DAMAGED kona explosif....is it worth anything? NOW WITH PICS

[konaben82]

I have an old 1998 kona explosif in my cellar, (well just the frame) I have owned it from new and it cost me a small fortune back in 1998, i think it was £449 or something along those lines.....anyway, I stopped riding around 2000, I discovered women and beer! basically the bike was left to rot in the shed, over time I sold off a few parts etc so it was sort of kicking around as mainly just a frame, the shed had a leak in it and the poor old kona got a bit discoloured, covered in cobwebs....

Anyway, I started riding again early 2007 and deceided to go and dig the old explosif out, since then the shed had filled up with various other crap it it was kind of buried, I dug it out, gave it a good clean and then it sat under my bed for 3 years as I just went out and bought a newer kona cindercone on credit, after getting annoyed with the crappy disc brakes seizing up and the heavy suspension I decided to ebay it and then I discovered this website and all of a sudden had a massive thing for old bikes again! I took the explosif down to the powder coaters and got him done in black, made the new decals myself at work and started buying decent parts, then I found out that one of the chain stays seems to have been squished at some point - GUTTED! this meant that the back wheel wouldnt sit in the frame properly....maybe something heavy had been put in the shed and on the frame

now, it has been sat here unbuilt but looking nice for ages and it either needs to be repaired or sold - the question is, is it repairable? or is it worth anything? it just seems a massive shame to throw it in the skip when I have paid to get it painted.....

I'm scooting round on a 97 fire mountain now with all the parts which I bought

 

[konaben82]

if you look carefully the little tube that joins the chainstays seems to be pused into one of them more than the other :?

 

[konaben82]

*pushed

 

[russ77]

Driving a car over it might have caused that amount of deformation to the seat stay. I reckon that's always been like that. It's more likely one side of the rear triangle has just become a little bent, as you say. Nothing a competent frame builder couldn't rectify in a few minutes. I'd suggest not trying it yourself. If the frame were mine I would have wrecked it ages ago by trying to "gently" bend it around a log or something daft.

Lovely frame and well worth investigating a simple fix. Shouldn't make a mess of the new paint job either.

 

[Barneyballbags]

It's much more likely that it's repairable, being as it's a steel frame. I would have thought that you could get the chainstay bent back carefully, so that the wheel sits straight again.

So long as you don't subject it to a bit of North Shore(!), then it'll probably serve you for years to come

 

[konaben82]

ok...does anyone know anyone that could possibly 'fix it'? :roll:

 

[Barneyballbags]

ok...does anyone know anyone that could possibly 'fix it'? :roll:

Any framebuilder should be able to do it - it might also be worth trying local engineers as they'd have the tools to do it properly too and they'd probably be a good deal cheaper than a framebuilder!

 

[tintin40]

Nice frame. Hope you will keep us updated on the repair and build. I'd pay a bit extra and use a frame builder. But then my experience of 'engineers' wasn't very good.

 

[kase1983]

Was it like this before the powedercoating? maybe they bend it somehow?

i think it would be salvagble , i did one with a couple mates and a big off a a heave but i was only a crappy raliegh frame for the pub run.

D

 

[Dr S]

It is physically repairable but is it ecconomically repairable? As a frame only its probably worth £100-150. Factor in the cost of repair, fresh powder and decals, all the running around, cost of fuel, postage etc and it simply isn't worth it.
Now if you had sentimental attachment towards it then it would be worthwhile. But bought in 98, ridden for just two years, dumped in a damp shed for a decade, then stored under the bed for another three, my guess is that it doesn't really hold a special place in your heart.

Best choice is to hang it from the wall in the garage as a reminder of the follies of youth.