My Kona collection

[devon84]

Long-time lurker on this forum but have never joined up and posted anything. Thought it was about time I showed my face and got involved properly!

I have a collection of three retro Konas at home now, along with a different brand modern full-susser and a lovely italian road bike. One of the Konas is in daily use and the other gets regular outings in its proper off-road guise. The 3rd Kona is a bit of a wreck and needs a full restoration including a respray but I'm determined to get round to it sooner or later.

My favourite is probably my 98 Lava Dome in the Palmer Green colour which is in great condition and always looks amazing, especially out in the sunshine. I've been following a thread on here with someone else's lovely 98 Lavadome being restored.

Anyhow, here is my one:


I bought this from a chap down the road who owned it from new and barely used the thing. He said he'd strap it to the back of his campervan and just ride footpaths / canal paths in France each summer. The Hope pedals and Flite saddle are my own additions, so too are the Tioga factory XC tyres, but otherwise it's just about standard spec.

I'll try and upload some pics of my other Konas shortly...

 

[devon84]

Re:

I bought the bike 3 years ago in the summer and paid the princely sum of £100! :shock:

This is the bike that gets used off-road as much as possible, and it seems to handle things pretty well.
Can't think of anything that needs to be restored or replaced on this bike - it's just about perfect. 18" frame, Mavic 138 wheels, smooth shifting, decent Avid brakes, and even the Indy S fork still does a reasonable job of smoothing out the bumps.

 

[talpfa]

Very nice.

 

[devon84]

Re:

The one which needs a lot of work is my 2001 Lava Dome in bright orange. Got this from someone selling it for 35 quid for parts only because the rear wheel was completely stuck and not turning. The Judy SL forks on it are very heavy and in terrible condition and also seem to weigh about a tonne. I can't get the cassette lockring removed however hard I try, the bottom bracket is noisy, the seatpost is stuck and the stickers are peeling off.

After a nice wash, oil and spray it is now rideable but needs work!

There seems to be a lot of Kona experts on here so any advice is appreciated. talpfa I see see you resprayed a Lava Dome and had new stickers for your bike. I would love to see this bike restored and back in full working order. I have a Rockshox Sid SL in black which would go well with the rest of the bike, and I might put modern parts on it to bring the weight down a bit.

 

[Paul R]

Exellent naturally i think the 1998 models the best haha

 

[stmoots]

Cool

 

[devon84]

Re:

Well I have acquired a few bits for the 2001 Lava dome which should bring it back into some form of being nicely rideable. It's mostly Ritchey finishing kit which I've always got on well with, and should last some time. I think I've decided not to bother with sorting out the frame for the time being and will just try and look after it as best I can, to stop the rust getting worse.

Here are some pics of my other Kona which is a 1997 Hahanna. I suppose technically it shouldn't be on this part of the forum because it's pre-1998! But there are a few bits on it which mark it out as a bike which was upgraded to partly '98 spec, either by the bike shop or by the original owner? It has enter and break tyres rather than scratch and sniff (these tyres are in incredible condition with practically no wear), it also has tektro v-brakes rather than canti brakes. Plus it has an RST fork from the '98 model instead of the usual P2s. Otherwise it is in original 1997 condition with only a few paintwork scuffs here and there.

 

[devon84]

Re:

The RSTs on the '97 Hahanna are dreadful by the way; horribly heavy, the oil leaks from the top cap if you tilt the bike slightly, oh and there's barely any travel on these forks. I don't think they are seized up but it's just a matter of it being a terrible fork I think! I've ridden other RSTs from this era and it seems to be a common problem.

I'd be much better off switching the fork to a nice set of P2s to lighten the load and make the bike more smooth to ride. I'll be on the lookout for a nice set of P2s on this forum...

 

[Paul R]

Nice looks good for age. yep get some p2's on it

 

[Madmax1993]

Re:

As I've recommended on at least one other post, Marzocchi MX comps are excellent additions to a Kona of this vintage. They fit well with retro models, but still hold up well in the modern era too.