early workmanship and durability of the frame was on my mind. Ideally I'd like a nice aluminum bike, actually narrowly missed a 2006 Specialized Allez Sport for $200 in my area last week. Pretty much the same scenario as this one, just a little too late :mad2:


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