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Honzo Build Thread - post your builds here

1M views 7K replies 665 participants last post by  David R 
#1 · (Edited)
Kona Honzo Build

2012 Kona Honzo Med.
2012 Fox F29, 120mm, RLC, Tapered, 15mm TA
Stan's Flow Wheelset with 3.30 front hub, 3.30 Heavy Duty rear hub
Maxxis Ardents: fr/2.4exo, rr/2.25
Thomson X4 70mm zero rise stem
Thomson Elite seatpost
Easton Monkeylite xc lo-rise carbon bar 27 inches
Specialized Henge Expert Saddle, ti rails
Odi Rogue lock-ons
Avid Elixirs R 185/160
Sram 991? chain
XT cranks
XT med. cage derailleur
Shimano 12-36t cassette
Niner 32t front chain ring
XT rear shifter
BBG bash
N-gear Jumpstop
Cane Creek Headset / inset top, external lower

27 lbs. 13 ounces

Here's my review after my first ride today:

Just got back from ATT and I'm really, really, happy with the bike.

First of all, I expected the front end to wander on steep climbs, but it stuck, no wandering. This has a lot to do with the steep seat tube. It felt very efficient without any discernable bottom bracket flex. I expected this because the tubes Kona uses are fatter than my old Niner MCR 9. This frame weighs 5.75lbs. where the Niner 853 steel frame weighed 4.5lbs. and doesn't have sliding dropouts. For my weight, about 200lbs., the MCR 9 was nooodly, but comfortable. I felt it absorbed a lot of my pedaling power and the head tube was extremely flexy. The Honzo is a stout frame, and I don't think you can achieve that without it weighing more. I don't notice the weight, but I do notice the power transfer and SOLID feel of the frame. Also, I expected to dab the more technical sections because I'm not tuned to this bike yet, but I cleaned them all.

After reaching the top we lowered our seats and headed back. The words that comes to mind descending on this bike are INSANELY FAWKING AWESOME. Because of the short chain stays, the bike corners like a roller coaster doing a 180. The Honzo's geometry positions you over the rear tire and the pivot point of the bike in the turns. I'm not much of a downhiller, but I was flying and not worrying about any ruts or rocks because the fork and frame just swallowed them up, very confidence inspiring. The chain stays also make coming off jumps more intuitive. With Niner's geometry I always felt like I was waiting for the rear tire when popping off curbs and jumps, but the Kona feels right on.

This is the best bike I have ever owned, period. If you're worried about frame weight, you could save about 1/4-1/2 lb. going with a Canfield Nimble 9. The geometries with 120mm forks are almost identical, but the Nimble 9 has a slacker seat tube, which may affect climbing, and it does not accommodate a tapered fork, two things I really love about the Honzo.

PS - check out this video of the Honzo in action: House of the Big Wheel Part 1: Honzo and Satori on Vimeo

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#913 ·
And figure I'd update on my clipless experience.

Flats and I haven't been really getting along this season, and it's all I've ever ridden on since high school. Started out on DMR Vaults this year and too small of a size Shimano AM41, switched back to my old Point One Podiums, and not to mention tried various footwear as well (5.10 Freerider/LVXi, Teva Link and Pinner) and back to a bigger size of Shimano AM41 for a day. Still wasn't happy with the fit I was used to with Van Authentics and was always put off by going clipless, more so afraid of eating it and falling. I went as far as having ordered a set of Shimano AM45 SPD shoes and Shimano XT 785 Trail SPD pedals from Jenson only to return them a few weeks ago.

But fast forward to Saturday night when I finally manned up and ordered the same pedals again from backcountry get rid of a gift certificate I had and after days of searching proper footwear and not really being thrilled with the fit of my previous Shimano AM41, I didn't even bother getting them again is SPD flavor AM45, although hard to argue with their price of $75 from Jenson. Not knowing I would be going clipless for the long haul, ended up ordering a pair of Giro Carbide from Blueskycycling.com for $60. Reviews were good, but the price was even better, 40% off retail, figured I would be taking the smallest hit if I'm going back to flats.

