1995 Kona Hei Hei

[Taiphun]

In the mid 90s I absolutely adored Kona and Rocky Mountain bikes. My buddy picked up a Hahanna halfway through high school at the bike shop where I worked for my "work experience" term and our gym class did a chapter on mountain biking. I didn't have a real bike but there were a few guys in class that did. Up on display was an early Hei Hei, and for young me, titanium was where it was at. Since then owning a titanium bike was something that was always lurking...

I picked this one up earlier this summer, which was a little overpriced but in the correct 20" size. The previous owner claimed "all original parts," and the price was a bit high. I went on vacation several times and when I came back each time I hoped the bike had sold, but it hadn't.. so I figured, "it's only money" and "it's my size" and reached out again to the owner, who again sent assured me all parts were "original" and that he was the original owner. Anyways upon receiving the bike it was pretty obvious the only thing original to the bike was the Kona headset and the frame. The seller claimed it to be a '92 frame but Pipmeister has since helped date it as a '95 frame with original decals. I've kept the original decals as they're in decent shape.. some cracks but they haven't fallen apart yet.

A lot of the posts here gave me some ideas as to what I would do with it.. Mortonm's bike thread had me looking at borrowing the dog collar cantilever cable guide so I borrowed the one from the Kilauea which fit perfectly, and he mentions using a barrel adjuster to hold it tight against the seat tube. Works very well and a lot cheaper than getting a local titanium frame-builder to weld a cable stop on, but that sadly leaves the Kilauea without a cable stop. Something for future Taiphun to worry about.

It's more of a retro-mod than a completely period-correct bike.. it rides like a dream and I really like how the 1x drivetrain performs.

Here's the build list that I've got right now:

Frame: 20" 1995 Kona Hei Hei
Fork: 1998 Marzocchi Bomber Z2
Hubs: XTR M950
Rims: Mavic XC717
Headset: Accent HST low stack
Bars: Kona Race Lite Titanium
Stem: Syncros (intending to replace with a Ringle Zooka)
Grips: Oury
Brake Levers: Shimano XTR M970
Rear Shifter: Shimano XT M8000
Seatpost: Kona O-Beam Titanium
V-Brakes: Shimano XTR M970
Bottom Bracket: Shimano XTR BB93
Cranks: Shimano XT M8000
Chainring: Blackspire Snaggletooth 32T Oval
Chain: Shimano XT 11-speed
Cassette: Shimano XT 11-36
Rear Derailleur: Shimano XT M8000
Pedals: Shimano XTR M959
Seat: Currently Fabric Scoop (to be replaced later on)
Seat Collar: Titanium of unknown origin
V-Brake Booster: Shimano M950 Carbon

The reason for the relatively unknown Accent headset is because the steerer of the Z2 isn't quite the length that I would like it to be. It tops off at the edge of the binder bolt of the Syncros stem. I hope a Ringle or similar stem would be slightly shorter but I'm not quite sure.. maybe there's an alternative there? Either that or looking for an uncut Z2 steerer..

Future plans.. well, a new set of decals for the Bomber fork, changing up the grips to something a little fatter for my big hands, and maybe going with a different seat.

Thanks for looking..

 

[Dr-Zocchi]

Press in a 300mm steerer

 

[Taiphun]

Yah, I'm considering that.. I'll send you a note when I'm there!

 

[ibbz]

In the mid 90s I absolutely adored Kona and Rocky Mountain bikes. My buddy picked up a Hahanna halfway through high school at the bike shop where I worked for my "work experience" term and our gym class did a chapter on mountain biking. I didn't have a real bike but there were a few guys in class that did. Up on display was an early Hei Hei, and for young me, titanium was where it was at. Since then owning a titanium bike was something that was always lurking...

I picked this one up earlier this summer, which was a little overpriced but in the correct 20" size. The previous owner claimed "all original parts," and the price was a bit high. I went on vacation several times and when I came back each time I hoped the bike had sold, but it hadn't.. so I figured, "it's only money" and "it's my size" and reached out again to the owner, who again sent assured me all parts were "original" and that he was the original owner. Anyways upon receiving the bike it was pretty obvious the only thing original to the bike was the Kona headset and the frame. The seller claimed it to be a '92 frame but Pipmeister has since helped date it as a '95 frame with original decals. I've kept the original decals as they're in decent shape.. some cracks but they haven't fallen apart yet.

A lot of the posts here gave me some ideas as to what I would do with it.. Mortonm's bike thread had me looking at borrowing the dog collar cantilever cable guide so I borrowed the one from the Kilauea which fit perfectly, and he mentions using a barrel adjuster to hold it tight against the seat tube. Works very well and a lot cheaper than getting a local titanium frame-builder to weld a cable stop on, but that sadly leaves the Kilauea without a cable stop. Something for future Taiphun to worry about.

It's more of a retro-mod than a completely period-correct bike.. it rides like a dream and I really like how the 1x drivetrain performs.

Here's the build list that I've got right now:

Frame: 20" 1995 Kona Hei Hei
Fork: 1998 Marzocchi Bomber Z2
Hubs: XTR M950
Rims: Mavic XC717
Headset: Accent HST low stack
Bars: Kona Race Lite Titanium
Stem: Syncros (intending to replace with a Ringle Zooka)
Grips: Oury
Brake Levers: Shimano XTR M970
Rear Shifter: Shimano XT M8000
Seatpost: Kona O-Beam Titanium
V-Brakes: Shimano XTR M970
Bottom Bracket: Shimano XTR BB93
Cranks: Shimano XT M8000
Chainring: Blackspire Snaggletooth 32T Oval
Chain: Shimano XT 11-speed
Cassette: Shimano XT 11-36
Rear Derailleur: Shimano XT M8000
Pedals: Shimano XTR M959
Seat: Currently Fabric Scoop (to be replaced later on)
Seat Collar: Titanium of unknown origin
V-Brake Booster: Shimano M950 Carbon

The reason for the relatively unknown Accent headset is because the steerer of the Z2 isn't quite the length that I would like it to be. It tops off at the edge of the binder bolt of the Syncros stem. I hope a Ringle or similar stem would be slightly shorter but I'm not quite sure.. maybe there's an alternative there? Either that or looking for an uncut Z2 steerer..

Future plans.. well, a new set of decals for the Bomber fork, changing up the grips to something a little fatter for my big hands, and maybe going with a different seat.

Thanks for looking..

That’s really nice - can’t comment enough on them! And as Ti bikes go, this website and pipemeister have really given the Kona a special place!
its a great feeling when eventually you’re able to buy something you’ve wanted for years.

 

[Mortonm]

Looking good! glad the brake guide hack worked out for you

 

[mk one]

Nice

You can also run full length outers with V's if struggling to find a stop. Keeps the dirt out too

 

[Taiphun]

You can also run full length outers with V's if struggling to find a stop. Keeps the dirt out too

Thanks! Yah I did that on the Kilauea for a while using it as a winter bike, and I stupidly used electrical tape instead of zipties to secure it to the frame.. I don't really like the look of zipties or electrical tape. Pipmeister showed me about using a light clamp with a threaded stop - that would be my next choice if I can't find another Dog Collar.

 

[OldSkoolReTool'd]

Nice bike !
Very similar to the Merlin mountains.
II think Merlin made these for Kona in the earlier days ( not sure about 1995 )