2004 Kona Scrap Review

So after many trades and deals I acquired my current ride, a 2004 Kona Scrap. It’s a bit heavier than my old 1996 Kona Lava Dome that I owned around 10 years ago, yet it rides great and fits me better than the 2012 Trek Marlin that I had earlier this year. As like my other review lets start out by listing the part on the bike.

• Frame & Fork – Kona Clump 7005 aluminum custom butted frame, Marzocchi MZ Race 110mm fork with preload adjustment
• Brakeset – Shimano Deore M475 mechanical dis brakes, Avid FR-1 levers
• Shifters – Shimano Alivio 8-speed Rapid-fire
• Front Derailleur – Shimano Alivio, top swing, top pull
• Rear Derailleur – Shimano Alivio, long cage
• Crankset – Truvativ Hussefelt (44t/32t/22t) with Salsa bash guard
• Bottom Bracket – Truvativ ISIS splined
• Pedals – Kona Jackshift platform
• Rear Cogs – Shimano 8-speed cassette (11t – 32t)
• Chain – SRAM PC-58 8-speed chain
• Seatpost – Kona Double Thumb
• Saddle – WTB Speed She
• Handlebar – Kona DH riser
• Grips – Kona
• Stem – Kona Clump
• Headset – Cane Creek Aheadset
• Hubs – Front: Shimano HB-M475 Disc, Rear: Shimano FH-M475 disc
• Rims – Sun Rims Ditch Witch, 32-hole
• Tires – Tioga Factory DH, 2.10″

My first impressions after owning this bike are mixed. The bike rides great, yet the frame is overbuilt and the rims are made very burly to take to abuse of mountain biking so overall the bike is very heavy. If I had to guess I would say it weighs in around 30 to 35 pounds as I have yet to weigh the bike. Of course the only time I feel the weight of the bike is on long uphill climbs. Other than that this bike cruises along nicely on all types of terrain with the exception of sand due to using those aggressive Tioga tires. Even though this bike gets up to speed quickly I must say when i go off road I miss the ability of my other bike I owned this year, a Trek Marlin, because the Marlin’s 29 inch tires rolled over everything that the Kona, with 26 inch wheels, has trouble overcoming.

So let’s talk about the different parts of the bike in greater detail.

Cockpit:

These riser bars have a 2 inch or so uprise. Along with a shorter top tube than my previous Trek Marlin this allows me to sit more upright on bike. That helps with my back pain. I’ve only owned a set of Avid levers once or twice before. These levers are built stiff with quality parts. There is no play in the lever and they offer plenty of leverage when using the brakes. I’m very used to using Shimano’s Rapid-fire shifters. Very intuitive setup. These Alivio level shifters click loudly when shifted and offer precise shifting along with great tune ability. They shift very well even under heavy load. I have had to use a few drops of lube on the internal of the shifters when I got the bike due to both shifters being a bit sticky when shifting. Not Shimano’s fault, I believe the bike had been sitting for some time. I do have an issue with the Kona grips. They are on the bar nice and tight yet after a ride you can see that they have rotated some. To cure this I’m going to get a set of lock on grips. To there credit, the grips do not make my palms numb even when riding without gloves.

Fork:

I haven’t owned many Marzocchi forks in my years of mountain biking. I’ve ridden a few on friends bikes. On this fork my opinion is split down the middle. On one hand the fork performs as it should. It will compress on small bumps as well as big bumps. it handles all sorts of trail chatter and downhill runs. On the other hand I wish the fork had stiffer springs because at my weight the fork is offering only 2 inches of travel instead of 4. However if you aren’t a clyde like me than this fork should work just fine. I haven’t had any problems with the fork or the seals. On a side note this bike came with a different fork, it must have been switched out before I got it.

Drivetrain:

Shimano 8 speed at it’s best. Press the shifter, hear it click, feel the instant shift. The front has some issues shifting from the middle chainring down to the granny gear and back. I believe the derailleur needs to be bent back into proper shape and I’ll look into that soon. I also thing the ramps and pins on the 32t middle chainring may be worn out. That would explain the poor shifting from the granny to the middle ring. Overall I think the SRAM system on the Trek worked better as the SRAM setup was a 1:1 ratio in shifting, and Shimano uses a 2:1 shifting ratio. (1:1 ratio means for every inch of cable the shifter pulls the rear derailleur moves the same amount, etc.) I haven’t noticed any flexing in the bottom bracket, nor any problems with the bearings. This is the first ISIS setup I have owned.

Brakes:

Powerful. Easy to adjust. Light weight. At one time I owned the first generation of these Shimano Deore brakes, the BR515 model. since then they have been redesigned and as a result are easier to setup, adjust, and are very powerful. Great modulation. I’m not running these brakes with Jagwire housing, but if you use this brakeset I recommend using Jagwire housing combined with high end cables. As it is the housing I am using slows down the cable, it’s not as free flowing and slick as it should be. My only complaint is that from time to time the rear brake squeals while riding along. I think the rotor might be a bit out of true, easy fix, or the quick release axle may be flexing some. Both are common problems.  These brakes use a big square pad instead of a little circle pad. Great brakes. However if I had a choice I would still use hydraulics because they self center, have better modulation, are are way more powerful.

Rims, Tires

Sun Ditch Witch rims. Double walled. Bullet proof. Good for clydes like me, bad if you are looking for something lightweight as they are on the heavy side. Right now they are just a little out of true after many, many miles of off hard riding. Rarely do rims hold up under my abuse, yet these have done a very good job of it. As for the tires I will be upgrading those to something in the 1.8 inch size. Not only are these Tioga tires to big for my taste, the tread pattern with really high knobs offer to much rolling resistance. I’ve suffered a few flats on these tires as well. I think a set of Kenda Small Block 8 tires would work better on this bike.

Final Thoughts:

Yes this bike is 8 years old at the time of this writing. Common mountain bike knowledge would say anything over 5 years old is not worth buying, owning, or worth riding as the frame may crack due to age. I’ve ridden all sorts of old bikes with never an issue. I’ve even heard of new bikes that develop cracks in the frame. I think this bike was hardly ever ridden with it’s previous owner. The frame is overbuilt, the welds look good, and I think it should hold up. If you get a chance to own an older Kona, grab it. New or old Kona makes great bikes. In fact my screen name is in honor of a Kona bike I owned 10 years ago. I might change out a few parts starting with the grips and saddle but overall this bike tackles the ride like no one’s business and is a blast to ride. Even after long rides the smile stays on my face. this bike begs to be ridden.