# Picked up Kona Paddy Wagon last night



## blakcloud (Apr 13, 2006)

Decided I needed a back up bike for my Cannondale Badboy Single Speed so I went out and bought a Kona Paddy Wagon. The idea was to try and get back into a more road bike feel rather than the upright flatbar of the Badboy. 

Last night I picked it up and it was 37 degrees F (or 3 degrees Celsius for us Canadians) and it was pouring rain. It took me an hour to ride home and it was miserable even with the new bike. 

My first impressions of the bike are not that favorable. I think the bike is heavy, but I also know that for $700 you aren't going to get the lightest bike. The hoods on the brakes and seat are uncomfortable and there is wheel overlap with my toe clips. I guess I have buyers regret and I should have spent more time test riding the bike etc. instead of the fifteen minutes that I did. I just assumed I would grow to like it and this still may happen. 

So I will try it for a while and see what happens. As I said it is my back up bike. My options are to upgrade the bike to make it lighter, maybe something like ENO cranks or just to save my money and buy the bike I want (which right now is a Soma Delancey). Here are some photos. The first is our first snow/ice storm of the year, which means no riding the Kona today. The second is obviously the 2008 Kona. I do like the colour this year.


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## RetroS (Jan 16, 2007)

Congrats on the new bike. May be to early to tell as your fit doesn't sound dialed in. I rode one last year and like it. Its also fairly versatile as you can run fenders and 28's I believe.


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## RoyIII (Feb 24, 2007)

Nice bike. I almost bought one of last years, but decided to build up an old frame. I bet you can get it tuned in properly.


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## kellyjk (May 25, 2006)

I bought a paddy wagon in May as my comuter. I love the high bb and all the bits and pieces. I will put zero dollars in it as far as up grade. As far as it being heavy ..yeah it might be ..but what is it's purpose? Me I comute and believe that longish chainstays and 28 mm tires will take you farther with less fatigue than a Gucci bag bike.


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## Lifelover (Jul 8, 2004)

blakcloud said:


> ......
> 
> My first impressions of the bike are not that favorable. I think the bike is heavy, but I also know that for $700 you aren't going to get the lightest bike. ......



Every time I get a new bike it feels this way for the first few rides. Keep riding it and you most likely will fall in love.


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## midlife_xs's (Jun 18, 2004)

+1 on Lifelover
A Cannodale Bad Boy is a 26 wheeled bike with longish wheelbase. If it is your primary ride, youll have an adjusting period going to the Paddy Wagon's tighter geometry. Give it some time and you might like its nimbleness in urban setting. Biking in 37 deg temp wont help either, no matter if the bike is 15 lbs.


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## RandB (Mar 12, 2007)

> Biking in 37 deg temp wont help either, no matter if the bike is 15 lbs.


Hey, 37 degrees are the nice days for the next four months up here in the Golden Triangle. Balmy even with good roads. Soon they will use the bicycle lanes to store the snow. And the air is still relatively thin. According to an article on Icebike (http://www.icebike.org/Articles/SlowerWinter.htm) it takes more effort to cycle in cold weather partly because the air gets denser, and partly for various other reasons. Maybe it is to the good as it helps keep us warmer at the slower speeds that we travel on the ice and while plowing through the snow. 

Anyhow Blakcloud, I hope we will see some posts to let us know your impressions of the bike and comparisons of it to the Badboy after the Paddy Wagon has seen some snow and ice.


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## BianchiJoe (Jul 22, 2005)

My Surly has some toe overlap that bothered me for a couple of weeks, but now I can't remember the last time I even thought about it. Give it some miles & time. 

Bikes are like women - it sometimes takes them awhile to train you.


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## blakcloud (Apr 13, 2006)

*Follow up on my Paddy Wagan*

If you read my first posts on the Paddy Wagon you know I wasn't that impressed. My feeling was the bike was probably fine but maybe I wasn't cut out for a road bike after my flatbar. Everyone gave me great advice and comments in this thread. 

I now have had a few more rides on the Kona and I am starting to like it.Now, I find myself choosing the Kona over my other bike to ride to work. I did make some minor modifications. First I changed out the seat post to a Syncros which has zero offset, so I like the cockpit feel better. I replaced the seat with a Sell Italia Flite Titanium that I got off EBAY. The last thing I did was buy a ENO Crank to replace the boat anchor that was on there (FSA Vero with chain guard). I also have a White Industries freewheel which I will install today. The only thing I need now is some decent pedals and I am thinking the MKS quill pedals. I like using toe clips. 

As for the way the bike rides, well it is quite good. I have always been a big fan of steel and this bike is less harsh than my other. It handles well enough, where I feel much more confident taking corners at higher speeds. It certainly is not like a track bike but feels like what it was designed for a middle of the road road bike. I like the volume of the tires especially since it will be a commuter bike. The Tektro brakes work fine and I have no complaints. 

So this bike is keeper. As I said I don't expect much for a bike in this price range but I will use what I learn from this bike to think about my next one. In another thread someone talked about buying themselves a 50th birthday present, which of course is a high end bike and I thought what a great idea this was. So I turn 50 in two years maybe I could buy myself a Waterford single speed with stainless steel lugs and a much more traditional look, ie. no sloping top tube. But in order to do that I would need to know exactly what I wanted and the Kona will help me make that decision. 

The Cannondale has now been relegated to my rain/utility bike. I put on a Brooks B17 saddle, finally got the BOB trailer to work with the ENO hub problem (another thread). Now it is time for fenders, which I asked about in another thread. 

My thanks to everyone who gives advice on this board. It really is a great help.


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## Richard (Feb 17, 2006)

Frame looks remarkably like a Redline 9-2-5. Hmmmmm.......


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## midlife_xs's (Jun 18, 2004)

Bike shop I frequent has a nice selection of single speeds...Bianchi San Jose, Specialized Lancasters, Surlys and Kona Paddy Wagons and more. Yet some employees' personal rides are paddy wagons.


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## FatTireFred (Jan 31, 2005)

Richard said:


> Frame looks remarkably like a Redline 9-2-5. Hmmmmm.......




and I was thinking that the paint looks remarkably like the first Bianchi San Joses. Hmmmmm......


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## FatTireFred (Jan 31, 2005)

midlife_xs's said:


> Bike shop I frequent has a nice selection of single speeds...Bianchi San Jose, Specialized Lancasters, Surlys and Kona Paddy Wagons and more. Yet some employees' personal rides are paddy wagons.




Lancaster? 

I wouldn't put too much into the shop-dudes rides... prob depends a bit on who offers the best EP deal, and what frame can be most easily "flipped" for a profit. lots of shop dudes change rides every year, using EPs and the old buy low-sell high principle


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