The bike
Given that I will be spending many hours on the bike, it was important for me to have something comfortable and of course reliable. Finding something to my taste and exact specification in a shop was simply not possible, so the bike project started with a bare frame….
The Kona Titanium Rove is not cheap but is a well built and reasonably light frame from the USA. The frame is actually made by Lynskey. Having ridden a Merlin XLM for the last 15 years, I really appreciate the benefits of titanium.
After the frame came the wheels. I went for a SON Dynamo hub on the front and a DT Swiss on the rear, both with 32 spokes. The rims are the new SL25 from Placenti and are laced with Sapim CX Ray spokes. I had the wheels built by Just Riding Along Cycles in the UK. Jon builds the most awesome wheels and I have no doubt that these will be up to the job. In my opinion hand built wheels like these just cannot be beaten for strength or durability.
The remaining components were picked on the basis of their practical merits, durability and weight. Worthwhile mentioning is:
* Microshift SL-10 Thumbshifters – These are super light, unbreakable and work perfectly with Shimano 10 speed. I am using a 9 speed mech however, as the 10 speed mechs have a different cable pull ratio.
* Avid Mechanical Brakes – I think discs are the way forward, but hydraulics out in the middle of nowhere is not ideal. The BB7 brakes are in this regard perfect.
* Bolt Replacement – All steel bolts have been replaced with titanium for weight saving and the T30 chainring bolts replaced with 5mm allen key versions to save carrying an extra Torx tool.
The full specification of the bike is below:
| What | Type | Weight |
| Frame | Kona Rove Ti | 1789 |
| Fork | Kona Steel Project 2 | 1013 |
| Headset Fork Part | The Plug | 18 |
| Headset | Sealed Cane Creek | 82 |
| Headset Top Cap | The Plug | 84 |
| Bottom Bracket | XTR | 94 |
| Chainset | XTR | 728 |
| Cassette | XT 11-32 | 292 |
| Shifter L | Suntour Thumbshifter | 65 |
| Shifter R | Microshift 10 s Thumbshifter | 58 |
| Chain | KMC | 262 |
| Rear Mech | XT | 232 |
| Front Mech | XTR | 130 |
| Front Wheel | SON Dynamo / Pacenti | 1104 |
| Rear Wheel | DT Swiss / Pacenti | 904 |
| Front Skewer | USE Spin Stix | 34 |
| Rear Skewer | Bolt through skewer | 26 |
| Tyre Front | Schwalbe Marathon Extreme | 600 |
| Tyre Rear | Schwalbe Almotion | 706 |
| Front Tube | Schwalbe | 150 |
| Rear Tube | Schwalbe | 178 |
| Rim Tape | Included in wheel | 0 |
| Disc Front | Avid HS1 | 100 |
| Disc Rear | Avid HS1 | 98 |
| Rotor Bolts | Titanium Rotor Bolts F + R | 16 |
| Seatpost | Ritchey Carbon | 180 |
| Seatpost Collar | Rack Mount collar | 38 |
| Saddle | Specialized | 242 |
| Bars | Ritchey aluminium | 168 |
| Bar Grips | Ergonomic Grips | 148 |
| Bar Ends | Short Bar Ends | 108 |
| Stem | Ritchey WCS 110mm | 106 |
| Brake Front | Avid | 206 |
| Brake Rear | Avid | 206 |
| Brake Lever Front | Avid | 92 |
| Brake Lever Rear | Avid | 92 |
| Brake Hardwear | Included in above | 0 |
| Pedals | Shimano M970 | 332 |
| Shift Cable Rear | Cable | 50 |
| Shift Cable Front | Cable | 50 |
| Brake Cable Rear | Shimano | 100 |
| Brake Cable Front | Shimano | 60 |
| Cage 1 | Pet Bottle 1.5l | 122 |
| Cage 2 | King | 36 |
| Cage Bolts | Included in above | 0 |
| Headset Spacers | 0 | |
| Front Rack | Tubus Nova | 490 |
| Rear Rack | TUBUS Gepäckträger AIRY 26″ – 28″ titan | 350 |
| Front Mudguards | Standard cut down | 48 |
| Rear Mudguards | Standard | 120 |
| Ortlieb Handlebar Mount | Ortlieb Click Fix Mount | 124 |
| Front Light | B&M IQ Cyo T Senso Plus | 100 |
| 12331 |
0 Comments