I too wanted a 99 kona explosif at the time, but didn't have the funds. It was the combination of a grey 853 frame with the red bits which did it for me. 17 months ago, I decided that I had to have a Kona 853 in my life, but settled for a well used blue 98 18" frame in the end. It was far from mint, but I decided to keep it original and not have it resprayed. Most nights I would be searching for Kona bits on Ebay for the build and while searching, I came across an 18" 99 Kona Explosif! Not only was this my dream bike,
but it had only done about 500 dry miles from new! They only non original part was the grips, even the tyres and chain were original. It came with the purchase receipt, all the kona and bomber manuals, the 1999 kona range brochure and an unopened small bottle of kona touch up paint! I decided there and then that I had to buy it whatever the price. It had only been posted on Ebay for an hour when I rang the seller and offered him a low £300 for starters. To my surprise, he accepted as he wanted the money urgently for a holiday. In the end I built up the 98 for use, and have kept the 99 as a garage queen for now. I agree about the modern dosn't mean better statement, as my kona rides far better than my Marin full susser, which now hardly gets ridden.
I like the way youve built yours, it looks nice and don't they ride well on the trail.
