Back in October 2021 I managed to get myself this project that I then disassembled, cleaned and stored away.

My problem is that I’m lacking man space and I had to do all component cleaning outside on our terrace. Then came rain and more rain, until rain stopped and then it got cold. Then it got colder and snowed.

Springing back to action

I removed the fork from the frame and had that sitting on the shelf for some time as I was waiting for the elastomers to arrive. I ordered them from the U.S. back in 15th of October and now, in January 2022 there is still no sign of them.

I got fed up with the wait and ordered steel springs instead. The springs that included the top and bottom out rubbers came in 1,5 weeks from the seller on German Ebay.

Reassembly

Once I had the fork ready, I took the frame and all parts from a cold storage into my remote office (a spare room in Plain English) and spent most of my me time reassembling it. Having been clever and organised, I had all the bike parts cleaned and separately stored in zip bags, so it was a doddle.

Many evenings and nights were spent putting the bike back together, but it’s such a gratifying work to see it come together bit by bit. Several hours have also been spent just staring at the bike, waiting for the motivation to start after 10 pm. But once it kicks in and one enters a flow, it’s 1 am in a flash.

Several hours have also been spent just staring at the bike.

Components

Most of the original components were there and especially those that matter. Original shifters, brakes, derailleurs, hubs, rims, cranks and seatpost. The difficult ones to find.

The bike had a weird quill-to-threadless adapter stem and some no-brand riser bar. The original quick releases had been replaced with anti-theft skewers, apparently for practical reasons. Luckily I had a spare XTR quick release for the rear. The front, Deore XT, I sourced online with the original Kona seatpost clamp that had been replaced with some unidentified aluminium lump.

This bike originally came with a Project 2 rigid fork but this one had a period correct Manitou 3 elastomer fork fitted to it with a Deore XT headset.

Kona’s own Impact headset was nothing but trouble back in 1993, so it would be none the better today.

Now, I’m not a purist and no bike is perfect with the factory spec, so I wasn’t going for it either. For example, Kona’s own Impact headset was nothing but trouble back in 1993, so it would be none the better today.

Also, I happened to have a beautiful, rare Ibis Titanium handlebar and I can’t think of a better project for it than this bike.

Some people go to great lengths to find original tyres from the 90s, but I fitted brand new, reproduced Panaracers that look super cool.

All the cables and cable housings were renewed too. Instead of the standard black housings I went for the Jagwire in ‘Carbon Silver’ that are stylish but not brash.

Call me Mr. Vain, but to top it off, I bought Syntace titanium bolts for all the bottle cage mounts. I know what I want.

Specs

What next?

The bike is now back in one piece, but it’s not yet fine-tuned: Bolts should be tightened in correct torque – especially in the Manitou crown – and the brakes pads should be aligned correctly with the right toe-in.

I did ride it a bit searching for the right spot for the photo shoot, but I was being gentle. Once all is set up properly, weather’s nice and stars are aligned, I’ll go for a proper ride.

There is a certain hangover now that the bike is ready and there’s no more fiddling with the parts, pondering what components to choose and trailing the Internet for parts.

All there is to do now, is ride.