I planned on riding around the neighborhood on Saturday to get comfortable but things have gotten busy and I was installing the pedals at 10 pm. Good for me, no one to see me eat **** when I fall over on the grass. Installed some Shimano SH-56 Multi-release cleats, adjusted the tension and proceeded to get on my bike. In the garage. Right leg clipped in after 5 minutes of trying to figure out the right movement, the left leg not so much. Headed back inside, read the Shimano tech doc again, read a couple threads and proceeded to try again. This time it was less of a fight but no where near comfortable still. Took a quick ride up and down my driveway to get a feel for them, easily popped a wheelie with no effort now, and put the bike away.

I figured if I was going to commit to clipless, might as well throw myself in the deep water right away. On Sunday proceeded to the trailhead for the weekly 5 hour ride without more practice. Not too mention dealing with my brother's remarks about going clipless and asking if I ordered a full bib as well. Practiced clipping in the parking lot for a few minutes and proceeded to ride.

And what I've soon realized with the first choppy decent and flowy singletrack is that I've been kinda missing out all these years by riding with flats. Being connected to the bike is an understatement for sure. While you have to be more cautious of knowing when to unclip, it's just the same trying to think where your shoe is on flats for best placement and being able to put the power down.

The difference in soles is quite astonishing as well. While not WC XC carbon fiber stiff, the Giro sole is a couple leagues above any flat pedal shoe I've tried on this year. When before I used to come back fatigued in my feet and soles, my feet still had a few more miles in them to give but was completely drained everywhere else.

Which leads me to their awesome fit, it was the first and only true XC-styled SPD shoe I've tried ever and stoked on the fit on the first try. Definitely lot less toe box wiggle room than the Shimano AM41 but still very form fitting with zero pressure points, no extra insoles needed, just a thicker ankle cut sock as I'm used to riding with super low cut no shoe socks, the tongue being new and quite stiff was kinda digging into my bare skin. With the higher socks, it was all good, and at the end of the ride, it has gotten a lot more softer as well.

So did I fall on my first day on the actual trail? I did fall over 2 separate times but that was when I was completely stationary waiting for my brother to put his camera gear away and I was playing around trying to clip in and out. It was the matter of wrong foot positioning or crank rotation placement, lost my balance and fell over the side. No harm done. Luckily I unclipped when I needed to on the trail for narrow trees, abrupt stops, etc. And only really ate it once when hitting sand and washing out the front end, but I've done so many times on flats before, so can't really fault the SPD pedals.

CN: Bought some SPD pedals and XC shoes. Completely stoked!!! Selling my flats and shoes and never looking back!


 
#914 ·
I enjoyed reading about your experience with clipless. It only gets better and more intuitive. I recommend using the SH51 cleat for going over bumpy/rocky/rooty trails at speed because they ONLY release when you turn your heel, so no unexpected ejections. It does allow you to cheat by floating over stuff that your rear wheel would usually have to hit harder to maintain pedal contact. Stick with it, it's great being able to run both.

Another benefit is no more pedal bite scars. Your shins don't lie.:D

CN: Bought some SPD pedals and XC shoes. Completely stoked!!! Selling my flats and shoes and never looking back!


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#919 ·
Here she is in her glory!
Bicycle tire Bicycle frame Tire Bicycle wheel Wheel

Bicycle tire Tire Bicycle wheel Bicycle frame Wheel


Bought the frame and fork used from a member here. Powdercoated black.

Just over 27 pounds as built.

Frame-Medium Honzo
Fork-Marz 44 Micro Ti 29 140mm
Wheels- Nancy Wide carbon rims, 240 rear hub, Pro II front hub
Tires- Ardent 2.4 f, Rampage 2.35r
Brakes-Elixir CR 180f, 160r
Shifter XX
Derailleur X0
Cassette XX 11-32
Crank M970 XTR 32t ring
Pedals, old Time Atac Absalon
Chain keeper, Paul (ran the clamp upside down, Only way to fit it in the frame)
Stem, 70mm Thomson X4
Handlebar, Ritchey Pro 720, -5mm drop.
Seatpost, parts bin Sette 400mm
Saddle, old flite Ti
Bottle cage, king steel

So far, this bike shreds DHs! I love it. I originally had it set up SS for the first ride, but it was too much of a pig. This bike definitely needs gears to fly on the descents. Also, geo feels dialed with a 140mm fork.

