In an effort to keep things weird and one’derful, we tracked down the deets on the latest release of the Kona Unit from Kona! I’m a huge sucker for metal singlespeed mountain bikes and the new Kona Unit is a real ‘looker’!
The ’23 Unit comes in a Gloss Metallic Grey w/ Chocolate & Tan Decals. I’ve got a cordoba Brooks saddle that would look (and feel) at home on the new colorway. I keep on hearing the voice of Ricardo Montalban talking to me about the ‘rich corinthian decals’ when I look at this bike. Feel free to read the rest of this in the voice of Señior Montalban.
There are a lot of ways to tension your chain on a singlespeed. Kona handles that task with sliding dropouts. They even have a port on the seat tube to run a dropper. The Unit is festooned with just about every bikepacking braze-on that you can imagine. Kona counts the Unit as one of their bikepacking models, but around the great lakes, we’d just call this a kick-ass mountain bike.
With a price tag of $1,399 for the complete bike and $699 for the frame and fork, this is a mountain bike for the masses! Check out the full bike specs
SPECIFICATIONS
| FRAME MATERIAL | Reynolds 520 Butted Cromoly |
| SIZES | S, M, L, XL |
| REAR SHOCK | n/a |
| FORK | Kona Plus Fork 110mm spacing |
| CRANKARMS | FSA Comet Modular |
| CHAINRINGS | 32t |
| B/B | FSA MegaExo 73mm |
| PEDALS | Kona JS2 |
| CHAIN | KMC Z1 Narrow |
| CASSETTE | KT 18t |
| CHAINGUIDE | n/a |
| F/D | n/a |
| R/D | n/a |
| SHIFTERS | n/a |
| BRAKE CALIPERS | Alhonga HT472 Hydraulic |
| FRONT BRAKE ROTOR | Alhonga 180mm |
| REAR BRAKE ROTOR | Alhonga 160mm |
| BRAKE LEVERS | Alhonga HT472 Hydraulic |
| HEADSET | TH ZST No.10 |
| HANDLEBAR | Kona XC/BC Riser |
| STEM | Kona XC |
| SEATPOST | Kona Thumb w/Offset 31.6mm |
| SEAT CLAMP | Kona Clamp |
| GRIPS | Kona Key Grip |
| SADDLE | WTB Volt |
| FRONT HUB | Formula 110x15mm |
| REAR HUB | Formula 148x12mm |
| SPOKES | Stainless Black 14g |
| RIMS | WTB ST i30 TCS 2.0 |
| FRONT TIRE | Maxxis Rekon TR 29×2.6″ or WTB Ranger TCS 29×2.6″ |
| REAR TIRE | Maxxis Rekon TR 29×2.6″ or WTB Ranger TCS 29×2.6″ |
| PAINT COLOR | Gloss Metallic Grey w/ Chocolate & Tan Decals |
I’m ok with 2.6″ or 2.8″ plus tires for everything that I’d ride. I’ve been running some really aggressive 2.6″ Bontrager tires on my singlespeed mountain bike over the last few months and really like that ‘slim-plus’ setup. The Unit has the ability to convert to gears if you want that capability. But if you really have zero interest in riding a singlespeed, the Kona UnitX might be your huckleberry.
The UnitX comes in Matte Bloodstone w/ Charcoal & Nimbus Decals. (that’s right, they said Nimbus) It comes with a Shimano Deore 12-speed transmission and it’s a mere $1,599 for the complete bike. I’d send my kid to summer camp with one of these bad boys any day of the week!
For more information visit – konaworld.com
