Irk the purists - 199? Cinder Cone build
- Thread starter ninety
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@Skeelsie & @FluffyChicken - thanks for the replies. Very interesting. I reckon it looks pretty much like yours Skeelsie (though not as pretty at the moment - that is a *sweet* ride...) so I'll keep my fingers crossed as I've ordered a 26.4mm post now.
I've also decided against Vs as they were too ugly, so I've used black LX cantis on the front (spare from the Sunn after I put the Magura on) and some Suntour SE Pedersens for the back - I swear I'm not copying! GBP5 NOS off ebay, I'd have been a fool not to...
Nearly have everything now, should be able to finish her off soon!
As it was when I got it, hence thinking it was later:
I've also decided against Vs as they were too ugly, so I've used black LX cantis on the front (spare from the Sunn after I put the Magura on) and some Suntour SE Pedersens for the back - I swear I'm not copying! GBP5 NOS off ebay, I'd have been a fool not to...
Nearly have everything now, should be able to finish her off soon!
As it was when I got it, hence thinking it was later:
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. That's what looked like primer speckled with rust. The frame and forks weren't as good up close as that picture makes them look...Some 1990 Explosifs and Cinder Cones had the seat stays joining the seat tube higher, as in the Rocky Mountain design that Paul Brodie initiated. I asked Brodie whether he built the frames that looked like his, but he said all Konas were built in Taiwan at that time. I asked him if this was a specific experiment and he said he wouldn't know, but gave the general impression that Kona copied everything else of his, so why not that?
Yours does seem to be a 1990 Cinder Cone or Lava Dome, with a custom paint job plus 1994 decals when you had it. I can't say I'm a fan of Konas being retro-painted white, but your design with your wife's name is quite effective I must say.
I would echo the view expressed earlier that the standard Velocity is both too long and too low for most ladies. Aside from that, it's a nice bike. I have to say though that down here in Brighton and Hove, there are a lot of attractive ladies riding around town on step-through frame bikes. I think that would be generally regarded as cool, while a mtb would be regarded as sad.
Yours does seem to be a 1990 Cinder Cone or Lava Dome, with a custom paint job plus 1994 decals when you had it. I can't say I'm a fan of Konas being retro-painted white, but your design with your wife's name is quite effective I must say.
I would echo the view expressed earlier that the standard Velocity is both too long and too low for most ladies. Aside from that, it's a nice bike. I have to say though that down here in Brighton and Hove, there are a lot of attractive ladies riding around town on step-through frame bikes. I think that would be generally regarded as cool, while a mtb would be regarded as sad.
She's not my wife yet! Thank god she doesn't come on here or it'd be all 'weddings this' and 'weddings that' again...
Interesting stuff about Rocky Mountain (if it had been an RM, Esther would've had to fight me for it. She'd probably kick my arse...) - I never knew that Kona were engaged in such subterfuge and it's sad to think that they're so highly regarded by many when RM are under-appreciated.
The choice of white was a simple one - the old paint was well scruffy and beyond touching up, so a respray was in order. My brother gave me a choice of the colours he had at the factory, which came down to black or white - hence one free spray job! The graphics were a surprise to me as I hadn't asked for them, but they're only adhesive so if they need to come off they can. I liked the idea of it not screaming Kona if it's going to be locked up in public (probably just being paranoid as I can't imagine early 90s ones being stolen to order!).
Interesting point about Brighton too - I'm down there fairly often and I'm always amazed at the three speeds and the like that a lot of the ladies seem to ride. Seems to me all very well along the front, but there's some pretty evil hills out towards Hangleton and I can't imagine all the step-throughs being too much fun out there. The sheer number of step-throughs automatically make me think they're anything but cool too!
Yes, I wouldn't fancy their chances of getting up Newtimber Hill on one, but I think the point I need to learn is that cool people wouldn't try. I can get up it on my bikes no problem, especially with my spds, tights and other technical clothing, but I'm reliably informed by my son that I look anything but cool nothwithstanding. Whereas the attractive young ladies score many cool points for breezing around town without making any effort, for not looking like serious cyclists and for being attractive young ladies. The step-through bikes are just an accessory, basking in the reflected glory.
I don't think there was ever any bad feeling between Rocky Mountain and Kona, although there was probably a 'healthy rivalry' between Grayson Bain and Jake Heilbron. I have a lot of sympathy for Paul Brodie, but I sense that he wasn't the easiest person to work with either. e.g., his description of a Kona as a poor man's Brodie wasn't perhaps best calculated to make friends and influence people. But he worked for both companies and each company in turn adopted his designs and he ended up on his own with nothing much to show for it. I expect he and Joe Murray did alright for themselves after they left Kona, but although they were the ones who really established Kona and its design style, it was the marketing and finance people who always owned it and who reaped the rewards.
I don't think there was ever any bad feeling between Rocky Mountain and Kona, although there was probably a 'healthy rivalry' between Grayson Bain and Jake Heilbron. I have a lot of sympathy for Paul Brodie, but I sense that he wasn't the easiest person to work with either. e.g., his description of a Kona as a poor man's Brodie wasn't perhaps best calculated to make friends and influence people. But he worked for both companies and each company in turn adopted his designs and he ended up on his own with nothing much to show for it. I expect he and Joe Murray did alright for themselves after they left Kona, but although they were the ones who really established Kona and its design style, it was the marketing and finance people who always owned it and who reaped the rewards.
True. I do like an attractive young lady, but I'm also a pragmatist - yes, she might be beautiful, but she won't be much use to me stuck at the bottom of a hill. Hence the Kona's having a 39 up front and a 13-28 & speed cassette at the back.
I guess it's also a taste thing - there's loads of ladies on step-throughs around York, but they tend not to turn my head. The girl who goes past the station on a proper 80s steel Bianchi on the other hand...
Back on topic - crank bolts should arrive tomorrow, I'll get another pic up with progress.
I guess it's also a taste thing - there's loads of ladies on step-throughs around York, but they tend not to turn my head. The girl who goes past the station on a proper 80s steel Bianchi on the other hand...
Back on topic - crank bolts should arrive tomorrow, I'll get another pic up with progress.
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