Teggers
Old School Hero
Hi all. New here, first post so I thought I'd start with a bang.
I have owned this 1992 Kona Explosif since '93. It has been a solid reliable steed and has served me well from competing in the Southern Area Mountainbike Series (SAMS) in the mid 90's, trekking to see my girlfriend of the time (55 mile round trip) and university transport.
It once had Rock Shox Mag 21's and has undergone many component changes, been robbed of parts for other bikes or projects (current daily trundle/exercise machine is a Felt Q520) and has been languishing at the back of my garage for a number of years now.
There is no way I'm parting with it as there are too many memories attached to it but it was rediscovered in the last few weeks of lockdown after various other projects have been done ( house related) and the decision has been made to bring it back to a useable condition.
As with my other early '90's project (93 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 2 - the bike will be much MUCH cheaper!) everything is staying in approximately in-period. Current plans are:
Blast and powder coat the frame as it's a bit scratched and has a few small rust bubbles starting to appear
Marzocchi bomber/Rock Shox Indy forks
Single speed crank and new BB
Carbon handlebars, seatpost, stem (I have something of a carbon fetish!)
New brake levers
V-brakes
New cables
New rear hub
New headset
Re-using bits where I can or have no need to replace. I love the XT thumbies and will definitely be sticking with the rear one. Tyres need replacing but my fave ever combo I hold little hope I will ever be able to get them - the Onza RIP and Rail pair. Rear hub is shot but the front is fine so in 2 minds whether to replace them both or just the rear. Mavic 231 rims are fine though. I built the wheels back around 95 and they've been awesome. Perfectly happy to build another set up.
I will endeavour to keep this updated when I get bits and make progress. In no hurry to sort it as I have the Felt to use and a lot of bits are probably coming from ebay and may need fixing/repainting etc before fitting.
Any reasonable suggestions welcome!
I have owned this 1992 Kona Explosif since '93. It has been a solid reliable steed and has served me well from competing in the Southern Area Mountainbike Series (SAMS) in the mid 90's, trekking to see my girlfriend of the time (55 mile round trip) and university transport.
It once had Rock Shox Mag 21's and has undergone many component changes, been robbed of parts for other bikes or projects (current daily trundle/exercise machine is a Felt Q520) and has been languishing at the back of my garage for a number of years now.
There is no way I'm parting with it as there are too many memories attached to it but it was rediscovered in the last few weeks of lockdown after various other projects have been done ( house related) and the decision has been made to bring it back to a useable condition.
As with my other early '90's project (93 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 2 - the bike will be much MUCH cheaper!) everything is staying in approximately in-period. Current plans are:
Blast and powder coat the frame as it's a bit scratched and has a few small rust bubbles starting to appear
Marzocchi bomber/Rock Shox Indy forks
Single speed crank and new BB
Carbon handlebars, seatpost, stem (I have something of a carbon fetish!)
New brake levers
V-brakes
New cables
New rear hub
New headset
Re-using bits where I can or have no need to replace. I love the XT thumbies and will definitely be sticking with the rear one. Tyres need replacing but my fave ever combo I hold little hope I will ever be able to get them - the Onza RIP and Rail pair. Rear hub is shot but the front is fine so in 2 minds whether to replace them both or just the rear. Mavic 231 rims are fine though. I built the wheels back around 95 and they've been awesome. Perfectly happy to build another set up.
I will endeavour to keep this updated when I get bits and make progress. In no hurry to sort it as I have the Felt to use and a lot of bits are probably coming from ebay and may need fixing/repainting etc before fitting.
Any reasonable suggestions welcome!
If you need anything let us know in the 'Wanted' section. We all have far too many spares in our sheds so I'm sure we'll be able to help out.