This thing couldnt be any more different than my 18.5 pound titanium race bike... Im afraid to switch back to it!

Soon to be upgrades:
KS LEV dropper post(on the way)
Race face Atlas 785mm flat bars (never thought I would think 720s were too narrow)
X9 shifter(xx is borrowed from my race bike)
1070 12-36(cuz the bike is a pig to climb on)
Fresh Ardent up front
180mm rotor out back

Later,
Sheepo
 
#926 ·
Need more time on them, but here are my initial impressions.
-Huge knobs
-Only a tad slower than 2.4 Ardents and I'm not even sure if they are but those knobs leave that impression on me.
-Haven't washed or drifted on them yet like I do when I'm pushing 2.4 Ardents.
-I have a 2.4 Ardent in the rear and on two occasions I felt the rear drift, but the Minion railed. Usually I'd experience a two wheel drift.
-It's about the same size as an Ardent, but should stretch to be 2mm wider according to this thread: http://forums.mtbr.com/29er-components/minion-dhfs-29-x-2-5-a-852284.html

I'll post my final impressions in about a week, but so far I'm liking them.
 
#929 ·
Anyone else got a problem aligning the rear disc brake callipers on the Honzo? Been at it for half an hour, just can't get them right. The front ones were aligned correctly from the first try. The rear one always rubs on one particular place, as if the wheel/rotor aren't perfectly straight.
 
#930 · (Edited)
Finally, she is finished!

Took me a while...(edit: added better pictures)
It's amazing how different this bike is to the 2005 Trek 6500 I just sold, so playful! I already had to jump off twice when trying to do wheelies while I couldn't even lift the front wheel of my old Trek.

  • XL Frame
  • Rockshox Revelation 140mm (Anyone know what the LS, COMP, +, - dial does?? Can't find a manual anywhere)
  • Chromag Fubar OSX, Renthal Kevlar grips
  • Thomson Elite X4 Stem 50mm, Hope spacers and Head Doctor
  • Thomson Elite stem, Fizik Gobi saddle and Hope seatpost clamp
  • XX1 crank w/ 32t Wolftooth spiderless ring
  • DMR Vault pedals
  • Surly 18t rear cog + Surly spacer kit (their manual is awesome for getting the perfect chainline, just measure the chainline and look up the number and order of spacers in their chart)
  • DT Swiss 240s hubs
  • ZTR Flox EX rims
  • Shimano Zee brakes, Icetec rotor 180/203
  • MK King 2.2 rear, 2.4 front

I still have to buy a shock pomp, as you can (barely) see it already almost bottomed out. (Edit: taken care of).
The rear disc is still rubbing the brake pads, I'm fairly certain the rotor is not entirely straight, I can see it wobble a bit at the same moment I hear the rub when I spin it. Not sure what I'm going to do about it, it's very minor.
Edit: meanwhile I also corrected my chain tension, stretched a bit after my first few rides.

Bicycle tire Bicycle frame Bicycle wheel Tire Bicycle wheel rim
Bicycle tire Tire Bicycle frame Wheel Bicycle wheel
 

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#931 · (Edited)
OK so I (finally) pulled the spacer while servicing my dual air Rev to go to 140mm travel. I have to say at first I did not like it much - the steering seemed to wander a bit while climbing - and I had seriously numb fingers after only 25 minutes or so.

...long story short I realized I had some fit issues and swapped the 60mm stem for 50mm and made some cockpit adjustments - a couple rides later and WOW! feels perfect! Brought me back just enough to take weight off the bars, handles like a beast when pointing downhill and I've really adjusted my body position on climbs so don't notice any ill effects on climbing with the longer travel. No numbness whatsoever...

I did notice more rear tire rub on the chainstays - mainly when ripping and carving downhill - but I have the 142 dropouts and maxle on order so that should take care of that...

Anyone on the fence about going to 140 should really give it a go - I was reluctant due to the potential geo effects on climbing but it really feels like the bike comes alive a bit more at 140mm. Here is a shot from this morning's ride in PHX - 92degrees at 6am! Happy Fourth everyone....
 

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