Kona Caldera 1997
- Thread starter al-onestare
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Re:
New year and a few more interesting updates, not all directly related to mine.
Starting with that a few more parts have come in including a new BB. I'm still on the hunt for a yellow Flite so if anyone has one in tip-top condition, please let me know.
Like buses, and I still can't believe I'm about to type this, another one surfaced just before Christmas :!: :shock: As a reminder, prior to November 2015, in RB site terms and in the general internet universe, not a single one 'existed'. This now makes 4 confirmed examples.
H1v9a8c8 was the lucky buyer (via ebay again). And like all before, it's got some differing features, meaning all four are unique. In this case, the colour is 'correct', but the SN takes the HO (Hot) format (although we're verifying that as it looks like CA to me) and perhaps more intriguingly there looks to be a bulge at the BB join. That would indicate, potentially, different tubing. Answers on a postcard!
Here's the current '97 Caldera roll-call:
mydryskull: HO 9607032 , different blue, 19"
al-onestare: CA 9609046 , Poopsy Blue, 20"
knickering: CA 9609144, Molotov Red, 18"
H1v9a8c8: HO 9610031 (TBC), Poopsy Blue, 18"
Crazy times!
New year and a few more interesting updates, not all directly related to mine.
Starting with that a few more parts have come in including a new BB. I'm still on the hunt for a yellow Flite so if anyone has one in tip-top condition, please let me know.
Like buses, and I still can't believe I'm about to type this, another one surfaced just before Christmas :!: :shock: As a reminder, prior to November 2015, in RB site terms and in the general internet universe, not a single one 'existed'. This now makes 4 confirmed examples.
H1v9a8c8 was the lucky buyer (via ebay again). And like all before, it's got some differing features, meaning all four are unique. In this case, the colour is 'correct', but the SN takes the HO (Hot) format (although we're verifying that as it looks like CA to me) and perhaps more intriguingly there looks to be a bulge at the BB join. That would indicate, potentially, different tubing. Answers on a postcard!
Here's the current '97 Caldera roll-call:
mydryskull: HO 9607032 , different blue, 19"
al-onestare: CA 9609046 , Poopsy Blue, 20"
knickering: CA 9609144, Molotov Red, 18"
H1v9a8c8: HO 9610031 (TBC), Poopsy Blue, 18"
Crazy times!
knickering
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Re: Re:
I wonder about that all the blue has a low production number and the red is high. Could it be that the first 75 were blue and the last 75 were red? it is probably premature to say anything about when we only have 4 bikes.
al-onestare":27nx3bff said:
I wonder about that all the blue has a low production number and the red is high. Could it be that the first 75 were blue and the last 75 were red? it is probably premature to say anything about when we only have 4 bikes.
Re: Re:
Could be. I've gone on the basis of batches of 50. 1*50 for Canada, 1*50 US and maybe, 1*50 for Europe BUT I doubt that final Europe one. It could be, the third batch was just red. But colouring was done by Velographics - whether they got them in batches or as the orders came through, who knows? I would have thought the former.
Ok, complete spanner in the works. What would the prefix KO indicate?
Because that's what H1v9a8c8 has: KO 9610031 = ?? 1996, October, #31
knickering":d76kcrd7 said:
Could be. I've gone on the basis of batches of 50. 1*50 for Canada, 1*50 US and maybe, 1*50 for Europe BUT I doubt that final Europe one. It could be, the third batch was just red. But colouring was done by Velographics - whether they got them in batches or as the orders came through, who knows? I would have thought the former.
Ok, complete spanner in the works. What would the prefix KO indicate?
Because that's what H1v9a8c8 has: KO 9610031 = ?? 1996, October, #31
Re: Kona Caldera 1997 - unicorn scenes
Indeed! Gathering parts mode still, especially as January is pretty busy calendar wise.
Dare":3c11dtik said:When it rains it pours!
Where are you with your project? Are we going to see some pics soon?
Indeed! Gathering parts mode still, especially as January is pretty busy calendar wise.
Pipmeister
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Re: Re:
Good evening Al,
I've just sent you a PM regarding clarifying what we understand on the current serial numbers that we have. The message is already been superseded by the news of K0!?!
One other point - are the letter O's that you have documented after the letter H, actually the digit zero?
Pip.
al-onestare":3p3ehqca said:
Good evening Al,
I've just sent you a PM regarding clarifying what we understand on the current serial numbers that we have. The message is already been superseded by the news of K0!?!
One other point - are the letter O's that you have documented after the letter H, actually the digit zero?
Pip.
Re:
By my eyes, they look like O's but I'm open to suggestion.
By my eyes, they look like O's but I'm open to suggestion.
Pipmeister
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Re:
Rightyho, the K prefix is the same format as SOME of the Ku models that we have seen on here.
Is this more to do with where it was fabricated rather than CA for the Caldera, KO (or K0) for the Ku, HO (or H0) for the Hot?
Anyway, Ernie's Star 'n' Bars is K09606058
Pip
Rightyho, the K prefix is the same format as SOME of the Ku models that we have seen on here.
Is this more to do with where it was fabricated rather than CA for the Caldera, KO (or K0) for the Ku, HO (or H0) for the Hot?
Anyway, Ernie's Star 'n' Bars is K09606058
Pip
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Re: Re:
On closer look, I'm suggesting to myself (!) that the O's do look the same as 0's. We can be sure that immediately following the first letter, the O or 0 takes the form of O.
What is really puzzling is seeing K or KO on a steel frame. As you say, Ku's - of even King Kahuna's and Kula's - any Kona bike of that (96/97) time starting with K, was a non-steel frame. I wonder if this was a case of Altitude stamping it with K to indicate it was a Kona frame. KO add's a bit of weight to that theory, especially if 10 - October - indicates a later batch-run. Add the flanged down-tube and it begs the question, what the hell is the tube-set and what was going on in the factory?
al-onestare":2fwfnwbe said:
On closer look, I'm suggesting to myself (!) that the O's do look the same as 0's. We can be sure that immediately following the first letter, the O or 0 takes the form of O.
What is really puzzling is seeing K or KO on a steel frame. As you say, Ku's - of even King Kahuna's and Kula's - any Kona bike of that (96/97) time starting with K, was a non-steel frame. I wonder if this was a case of Altitude stamping it with K to indicate it was a Kona frame. KO add's a bit of weight to that theory, especially if 10 - October - indicates a later batch-run. Add the flanged down-tube and it begs the question, what the hell is the tube-set and what was going on in the factory?
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