Kona Manomano 1997

BB - 118 spindle - that's more like it Cranks on, final bit coming in this week hopefully for a weekend finish.

That is beautiful, the kind of bike that would have had my jaw on the floor back in 1998 when I got my first Kona, a Nunu 10th anniversary edition.

Very well done mate, fantastic bike you have there!

Thank you.

Well here she is in all her technicolour glory. I may need to re-think the BB spindle length once more. 118mm is a touch too long, 115mm may be perfect but it leaves very little clearance against the pivot. When I ride her next year I'll make a call whether it's worth changing but in the meantime I hope you like the shots.

al-onestare":2vfblq68 said:

Note to Bikepedia, a Manomano doesn't take a 110mm spindle BB. The granny ring doesn't have enough clearance and hits the swing arm pivot so a longer one will be ordered today.

Click to expand...

To be fair to Bikepedia, (1) they say it took a 110mm spindle with a Cyclone crank, not a Shimano M569, (2) they get all their data from the manufacturers. To be fair to you though, I thought the Cyclone cranks took the same spindle as Shimano cranks on other models.

I'm surprised you can get it to shift into the big ring with such a wide chain line, but if you can, I guess there's no reason why you shouldn't use a 118.

Yep, the cranks are pretty much nigh-on identical in that respect. It does shift up but you wouldn't want to stretch it anymore. We'll see how the shake-down ride goes in the spring and take it from there...

Overdue, but the final (current) spec list:

Frame: 20" Kona Manomano 7005 butted alumunium

Fork: Rock Shox Judy XC

Headset: Chris King 1 1/8 (silver, modern)
Stem: Tahoma Sonne 4
Handlebar: Curve 2014
Grips: Yeti hardcore ODI (red, modern)

Brakes: Shimano LX BR M600
Brake Pads: Cool-stop (modern)
Brake Cables: Shimano XT (modern)
Brake Levers: Avid speed dial 1.9L

Shifters: Shimano XT rapidfire SL-M739
Front Derailleur: Shimano XT FD-M739
Rear Derailleur: Shimano XT RD-M739
Cassette: Shimano XT CS-M737-1
Chain: SRAM 8 speed PC-850 powerchain II (modern)
Cranks: Shimano LX 4 arm FC-M569
Bottom Bracket: Shimano UN54 (modern)
Pedals: Wellgo WPD-700 clipless

Hub front skewer: Original, no name
Hub rear skewer: Shimano XT (original)
Rims: Mavic 221
Front hub: Javva the hut
Rear hub: Shimano XT FH-M737
Spokes: DT stainless 15G and 14G
Tyres: Panaracer Firexcpro 2.1 (yellow trim)

Saddle: Selle Italia Expedia
Seatpost: Kona race light

I really do like this bike! Life admin has meant I've not been able to ride her, but I already have a weekend booked in mid February for her first shake down. Can't wait!

Re: Kona Manomano 1997 - Red5 going in - finished!

So then, mini-update in preparation for this Sunday's Swinley outing. I swapped the BB from a 118mm to a 115mm. It's improved the shifting to the granny ring which is great. I got a 113mm just in case and whilst that would also fit, the clearance of the granny ring to the chain stay / pivot point would be incredibly small which would worry me no-end.

Re: Kona Manomano 1997 - Red5 going in - finished!

Let's cut to the chase. This bike is fucking ace.

My first taste of full-suss was a sweet one. The Explosif is an absolute rocket going up and can stick with the best on the flat but naturally things get a bit hairy going down. This on the other hand is an absolute beast and soaked up pretty much everything. Even on the accents it wasn't as heavy as I expected.

It's not perfect of course. Peddling out of the saddle can get a bit bouncy so you have to really pay attention to your riding position to avoid the pogo affect. Very occassionally the rear feels like it's flexing slightly left and right which it probably is.

Still, point, drive, smile - there were many of those. She's chuckable and well, about a million times more cool than a modern day machine (not quite as strong though!).

Anyway, here she is with some other geeks



viewtopic.php?f=35&t=262507&start=15

Re: Kona Manomano 1997 - Red5 going in - finished!

More Manomano fun, this time up north in the Dales. More info over here viewtopic.php?f=30&t=268167&p=2020401#p2020401

I'm getting used to the bobbing on the climbs. It's not that bad to be honest. The biggest challenge with the conditions was slippage. The rocks were like marble in places. No tyres were going to grip well so it meant the only way to get up was to really go for it to try and keep the momentum going. Tough work but very rewarding.



Pre-ride nice and clean before the rain came...



Bog water, the lot, she pretty much nailed it. Shame our sense of direction was off!

Re: Kona Manomano 1997 - Red5 going in - finished!

nice ride. my colleague used to ride a kikapu until he took a serious upgrade 'out of retro' to the 2014 Kona Process 153. My shop is all about Kona so it's nice to see your gentle addiction