Been riding offroad for 18 years, and strangely, til now, never owned a Kona! Anyway, here it is, straight out the box, not even ridden or had any parts changed on it…

First impressions are very good (having bought blind from CRC). Rear tyre clearance is better than I was expecting (save for odd rear brake hose routing that will have to be changed slightly), and though I’ve not got any scales at home, the 27lb weight quoted in the Bikeradar review is definitely creditable. Which is rather good, seeing as the wheels weigh a tonne! Googled the rims and they’re 600 odd grammes each, the Formula hubs are heavy too, as well as plain gauge spokes. Wheels will be upgraded in due course with much lighter rims, and probably the DT 240S rear hub off my current full sus. Drivetrain is getting swapped out for Shimano off my current bike, and the brakes for the Deore’s off my full sus. Will have a play around with bar height too (seriously long steerer, positive rise stem, and 20mm riser bars on a 29er!!!) as its a bit on the high side.

Now, about your lawn.

Seriously?

😉

proper Konas are steel & designed by Joe Murray, Shirley?

What Kona is it?

Now, about your lawn.

Hehe. My housemate recently decided it should no longer be a flower bed, and turned it over and seeded it. Only the grass seed he used was for a different grass to that already on the lawn, and there wasn’t enough of it to fully cover it! It also grows flippin quick…

What Kona is it?

This one…

Kona Kahuna Deluxe 29er

I thought they looked good for 750 quid

proper Konas are steel & designed by Joe Murray, Shirley?

Yes/No/Maybe. I always wanted an original Explosif back in about 94, but these days they’re well… Old! Lovely bikes of course in their time. Seen Poddy’s lovely retro recreation a while ago and must say it did stir a few feelings of resentment.

I thought they looked good for 750 quid

So did I, hence I didn’t hang about! 😉

That is tempting for 750 beans, what size did you get? 18″?
You’ll have to report back once you’ve test ridden it!

That’s really nice.. What size did u get?

It’s an 18″. I’m 5ft 10. Not put pedals on it or moved any parts around yet, but geometry looked spot on for me so I went for it.

I’m not normally a fan of 29ers but that is very nice and ripe for upgrading.. Just wondering how daft it would look with the 16″ frame…

Looks good 😀

tidy and a bargain. Don’t need one don’t need one don’t need one…..

looks v nice, is that two bottle holder mounts I see in your photos, thought it only had the one. is the 18″ spot on for you at 5’10? Can’t decide on the 19 or 20″, thinking the more reach of the 20″ would suit XC better which would be it’s main use. Or I could just get that carbon version..

Yeah has 2 bottle mounts weegi. As for size, I certainly wouldn’t want the 19″ and I’m only a couple of inches shorter than you. I’d imagine you could ride the 20″, but it might feel a little long/tall/steep. As for the carbon version, looks nice, but it’s nowhere near the bargain the ally version is.

Anyway… Just been messing around with position and setup. A 200mm steerer, riser bars and stem on a 29er makes for a VERY tall position! Bars were nearly 75mm higher on this out the box than my old HT. So I flipped the stem, and moved all 25mm of spacers above and dropped the bars about 60mm in all. Bars are still 15mm or so higher than on my old 26″ HT though, so think I’m gonna have to buy some flat bars too.

Now with a lot less SRAM, the bars at a sensible height, and sadly a lack of sunshine in the garden this evening!

Just taken it for a spin down the road, first thoughts are promising. Fits well, bars are just low enough with the stem flipped and all the spacers dropped as well as swapping some flat bars in. The wheels are definitely going to be changed very soon though, cos they are not light! And the saddle, feels pretty narrow to my backside but we’ll see on that.

A proper Kona 😉

Yours does look sweet though

Proper Konas have p2 forks

Mine came with P2’s 😉

looks good mboy, like the changes you’ve made to it, the lower bar looks like it would be better for XC/days in the saddle. Do like the bike, looks like ChainReaction have secured the 2013 excess Kona stock too (according to the lads at the lbs).

weegi, bar height is now over 3″ lower than as it left the box! And they’re still a tiny bit higher than on the 26″ HT it is replacing, and I’m not even into extreme arse up head down positions! Generally my saddle and handlebars are pretty much the same height on an MTB, and bars about 60-80mm lower than saddle on a road bike. I think I’m going to find a slightly steeper rise/fall stem to run to drop the bars even more. Don’t want to cut the steerer too much mind as it will limit the resale value of the fork! Has to be said, the head tube on this Kona is definitely taller than most other similar sized 29er’s, that’s one thing that would put me off going up a size in your case.

