'97 Kona Cindercone hotrod - Now with paint and decals!

Is my build retro enough?

  • Yes. Were nearly in 2010 ffs!

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Well its kinda retro modernised...

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • NO

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Its somewhere in between mate but still very cool ;)

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    0

mikesnowdon

Senior Retro Guru
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Hi.

As some of you may know I have a slightly beaten up 1997 Kona Cindercone frame. I got the frame for peanuts off ebay. The previous owner had stripped the paint and intended to repair a couple of small dents and get it resprayed. I had the frame in my loft for nearly a year but couldn't afford to do anything with it. Recently I was in the lucky position that I could start sourcing the components I wanted for the build. I basically choose items that I wanted when I was last really into MTB's, which was about 5 years ago. Basically I had a 96 Cindercone which was resprayed in '01 (white) and had over the years had many upgrades including Hope Ti hubs and Manitou SIX Deluxe forks. It sadly was stolen outside Sainsburys in East Grinny 4 years ago.

The upgrades I would have liked to have done to that bike were a Thomson post and stem, Rockshox SID's, and Hope Mini Mono disk brakes (with frame modification to suit). Luckily I am now on the verge of having basically the same bike as I would have had with these last few upgrades. Some of the parts are brand new such as the rims, saddle, cranks & pedals, chain, and the front mech. Its still cost just over a grand to get this far though! :LOL: (which is the real reason the build is stalled! I ran out of money!)

The build is on hold pending the frame modification to accommodate disk brakes, plus the dent repair and a new paint job - which will be white with period decals customised to have a blue colour inset to the lettering rather than orange. I also need to get the front wheel built and rear wheel trued. A rear disk mount is on the way (should hopefully arrive this week) ready to be welded or brazed to the frame. Then I will send it off to 'Keep Powdercoating ltd' to have the dents filled in and a respray in 2-pack paint, followed by a couple coats of lacquer after the decals are applied. The paint job is much cheaper than the specialist frame companies and should be just as good if not better :)

Most of the stuff is ready to go, a few more bits on the way (hurry up postie!). Spec as follows:

Frame and Fork
Frame: 1997 Kona Cinderone
Fork: 1998 SID
Headset: Raceface Thermo SP
Headset topcap/hw: None
Headset spacers: KCNC 3mm x 3 (Rasta colours)
Seatpost collar: Kona modified

Wheels and tires
Front;
Hub: Hope Ti suspension
Spokes: Sapim SS double butted
Spoke nipples: Aluminum
Rim: Mavic 317 Disc
Rim strip: Dunno yet
Quick release: Salsa Rasta steel
Tire: Conti speed king 2.1 fold
Tube's: Conti Supersonic
Brake disc: Hope mono mini 5-bolt

Rear:
Hub: Hope Ti Glide
Spokes: Generic straight gauge
Spoke nipples: Aluminum
Rim: Mavic 317 Disc
Rim strip: Dunno yet
Quick release: Salsa Rasta steel
Tire: Conti speed king 2.1 fold
Tube: Conti Supersonic
Brake disc: Hope mono mini 5-bolt

Drivetrain
Pedals: Crank Bros EggBeater SL
Chainset: 175mm Middleburn XC duo
Chainring bolts: Middleburn Alloy
Crank bolts: Middleburn self extract
Bottom bracket: 95 Hope Ti
Front derailer: XTR M960
Rear derailer: XTR M952 short cage
Cassette: XTR
Chain: KMC X9L Ti-N

Brakes
Front: Hope Mini mono
Rear: Hope Mini mono

Controls
Handlebar: Easton Monkeylite (low)
Grips: Spesh lock-on's
Stem: Thomson 110mm
Front shifter: XT M750
Rear shifter: XT M750 9spd
Saddle: XO Tans alp ltd edition
Seatpost: Thomson elite 410mm, USE seatpost shim

Cables
Front derailleur cable: Generic
Front derailleur housing: Nokon
Rear derailleur cable: Generic
Rear derailleur housing: Nokon



Should come in quite light I imagine. Easily under 25lb.

Here is a few 'preview shots' cos I know you all like pics ;)

(Ignore wrong date on my camera, im not teasing you, this really is how the build stands in present time :LOL: )
picture1891.jpg

picture1900.jpg

picture1893.jpg

picture1894.jpg

picture1895.jpg

picture1890.jpg


EDIT: Here is the separate thread on the frame conversion. I'm doing most of it myself except the welding:
http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=72659
 
Hi Mike,

I went with this:

Its somewhere in between mate but still very cool ;)

Like a piece of rock....if you cut it through it would read "retro" but from the outside it would have a fancy modern coating :LOL: :LOL: :LOL:
 
letmetalktomark":3crbjewo said:
Hi Mike,

I went with this:

Its somewhere in between mate but still very cool ;)

Like a piece of rock....if you cut it through it would read "retro" but from the outside it would have a fancy modern coating :LOL: :LOL: :LOL:

:LOL: If you cut through the BB shell it will say 'Hope' circa 1995 = retro. Its whats on the inside that counts :LOL:
 
I'm thinking I need more Rasta now to go with the Salsa skewers. Maybe Rasta headset spacers but I'm not sure it will go with the black headset and stem. Did Salsa make a Rasta seatpost clamp or QR bolt?
 
I picked NO , purely based on it being your bike , its nobody elses . It makes no difference what age the parts used are . It doesn't have to fit into a particular genre to be a good bike .

Saying its retro or vintage or whatever wont make it ride any different ; a bike isn't judged on the sum of its parts , the truly good bikes are the ones that fit the intended purpose , regardless of age and technology .

Sure i could have picked one of the others but i see the title as asking for acceptance and our opinions don't matter in the slightest .

whats retro ?
 
Wow. I appreciate that immensely.

From what I can tell the truly retro bikes here are those pre mid 90's and with 'period correct' components. I had this in mind a tiny bit when selecting the parts but mostly its an ensemble of gear that I most wanted over the last 12 years or so of MTB history. Basically all my fave things since 95. The parts I laid in bed dreaming about and drooling over in glossy mag's in my late teens/early 20's. Its kind of a dream bike for me really, and a homage to my much loved 95 Cindercone that was stolen a few years ago.

I'm not fussed if its accepted as retro or not, just curious what the general opinion was. I think there's no doubt its going to be cool bike regardless of whether its considered retro or not (its certainly not modern other than the styling I suppose). And most importantly it will be a bike that its owner adores. :)
 
It is a 'hot rodded' bike but a very nice one...I've got no problem with new components and disc conversions on bikes that handle/ride well.

When every manufacturer is copying retro frames (which they are starting to do) you'll know your riding the real deal :D
 
I keep going to look at it and just drooling over the prospect of how its going to look when complete :oops: Cant wait to get the frame done!

Wondering about final weight. If a stock 1997 Explosif weighs 23.8Lbs with a 4lbs frame and generic components.......

http://www.retrobike.co.uk/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=12374

And a '97 Cindercone frame weighs 4.5lbs......

http://www.retrobike.co.uk/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=12386

Then surely my bike should be around the 24lbs range with lighter components than a stock '98 Explosif and a slightly heavier frame. Like I mentioned earlier, I would expect it to come in easily under 25lbs. The only stick in the mud is the hope Mini Mono. While they are light weight for a disk brake they are still heavier than a good set of V's. But then the Conti Speed King tyres (Kevlar bead 510g) and Supersonic tubes (100g) should offset that. I'm going to have to buy a scales to measure it now...(early signs of weight weenie obsession..:shock:..) :twisted:
 

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