Cannondale Sport Tourer, more Sport than Tourer

http://cincinnati.craigslist.org/bik/3822274512.html
80's Cannondale Touring/Commuter Road Bike 56cm - $300 (Colerain)

This is a 1980's Cannondale Touring/Commuter Road Bike. It is in great shape and has been tuned up. The brake pads and handlebar tape is brand new. The tires were also recently replaced. The bike is a 18 speed (Triple Crank with 6 Speed Freewheel). It has cantilever brakes and the shift system is a Suntour XCM with index and friction option. It is a 56cm frame with a 55cm top tube. This bike will make a great touring/commuter bike as it is equipped with 700 x 32 tires. Serious inquiries only. Local pick up only. I will not ship this bike so do not email me if that is what you are going to ask me to do.

This appears to be either an '89 or '90 ST-400, leaning more to '90.  Cannondale ran a line of touring models from the mid 80s to the early 90s typically the 400, 600 and 1000.  The 400 was the low end model and the 1000 was the true touring bike.  Still, this bike has a wide range triple crank and canti brakes.  That's actually what makes it so attractive to me, it's essentially a vintage road bike aping modern road bikes completely by accident.  If you're in the market for a new bike and aren't at all charmed by anachronism, but never the less have resorted to the secondary market out of price concerns, this is about as good as you're going to do.  Even a low end Cannondale is made of some pretty solid parts, it's a reasonable aluminum frame, it looks 100 times better than anything else in your price range, a nice range of gears and lots of stopping power.  Plus, fat tires for a road bike which would be good to learn on, once you're habitually using the 50 tooth chainring zipping all over the place you can bump it down to 23s and maybe fit some fenders so you dont spray road grime up your ass.  The tires were actually what caught my eye, I was wondering how he fit that size, only to discover someone has done some converting here.  According to the catalog these were built with 27 inch rims instead of 700c, which would explain where that extra tire clearance is coming from.

It's also right in the meat of sizing, so it's gonna fit a good segment of the population and should sell quickly.  Cannondales are always a bit expensive, hold your breath and you might do better, but the $50 you'd save is justified by new tires and the more sympathetic rim size.