Hopefully within the next couple of weeks or so it will have some significantly lighter wheels, tubeless tyres, and I’ll get my Reverb fixed and pop that on (though not for 24/12).

Not surprised about CRC securing all the 2013 excess Kona stock either. Nice bikes, that still suffer from being overpriced (at RRP) and have poor market penetration these days owing to the destruction of the brand name that Halfords did in the UK. CRC will lap it up! I’m just shocked mine is still in stock there, been days now and they’ve still got all sizes! They must have bought tonnes…

No, this is a proper Kona. 🙂

Nice 29er but the last post ends the thread!

Ha – I shoulda put ‘proper Kona frame’ for mine 😉

Lovely robdob – mine sort of resembled similar 16 years ago. Totally unrideable on anything remotely technical though 😉

Lovely robdob – mine sort of resembled similar 16 years ago. Totally unrideable on anything remotely technical though

You need a skills course then….. 😉

That Kilauea was recently restored, and ridden quite effectively (included passing many modern bikes) all around West Yorkshire. An area not known for its smooth easy trails…..

They really do handle amazingly, a joy to ride.

robdob, that should have canti’s!!!!!!

What TimC said, V brakes? Pah!

Well I rode the bike properly, and got it covered in a light smattering of dust…

Very impressed so far. The OEM wheels aren’t at all light, and it’s noticable (and being sorted out soon), but otherwise very good. I know the trails were also the driest they’ve been in ages, but also got a whole load of Strava Personal Records on its first ride out.

omg reduced to £720 now

wish they would sell out!!!!

Can confirm its well worth a punt at the money! OK I’ve junked all the SRAM stuff from the off, but the frame geometry is pretty much spot on (certainly way better than many other 29ers I’ve ridden), the 20mm bolt through fork really keeps the front end nice and stiff, and though the stock wheels are very heavy they’re pretty tough too. Biggest limitation I found on my first ride is the Maxxis Ignitors, a tyre that doesn’t have enough edge bite for me, certainly not in the current firm conditions we’re experiencing.

I’m amazed they’ve not sold out yet!

No, THIS is a proper Kona 😉

I do like the look of the Kahuna Deluxe, do they do one in a proper wheel size though 😆
For £750, i could be well tempted…

Hope you don’t need use the useless warranty, wouldn’t even inspect my frame

Any more rides on it, thinking of buying one ! Does look a decent bike for the reduced price!

bump for same question

Totally unrideable on anything remotely technical though

Really ? – I do wonder how we managed all them years ago without, suspension,and dropper posts – Oh yeah ! we just rode our bikes and got bumped about a bit more.

Sorry for those who were asking questions about it as it’s sold out finally! Anyway… Have changed quite a number of things on it now, but it just gets better and better!

(Obligatory Trail Centre Car Park shot parked up against a friend’s Audi)

Spec changes so far…

-Shimano Deore M596 brakes instead of Avid Elixir 3’s
-SLX/XT R mech and shifters instead of SRAM X7/X5
-RF Turbine cranks with 24/36 rings instead of SRAM X5
-Sunline 762 flat bars instead of original Kona Risers
-Specialized Henge saddle instead of original WTB
-Rockshox Reverb instead of original Kona seatpost
-Superstar Switch Evo hubs on Pacenti TL28’s instead of original Formula/WTB wheels
-Specialized Ground Control/Purgatory tyres instead of original Maxxis Ignitors

Just need to get round to trimming the steerer at some point, and set the tyres up tubeless now!

Looks mint!

That looks great Mark. Just got a 29er myself too (Spesh Carve) and love it.
I’ve not made any dramatic changes, just grips, pedals, etc plus added some bar ends for that BITD feel.

My mate bought one of those from CRC a month or so ago, it’s a lot of bike for the money, equipped with decent kit.
I’d buy one if I was in the market for a new hard tail.