1997 kona lavadome frame recon, again.

*moved*
ive owned my 1997 lavadome for 8+ years its the green jungle model but it was looking a bit ragged, so it was either leave it repair it or replace it. i opted for repair , i first tryed to match the paint thinking it was metalic paint
but nothing had the same sparkle as the factory paint but closer inspection revealed it was black paint with green sparkles, i then come across "metal flake" for painting custom cars , nice. the other issue were the decals but thanks to "gil m "that was soon taken care of too ,thanks gil . so now to strip the paint i tried the usual paint strippers but it would of been quicker with beef spread and two spaniels so i opted for a local alloy wheel refurb company they charged £20 for an acid dipp what a bargain . lookiley for me i work at a garage with a body shop so the rest was easy
1 black base coat x2
2 emerald green metal flake x3 (200 microns)
3 clear laquer x2
4 decals
5 clear laquer x2
the end result is 90% looking original, 50% better than it was ,the only major issue was baking the flake and decals they dont like heat.
total cost was about £100 including beer for the painter cheers mark.


http://picasaweb.google.com/10395076336 ... 7Lavadome#

next step the build , i will post some pics of the end result asap cheers

Looks ace Lee. Nice to see someone going the extra mile. Are you colour matching the forks to go with it?
I thought you might have followed Vern's lead and had a disc mount fitted whilst you were at it.

Hi Si
i do still have the p2's but because she fall's clear of the retro fence (1997) i've purchased some 98 z2's 80mm in red for her so no(i will keep the gt tequesta and the fire mountain rigid) . i did manage to get the same brace as vern's but i couldn't do it to her so for now original curve canti's will do

That's interesting. The end result really is quite similar, although maybe Kona used a finer grade of flake? It seems as though they must have followed your method though.

You did have the option of applying the decals after all lacquer/baking, but they don't seem to have suffered visibly.

agreed if i was to do it again i would try to locate 100 micron flake but didnt realise how much the laquer would magnify the effect of the flake but on a positive note you want to see it in the sun
as for decals i prefer them under the laquer theres less chance of damage to them , i just kept a close eye on them in the booth and removed as soon as i noticed any glitches i.e decals bubbling. once it had cooled off the decals were back to normal, but for a project iv'e not done before the end result is better then i antisipated .
cheers

I think Gil reckons the material he uses for his decals should last for 5-7 years uncovered, and I guess the advantage is that they are easy to replace when the time comes. Whereas the advantage of your approach is that they should last even longer.

Yes I imagine the larger size flake must be even brighter in the sunshine. I have a 97 Kilauea as well, which cost a lot more BITD, but the paint on that is just plain dark blue, powder coat I assume. That can look a bit dull even though I like the colour. It always surprised me that they went to more trouble (and expense I assume) over the Lava Dome. Money well spent though, as it keeps it looking 'new' and I guess with all that lacquer it'll be a doddle to wash mud off it.

i bet the paint is a marketing ploy to justify buying a low end steel kona , wasn't the firemountain lavadome and cindercone just the same frame anyway ? my pal has a 98 cindercone and his paint is plain blue but he got glow in the dark stickers and suspension where as my lava had no forks (racelight) and a bit more work on the paint so by the time you get to the more expensive metals the paint budget has gone hence the ti frames being bald ? just my veiw probably wrong

You may be right, but funnily enough they did start painting their ti frames a year or two later, just to jazz things up a bit.

Your frame is identical to a Cinder Cone and a grade above the Fire Mountain - in quality, say mid way between the Fire Mountain and the Kilauea (heat-treated Columbus Cyber). The Cinder Cone / Lava Dome are good quality frames, double-butted generic 4130 0.9/0.6/0.9 tubes (Fire Mountain used 1.0/0.7/1.0, so was a bit heavier).

That's why they are still popular all these years later, really. At any given price point, Kona put more value into the quality of the frame and less into the components than other brands did. Down the line, the components are all gone and it's the good quality frame that is an enduring asset. Well worthy of all the excellent care and attention you've given it IMO.

Top job!
Looking forward to the rebuild pics.

cheers dm
thanks for all the info anthony
Lee