Gear Review

Kona Paddy Wagon Bike

Item #KNA0103 | 0 in Stock
4 Star Rating

Fantastic Commuter

By fan4890603 October 25, 2011

I bought this bike as a commuter, something to get me there without any fuss. Thus far, that's exactly what it has been. Setup was easy. The bike comes mostly assembled; you must attach the stem, front wheel, the handlebars and insert the seat post. The brake cables need to be attached and my pad placement needed some fine tuning, but I had everything up and running under an hour.

The frame, paired with the 700x28c wheels, really dampen the road vibration more than I expected. The frame is actually quite beautiful. The black paint has little specks in it that catch bright sunlight and give the paint job a great deal of depth. The decals are all under the clear coat. I find it to be understated all around, which is something I was looking for. It's a relatively comfortable ride. I don't find the seat to be the most comfortable out there but then again I'm riding this with normal street clothes. It's perfectly fine for my 5 to 10 mile excursions. The wheels are still quite true after 130 miles and I don't anticipate any problems out of them in the near future. The brakes don't work as well as others that I've tried (that cost a good deal more), but they work well enough. My one real gripe is a relatively minor one: the bar tape wasn't applied particularly well on the left side of the bars and seems to be starting to come undone in the middle. It's more cosmetic than anything right now.

I wasn't sure what to expect out of the drivetrain, as this is my first single speed. The gearing is perfect for putting around town. I can get up the couple short hills around me without trouble but if I want to zip home I can do so. Perhaps best of all was the price, which was about half off retail on bonktown. If you can get a similar deal, hop on it.

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Tech Specs:

Frame Material:
Kona custom-butted Cro-Moly 
Dropout Type:
horizontal 
Headset:
FSA 
Steer Tube Type:
aluminum 
Fork:
Kona Retro Road 
Rims:
Alex Race28 
Hubs:
Formula 
Spokes:
Sandvik stainless 14g 
Crankset:
FSA Tempo 
Chain Rings:
42 t 
Crank Arm Length:
170 mm 
Pedals:
not included 
Bottom Bracket:
RPM 7420 
Brake Levers:
Tektro R200A 
Brake Calipers:
Tektro R538 
Handlebar:
Kona Pista 
Handlebar Width:
42 cm 
Handlebar Drop:
140 mm 
Bar Tape:
Kona cork tape 
Stem:
Kona alloy 
Stem Length:
100 mm 
Stem Angle:
(+/-) 8 deg 
Chain:
KMC Z-50 
Cassette:
Dicta 16t, freewheel or fixed 
Tires:
Continental Ultra Sport 
Tire Size:
700 c x 28 mm 
Seatpost:
Kona Thumb alloy 
Seatpost Diameter:
27.2 mm 
Seatpost Length:
350 mm 
Saddle:
WTB Rocket V Comp OE 
Weight:
21 lb 2 oz 
Measured Effective Top-Tube Length:
(56cm frame, c-c) 55 cm 
Recommended Use:
commuting, barhopping, courier work 
Manufacturer Warranty:
1 year 

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