finally...finished with the new build

[davidB]

back in may or so I picked up my first bike in a long time, a $300 kona lana'i HT to get myself back into riding.



I had done a good share of riding in h.s. 6 years ago but that was all. Maybe a couple months of doing that again with this bike and I want a bigger/better bike, but I didn't have the money. So I start saving. After not finding much at Jenson's sale, the path has their's.

walk out of their with the frame with the mindset that this may take a while (see: no $$$ after frame). I'm in no rush to finish it and scope out craigslist all over the nation, ebay becomes a good friend again as I end up selling enough stuff laying around the house to fund about half of the remaining parts, and it seems i hit the classifieds for every mtb website out there to find only the best deals on good stuff. Somewhere in here I put in a order at the path for a wheelset (819's w/ hope pro II's).

I would have like to have traveled less and gone to the usual LBS around here (incycle), but they wanted $230+ more for the wheels and didn't have them in stock either. Oddly enough jenson didn't have them in stock either and were waiting for mavic too. I had no problem waiting if I was going to be saving that much money.


Unfortunately that money I had put aside immediately went to parts. The brakes were unbelievably cheap but I had to get them from 2 different sellers on ebay, the crankset was cheap as well but was missing spacers/tools, the fork was new as well and purchased for dirt cheap. I was determined to get quality stuff, cheap. Deals can be found, it just took me a loooong time, and a lot of time here spent at work online hunting stuff down. I got a little impatient at the end and ordered a couple parts new, but what's a guy to do?

Oddly enough I finished it without wheels, which the Path was still waiting for. A problem with Mavic not getting their stuff to the path left me with a completed frame for about a month and really bummed. The wheels come in eventually and the next day I rushed down there the first chance I got (i live near pasadena, not near the path at all lol) Ended up paying for the wheels, along with a handful of other things I needed/wanted. What they say about that place is true. It is impossible to get out of their with only your initial purchase.





was told the brake line is too short for comfort, but it doesn't seem to cause any problems when the bars turn either way. i'll fix this whenever i figure out how, or have the time





it was one hell of a learning experience doing everything but cutting the fork and pressing the headset. I had a good understanding and was comfortable doing it, so needless to say, i'm quite happy/relieved that it's done.




still trying to find what I like in the rp23 settings and the fork, noob to all that. and besides the stem being a little long, it feels much better than the old bike which was a little big for me. Sadly I haven't had a chance to ride it yet but i feel exactly like I did when I got my first bike as a kid, ironically one of the few memories I have as a kid.

ironically i now want to build up another one, possibly a SS 29'er.

kona dawg supreme
x0 drivetrain, w/xtr crankset and FD
juicy carbons
mavic 819s on LOUD hope pro II hubs

[emejay]

Nice job! Acquiring all the parts, doing all the research, and doing the building definetely makes you connected to the bike.
Enjoy it!

[allison]

That is a gorgeous bike!! Congrats on having the patience to wait it out. Now get it get it dirty!!

[guero]

SWEET DAWG!!! ANOTHER KONA FAMILY MEMBER!!!

On behalf of the entire Kona family here on STR, CONGRATS!!!

[J_Sims]

Great job on a killer new ride... As I kept reading the word Cheap and noticing XTR cranks I kinda went if those are cheap... What's expensive?


4 days for go play in the dirt..

[TURNERob]

Good lookin rig! Have fun with it.

[BSki]

Looks great!!

Rather sure the issue with the front brake line is that if you wreck, the bars need to turn around fully and have enough line. Yours would pull the line out of the brake. So either lengthen it, or dont wreck

[mntbiker12]

Nice rig! Now, get it dirty!

[.8down]

wow nice build...how long is that stem of yours? I was running a 110mm and dropped to 90mm and it made a world of difference!! I still have my 110mm but its a 245.4 clamp(would have traded with you since Im planning to sell the stem anyhow) and with the nice bar you'll want to stay 31.

[station]

Aw, that bike just makes me smile.

[tkblazer]

blingin

[slowSSer]

Originally Posted by davidB

ironically i now want to build up another one, possibly a SS 29'er.

the kool-ade is calling

fine looking Kona by the way- my wife's Unit 2-9 is the same rootbeer color and looks insane in the sun. now, why does Kona consider the color "orange"?

[davidB]

i don't know, it's clearly brown lol

going by jenson's website, the crankset cost me what a new XT would have

the stem is 110 and definately needs to be shorter. the rear brake might need bled, not sure yet. But if I ever get it feeling like the front, i'll be stopping on a dime. I've never used disc brakes before, and yesterday while riding around I grabbed what I thought was a little front brake. The bike came to a stop and I nearly went OTB. then I went

[KonaDupee]

ALWAYS nice induct another member into the Kult of Kona!

Beee-yu-tiful ride!

[davidB]

thanks

on a different note, i want to weigh this thing for the heck of it but don't know where/who has one of those scales. "stock" it's supposed to be 29.2 pounds, hopefully i knocked a couple pounds off that

[speckledtrout]

woo doggie! that's a pretty bike! i really dig the coppery/rootbeer color. sharp.

[dhshuttlemonkey]

Nice parts spec & good job building it yourself.

[Rob]

Originally Posted by davidB

i don't know, it's clearly brown lol

going by jenson's website, the crankset cost me what a new XT would have

the stem is 110 and definately needs to be shorter. the rear brake might need bled, not sure yet. But if I ever get it feeling like the front, i'll be stopping on a dime. I've never used disc brakes before, and yesterday while riding around I grabbed what I thought was a little front brake. The bike came to a stop and I nearly went OTB. then I went

On the brakes was the lever coming too far back? If bleeding them doesn't make the lever stop sooner there are two allen screws under the lever, adjust the one closest to the handlebars and it'll bring out the lever more so it doesn't pull in too much.

I like to set them up so I can brake with one finger and it won't squash my other fingers.

You may also want to space the brake levers and shifter more away from the grips so you can get your index finger on the end of the brake lever for more leverage.

Congrats on getting it built up, I know the feeling!

[davidB]

no, it engages quite well. Just that the front brake engages sooner I think. You would think the front brake pads are already engaged based on the very little amount I have to move it but that's not the case. The rear gets about a 1/4 of the way to the handlebar before it's done.

[guero]

Originally Posted by davidB

thanks

on a different note, i want to weigh this thing for the heck of it but don't know where/who has one of those scales. "stock" it's supposed to be 29.2 pounds, hopefully i knocked a couple pounds off that

nice, mine weighs in at 31.5. im sure my burly dt swiss wheels/hubs dont help in the weight dept. but they are solid and hopefully wont let me down.