Kona commuter

[franjae]

Ok, so I've bought a Dew Deluxe for winter commuting. What I find is the bike is generally harder work compared to my Giant OCR1. it doesn't coast very well and seems to slow down quickly that you continually pedalling. Not that I mind but was wondering if a set of lower profile tyres will help or a new wheel set? Perhaps the wheel and bearings are of lower quality. gearing may be slightly off to. I've seen someone here with a Kona, perhaps that's been modded out? Any Kona owners care to comment and advise? Thanks!!

[Nobody]

Two reasons:
More aerodynamic drag from a more upright seating position.
The 32mm tyres will be slower rolling, but should be less of a problem than the aero drag.

Smaller, higher pressure training/racing tyres should make a difference, but it probably won't be huge.

[Mulger bill]

G'Day Franjae.
This is Lola

I've done a bit of upgrading from stock.

I love the way she rides now. She's no lightweight near race unit like me previous OCR2, you do notice the extra weight but she's near perfect for the job.
Your wheels have the same hubs. Not the greatest but still serviceable. I'm still running them but I'm putting the dough together to build a decent set of hoops.
I'd be checking the brakes for drag, not many disc bikes come from the shop "just so". It wouldn't hurt to check the hubs for poor adjustment too. Your tyres by the Kona site are better than what came on mine but a set of 28mm Gatorskins will make a difference.

Give her a hiding mate, she'll laugh and ask for more. When you wear out or break some parts you won't be wasting money with sensible upgrades.

Have a ball.
Shaun

[familyguy]

Its not just a Kona thing, so +1 on checking the brakes. My previous MTB suffered from a rear brake drag. Once fixed, it saved just over a minute over a 10km loop. The rest of it (bigger tyres, rider position, bike weight) accounted for the 3-4 minutes slowness compared to my old OCR1.

Jim

[silkishuge]

Hi franjae,

I am a Kona fan too. I have a Kona Jake the Snake. Yes she is heavier but I just like everything about her. She has everything I need in a commuter.

I bought the frame and fitted all the stuff I wanted on her. She is fitted out with some cheap tecktro cantilever brakes, Ultegra drive train except for FSA compact cranks. Front wheel is a Aksium while the rear wheel is a customized 32 hole DT Swiss wheel with Ultegra hubs. I use 35 mm knobby tyres designed for Cyclocross which is great for puncture resistance. The panniers fitted out in back keep my bum dry when its raining and is great for its intended purpose of carrying extra bags for the grocery run. I use a drop handle bar to help with aerodynamics and she rolls fine although its a bit harder work going up hill. My commute is only about 27 km and between my lighter bikes and this bike, it may be a 7 min difference in travel time, which is not much in the scheme of things.

I am not sure how you can upgrade your bike because fitting drop bars might not compatible with the frame geometry and might make for an uncomfortable ride. Slick wheels might help with rolling resistance or even a better wheel. Kona bikes are typically not designed for people who put weight as a first priority in their choice of bikes. My bike weighs about 12 kg.

Jon

[franjae]

Thanks guys,
Yes, I will check the brakes and figure out if adjustment would be necessary. I know the front wheel just doesn't spin as well as the Giant. Perhaps I just need to get used to the different gearing as well. Mulger Bill, did you do anything to the stock gearing? Obviously no point having the triple rings on the front right? I'm putting guards and rack on currently which I'm sure will sloe it down further but it has to be practical! Will try and post a pic in the weekend. Cheers!

[cpical]

I have a Kona phd (flat bar) for commuting. Much better than the Scott S30 I also have. Had to change the rear brake shoes after a couple of month because they were crap. I am now fore to use it to train because my road frame needs some attention, and it rides quite alright, can still pass a few on the Boulevard! Even when still carrying the lock on the frame.

[Sir Stinkalot]

I too have the Dew Deluxe 2011 (purchased January) ...... mmm the green one!

I don't really have anything to compare it with but mine seems to roll ok. I did find once that I overtightened the cam lock on the back wheel once and that must have made the disk brake rub as it was slow going on the way into work and before I left for home I just backed it off a little and the run home was much more enjoyable. There was no noise but it was rolling slower.

As for the gearing I spend most of my time on the flats. That being said however I seem to only ever use three gears maximum, and they are the top three (big front / little rear). At times I have found this to be limiting when I want to go up the gears further. I think my maximum speed on the flat so far was about 42km/h on the way home from work, problem is buses and traffic lights! If I put mine in granny gear I don't think it is possible to maintain balance as you have to peddle so hard to make it move. It might be a different story on the hills.

The only thing that I have done is fitted guards, lights and a computer. Given that I am 100kg I don't think that these minor attachments will impact much.

Cheers

Stinky.

[Mulger bill]

G'Day Franjae.
I changed the dérailleurs, brifters, crankset and BB by cannibalising parts off me OCR after about 150 kms. I really don't get on well with Sora brifters. The removed bits turned me OCR frame into me son's first roadie.
I kept the triple because these old railwaymans knees hate that first hill straight out of the driveway on sub 5degree mornings. It gets ignored at all other times. Here's a link to my initial post about her in the gallery.

Cheers
Shaun

[franjae]

Appreciate all your replies people! Looks like there's going to be a bit more tinkering to do! So i now have everything fitted for the moment. Unfortunately the tyre rubs a little against the guard. I did intended to fit skinnier tyre, but I'll leave that for now. Spent enough $$ for a while. Here she is...

[silkishuge]

Appreciate all your replies people! Looks like there's going to be a bit more tinkering to do! So i now have everything fitted for the moment. Unfortunately the tyre rubs a little against the guard. I did intended to fit skinnier tyre, but I'll leave that for now. Spent enough $$ for a while. Here she is...

Looks good. I would recommend one more rear blinkie, especially this time of the year.

Jon

[franjae]

Ah yes, thanks. There is another blinky attached to the back of the rack. I've replace the handle bar with a narrower one and an adjustable stem. What a difference it's made. Much more comfortable!

[rpmspinman]

I have the Kona Dew Plus. Basically the same frame as specs as yours except no pannier or guards. I added front and rear lights, clip pedals and bar extensions as well as small emergency tube repair kit for under the seat. I haven't noticed any major issues with wheels rubbing with mine or any coasting issues with the hubs. Keep us informed with how you go with yours in case I need to sort anything out with mine.