Help ID my Kona

[thepodge]

I have an old steel Kona frame that I'm trying to identify.

It was repainted and restickered before the previous owner so I'm not sure what model or year it was.

The paint is in a terrible state and I was thinking of refurbishing it but I'd like to know what it was before I start throwing money at it.

The cable routing puts it at 1999 or later but its lacking in any other distinguishing features other than the top tube cable stops.

If someone could recognise that would narrow it down a lot.

Here is the cable stop, most of the 99-2001 pics I can find are low quality but look to have a straight edge not a curving / bullet profile

Proof its a Kona

 

[Adam_S]

Didn't most Kona frames have disc mounts from 1999 onwards?

 

[thepodge]

Re:

No, they were late adopters to discs, I think it was 2002 before they started appearing

 

[Adam_S]

Fair enough then.

Actually, I don't think it's a 1999 at all. Post about 1997 all the steel Konas had dropouts like these.

Lava Dome:

Caldera:

These are off a 1996 Caldera and they match the ones on your frame much more closely.

 

[Adam_S]

It's also possible if it had a respray at some point that the cable stops were changed. The ones on the Mrs' 1998 Explosif don't quite look like the ones on your bike. As you say, yours are a bit rounder at the end.

 

[Adam_S]

Actually it could be one of these.

http://s312.photobucket.com/user/thejas ... e.jpg.html

 

[thepodge]

Thanks for that,
I'd not considered that the respray may have been in part due to replacing the cable stops, seems an unusual / unlikely repair but not impossible.

The 96 Caldera drop outs you posted do look to match but according to the Kona brochure there was no Caldera in 96

By my reckoning these are my options. It looks like the 2000 range might be very close but its difficult without good quality pics to narrow it down:
1999
Lava Dome - Discounted due to capped dropouts
Fire Mountain
Hahanna
Caldera - Discounted due to capped dropouts

2000
Lava Dome
Fire Mountain - https://www.olx.ro/oferta/bicicleta-kon ... Fhya.html# Click to zoom
Hahanna - http://www.retrobike.co.uk/gallery2/mai ... mId=102299

2001
Lava Dome – Discounted due to Ritchey dropouts
Hahanna

2002
Lava Dome
Caldera – Discounted due to HT gusset

2003
Lava Dome
Explosif – Discounted due to Disc & Canti Mounts

 

[thepodge]

Running with the idea its a 2000 frame,

This page should help narrow it down by top tube length
http://www.retrobike.co.uk/gallery2/v/M ... 6.JPG.html

and this page should help narrow it down by weight as all the other details seem to match my frame except the Ritchey dropouts on the Lava Dome
https://web.archive.org/web/20000614091 ... tech6.html

Unfortunately all three had fairly rubbish paint designs, the glow in the dark Lava Dome was cool but not sure I could recreate that.

 

[thepodge]

just a quick update should anyone else try and establish a year / model...

My frame matches everything listed for the Hahanna on this page of the 2000 Kona site
https://web.archive.org/web/20000614091 ... tech6.html

I could still do with a good pic of a 2000 Fire Mountain or Hahanna cable stop but even without it I'm fairly happy of the outcome.

 

[Matthews]

Re:

From the piccies it looks very similar to my 97 lava dome before I tweaked it a bit