The Mythical 1998 Kona Ku
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Pipmeister
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Re:
Now that it’s actually bloody well stopped raining in West Berkshire…. here it is a couple of days after it arrived, once I’d swapped out a few items;
Off came those vague handling Michelin Wildgripper Sprint S, and on went a pair of proper Cross Country racing tyres - Kenda Klimax Lite 345’s.
The Mavic Crossmax Ceramic wheels need a bit of a tweak, so for the time being I fitted these yellow hub Crossride instead - although I think overall these do seem to suit this Ku better than the donor that they came from.
The odd shaped (well for my arse anyway) Airborne saddle, swapped for my Selle Italia Signo Gel Flow.
Finally the Syncros Ti Seatpost sadly has a clamping crease in it, which made it tricky to re-fit. Upon closer inspection it revealed the size was 27.2mm. I initially thought that the sizing was the problem, as I had assumed all along that this frame required a 27.0mm Seatpost - like many aluminium Kona frames of this period.
My 27.0mm Ritchey Comp however dropped right down onto the frame under its own weight..….Mmm, curiouser and curiouser.
So I fitted a 27.2mm Isaac Carbon for now that I had lying around - Maybe a Race Face Next XC Carbon to match the bars would be in order.
Nice paint and finish:
Pip.
Now that it’s actually bloody well stopped raining in West Berkshire…. here it is a couple of days after it arrived, once I’d swapped out a few items;
Off came those vague handling Michelin Wildgripper Sprint S, and on went a pair of proper Cross Country racing tyres - Kenda Klimax Lite 345’s.
The Mavic Crossmax Ceramic wheels need a bit of a tweak, so for the time being I fitted these yellow hub Crossride instead - although I think overall these do seem to suit this Ku better than the donor that they came from.
The odd shaped (well for my arse anyway) Airborne saddle, swapped for my Selle Italia Signo Gel Flow.
Finally the Syncros Ti Seatpost sadly has a clamping crease in it, which made it tricky to re-fit. Upon closer inspection it revealed the size was 27.2mm. I initially thought that the sizing was the problem, as I had assumed all along that this frame required a 27.0mm Seatpost - like many aluminium Kona frames of this period.
My 27.0mm Ritchey Comp however dropped right down onto the frame under its own weight..….Mmm, curiouser and curiouser.
So I fitted a 27.2mm Isaac Carbon for now that I had lying around - Maybe a Race Face Next XC Carbon to match the bars would be in order.
Nice paint and finish:
Pip.
Re:
In the picture of the headtube it looks as if its bigger at the bottom than the top.
If you look at how much the headset cup sticks out from the frame it looks like less at the bottom.
Maybe thicker gauge at the bottom to compensate for not being reinforced like the kula or to join up with the massive downtube!?.
Or maybe its just my eyes.
In the picture of the headtube it looks as if its bigger at the bottom than the top.
If you look at how much the headset cup sticks out from the frame it looks like less at the bottom.
Maybe thicker gauge at the bottom to compensate for not being reinforced like the kula or to join up with the massive downtube!?.
Or maybe its just my eyes.
mattiamerca
Retro Guru
it could be one of the most beautiful cx bikes of the last times...magas":o361bn42 said:
also for me... xmax, wildgripper and it looks so damn race!
the combo of blue marzocchi and raceface is simply beautiful!
Pipmeister
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Re: Re:
The Head Tube has the same diameter measurement top and bottom. Rather interestingly it is 41.4mm, which is very slightly wider than the dimension of the 7005 Headtube used on the Easton tubing Kula.
I also measured the Headset cups, and they are the same top and bottom - but I can see what you mean Kyle in that picture.
In other news:
When we consider the rarity of this frame, it is perhaps of no surprise that the questions I posed on this thread (and my 1998 Chat Thread) have revealed very few answers.
I will be writing to Kona soon to see what I can establish.
Pip.
kyle888":22fk77yz said:
The Head Tube has the same diameter measurement top and bottom. Rather interestingly it is 41.4mm, which is very slightly wider than the dimension of the 7005 Headtube used on the Easton tubing Kula.
I also measured the Headset cups, and they are the same top and bottom - but I can see what you mean Kyle in that picture.
In other news:
When we consider the rarity of this frame, it is perhaps of no surprise that the questions I posed on this thread (and my 1998 Chat Thread) have revealed very few answers.
I will be writing to Kona soon to see what I can establish.
Pip.
Re: Re:
That bike screams ride me until your legs fall off. What a cracker :!:
In fact words don't really do justice the quality of this and the story that's behind it. It's been a pleasure hearing about it and I'm super pleased it's in your hands. We're all waiting to hear how it rides. I can only imagine with that tubing (ovalised aluminium...super cool!) that it soaks up pretty much everything.
Oh, and the build as is, perfect: the blue, black and yellow schema is great. Those wildgrippers were naff and are hopeless in our weather anyway.
pipmeister":lrokvvgf said:
That bike screams ride me until your legs fall off. What a cracker :!:
In fact words don't really do justice the quality of this and the story that's behind it. It's been a pleasure hearing about it and I'm super pleased it's in your hands. We're all waiting to hear how it rides. I can only imagine with that tubing (ovalised aluminium...super cool!) that it soaks up pretty much everything.
Oh, and the build as is, perfect: the blue, black and yellow schema is great. Those wildgrippers were naff and are hopeless in our weather anyway.
