kona Kapu 95` original

[i-am-iron-man]

97`s are also nice.. (but yellow isnt my colour..so biased)
did you get the rasta ck headset in the deal ?...

Negative - I'm buying a rasta Gripnut specifically for it. It came with the original Kona headset which is almost certainly one of the worst cycling components I've ever used . I have to undo the allen bolt and re-adjust the headset before every ride. It is always either too tight or too slack and there is always play in the fork by the time I get home. I am looking forward to never using it ever again.

 

[fritzlite]

heh, had the same problems... funny, that the kona mtb headsets work fine...

 

[i-am-iron-man]

I've been after posting a picture of my Kapu for ages but never got around to it; now I'm stuck in a hotel with nothing but my phone to keep me company, so I thought I'd post an update on the bike.

I haven't found a black Flite with yellow corners yet, but this is otherwise complete (ignore the pedals though).

* The paint was done by Argos. I have guilty thoughts that I went with '98 graphics rather than '95, but it looks stunning, and I'm glad I went with a rasta colour scheme.
* Groupset is Campagnolo Centaur - mixed vintage, the levers and derailleurs are last years but I bought a square taper chainset.
* Wheels are green King classics laced to black Open Pro rims with black DT's.
* Seatpost and stem are Syncros; bars, clamp and rasta skewers are Salsa; headset is a King Threadset in rasta colours.

The bike is fantastic...when it is working. I've been having stacks of trouble getting a cassette to work on the Shimano freehub. Its been mindbending. In the picture the bike is fitted with a Mavic cassette with Campy spacing but Shimano splines - it worked perfectly that afternoon but now it won't index for love nor money. And you wouldn't believe how long I tried.

 

[fritzlite]

great job!!!
thats how it should be build

miche cassette with campa spacing?

 

[i-am-iron-man]

great job!!!
thats how it should be build

miche cassette with campa spacing?

Thank you Fritz!

I hadn't spotted a Miche cassette like that. I'd definitely have to see one first too, as my experiences with Miche kit has been very negative so far.

I started with an Ambrosio cassette which worked fine, but looked and felt very cheap and nasty. Very vague shifting too. I tried putting it back on recently but I've lost bits of it. I then read a very well-written post somewhere about the actual spacing measurements, and how a 9-speed Shimano cassette was very close to Campy 10. I had very big doubts, but I had a new Ultegra one lying around. I fitted it, set the mech up, and...perfect!. If you index it in gear 5 there's only minimal chatter in gears 1 and 9, which I rarely use anyway. However, when I put the King wheels on I had big problems setting the indexing.

The Mavic cassette I'm using now is designed for a specific Mavic freehub, and isn't compatible with Shimano. However, leave out the 13t sprocket and you can fit it as 9-speed perfectly. As I said, I ran it like this for a single afternoon with zero problems, but now I'm having yet more indexing problems. Even though the spacing is correct I can't set it up. It either works fine at the top of the cassette but not the bottom, or the other way around. Or it shifts up through all gears but won't shift down. Or vice-versa.

 

[fritzlite]

quite right.. miche cassettes on shimano body, with campa spacing, IMO dont work 100% ... but it was a way to go, if your running out of options, and the CK wheels must stay..!!
can ck`s bodys be replaced ?..do they make campy-bodys? without a 2. mortgage

really like your paint..and the stickers, and setup, you can never go wrong with syncros and a Flite!
(only thing...hrm, hrm.. that bartape!!...) that splatter just isnt my cup of java..
seen LGF`s Orange slx, hes running the splatter to... is it a brit thing?

 

[i-am-iron-man]

I'm going to have another go at the indexing when I get back home. It can't be wear, as it would never work at all. So I'll try and isolate the fault. I will ditch the cables for starters, and if replacing them doesn't work I will fit a new chain. It was working brilliantly with a 9-speed Shimano cassette up until the other day and had been for a year (even though I don't usually approve of this sort of "fix"). I can't even think of ditching the wheels! They cost me a fortune and I've never loved freewheeling so much ...

Thankyou for the complents on the frame. It looks even better in real life - even the guy at Argos said it was a looker. I really like non-traditional road kit, so I wanted Syncros hardware from the outset - I've also got a titanium GT roadbike with the same parts (and is the best bike I've ever ridden).

I really can't see what's not to like about the bar tape though! - Salsa rasta, what could be better than that?

 

[KeepItSteel]

Bump!

Love the Kapu pal.
Im in the middle of rebuilding a 98 Kapu with period Ultegra, and really looking forward to hitting the road with it. Also encouraged by your comment s on how nice the ride is.

Im planning on keeping the original paint on the frame but having seen your pics im now thinking a colour match fork is neccessary, so you cant do one without the other right?!..