1993 Kona Explosif

[tbigglesworth]

Quite excited with my first foray into classic/retro/vintage what have you mountain bikes. It's an 18" 1993 Kona Explosif, with what looks like some of the original parts as well as some changes that might even be considered upgrades lol. It's reasonably clean, with one noticeable dent in the top tube but most parts look remarkably good. The cassette and chainrings seem to be evidence of a rarely ridden bike.

I'm going to look for a rigid fork, as far as I can tell it's a 390mm a2c that I'm looking for. Does anybody know if Kona made a triple butted Project 2 with 390mm axle to crown, and a 1 1/8" threadless steerer? Looking to replace the stem and bars (keeping the old ones obviously, just looking to make the bike fit a bit better and more comfortable to ride with a shorter stem and slightly wider bars, I also need more sweep to keep my wrists happy).

 

[tintin40]

Very nice. Love that vintage Kona. I think P2 forks only went up to double butted. Glad your going back to rigid. As it was when new.

 

[Dr Dremel]

The stock fork would be a TB P2 in 390 A-C. Quite light (mine only weighed 890g size for a 20" frame), but they´re not the most rigid forks. Had quite a bit of flex during braking. No threadless option with that A-C that I´m aware of, but if you find one with a long enough steerer you could cut the threaded part off? Would be a shame to lose the Impact headset though ...

 

[eric_james]

Very nice. Love that vintage Kona. I think P2 forks only went up to double butted. Glad your going back to rigid. As it was when new.

What do you mean? Triple butted project two's were made

 

[Canuckbiker]

Yup, triple butted P2 would have been stock along with the M900 XTR RD, handlebar was upgraded to Titec Ti. I'd be looking for another set of 987 calipers for the front if you change forks to match the stock rear calipers. Super nice bike. I have a 93 Kilauea, one step down from the Explosif

 

[tbigglesworth]

@Canuckbiker yeah I've seen some of your posts, your Kilauea looks great! I can't remember but it seemed like you were in the west somewhere? I'm in AB myself. Not having much luck on kijiji finding a fork, I'll be posting a wanted ad here shortly. There's NOS DiaCompe 987s on eBay that I've been eyeing up but recently decided to keep my budget in check so that will be waiting a bit.

A threadless fork isn't a must, if I can find a quill stem (in a more suitable length for me as the stock 130mm is too long) to fit the 1 1/8 Impact headset, my budget, and 31.8 bars then I'll be a happy boy.

 

[Canuckbiker]

@Canuckbiker yeah I've seen some of your posts, your Kilauea looks great! I can't remember but it seemed like you were in the west somewhere? I'm in AB myself. Not having much luck on kijiji finding a fork, I'll be posting a wanted ad here shortly. There's NOS DiaCompe 987s on eBay that I've been eyeing up but recently decided to keep my budget in check so that will be waiting a bit.

A threadless fork isn't a must, if I can find a quill stem (in a more suitable length for me as the stock 130mm is too long) to fit the 1 1/8 Impact headset, my budget, and 31.8 bars then I'll be a happy boy.

Hey, thanks for the kind words, I’m in Burnaby BC, grew up in Calgary AB though.

Good luck with your fork search, ideally a correct length P2, careful with newer suspension corrected P2s as your steering will be slacker if the axle to crown measurement is much longer than stock.

My dumpster find Kilauea had a single set of 987s in the back and I wanted a matching set for the front. At our local Vancouver “Our Community bikes” brake caliper bin I found a second set (fluke) for super cheap. Later I noticed one of the front spring covers was cracked and recently splurged on one of those NOS sets you might have seen from Germany because I’m a bit OCD with my bikes (and careless with money ) and eventually needed to rectify the flaw.

I’d have to say though, any nice period cantilever caliper would work well unless you’re favouring V’s. Shimano calipers seem to handle the off centre cable routing but any Dia-Compe of the era would suffice, 986’s or Ritchey Logic calipers would be more than suitable.

Check out this post of a similar vintage Kona where a stock rear brake cable guide was used to mount a threaded brake stop for V brakes with success, another option..

1995 Kona Kilauea eBay find

I recently picked this up off eBay listed under an incorrect spelling of Kilauea. I already have a retro MTB (a Giant Boulder 500) and don't really have the space to pick up another, but I've always loved the shapes of these classic Konas and couldn't turn down this deal! The plan with this...

www.retrobike.co.uk

Many good shorter quill stems out there including Velocity units from smaller Kona‘s or similar

Good luck on your search !!!