Thoughts and experiences of the Kona Dew Plus?
 

Eyeballin' this puppy.

http://www.konaworld.com/09/09_dewplus_en.cfm

None with the Dew Plus, but I just got a 2010 Dr Dew a bit over a week ago and I love it!

I have an '05 Dew Deluxe(they didn't have the Plus back then) which is pretty much the same bike. It's a sweet ride.

Quick, comfortable, pretty light. Makes short work of 10 to 20 miles riding, don't even feel it afterward, all in all an excellent buy. And yes, please don't listen to those that say that MX4's don't stop well; they work fine, more than adequate in my experience. You wont launch yourself OTB with one finger squeeze like a hydro brake can, but you can still do that with two fingers, seriously.

If you want a quick commute bike that can haul ass almost as fast as a roadie, while being much more comfortable, go for it. Also, the parts are quite good, not top of the line, but pretty good. This is a city almost-race bike :D

Could have had a Dew Plus but my local REI did not carry it when I was asking for it due to distributor/dealer restrictions that applied in their case. For 2010, REI dropped the Kona line completely since I don't see it in their website bike listings.

It looks like a really nice bike!

As an aside, it's nice to see you slummin, down here, Siu......

I come on here daily, Wanderer!! Silly you...

Hey thanks everyone for the replies! My next question is for those of you who chose Kona, why did you over any other brands? I'm a Kona girl but I see so many here like the Trek FX.

I come on here daily, Wanderer!! Silly you...

Hey thanks everyone for the replies! My next question is for those of you who chose Kona, why did you over any other brands? I'm a Kona girl but I see so many here like the Trek FX.

Feature set, fit, value, and general approval of how Kona has real variety in their bike lines. They have a good number of bikes (like my Dr. Dew, and the Dr. Fine I wish I could've gotten) that are a little unusual but are clearly designed for specific niches.

I got my '06 Kona Smoke (only bike I own) because the LBS gave me 30% off. I'm not too thrilled with the gearing, but otherwise, the thing is bombproof.

Price/quality ratio. Kona is a quality brand, and at a discount rate it was much more affordable then anything else with the same or equivalent parts. Also it has a good rigid cromoly fork that is a must for me on any bike thats going to be ridden on tarmac. Attachment points for rear and front racks, fenders, good disc brakes. All around, when building a bike I think they got it right; for a budget price you can't have everything top notch, but they choose most imortant parts of higher quality and it shows. Frame, fork, RD, disc brakes. Simplicity of mechanical discs make it even better for touring; I dont want hydro's on a bike thats going to see some real mileage, most of it far away from any LBS, so reliability is paramount.

Ofc there were prettier bikes to look at, lighter bikes, bikes with front suspension. But I do not want any of these features, because having a suspension means one more thing to break down on the open road, and, to be frank, most of those cheap suspension forks are actually far worse then a good cromoly fork as far as riding is concerned. Bling factor in design also comes with a price, and that price is expressed in weird frame shapes that do not lend themselves well to loaded touring - no rack attachment points, no fender attachment points, etc. Lighter frames are on the other hand more fragile, and since I'm not lookin to win world lightest bike competition, a few pounds more or less means nothing to me, but it does mean a lot for durability and strenght of the frame.

There are other reasons why I choose Kona, but these are the main ones. I always look at the intended use of the bike, determine what features are important to me in a bike, and then choose accordingly to that criteria. This bike fullfills exactly that what I was looking for.
And yes, it is fast, alsmost as fast as a road bike, only much more comfortable, fit is excellent.

Honestly,I bought my Dew Deluxe out of bike lust;saw it in the shop and had to have it. I was just starting to ride again and didn't know crap about bikes,but lucked out and picked a good one. Having said that,if I could do over I prolly would've tried to find a Dr Dew to get the nicer bits,but I'm not sorry I got the Deluxe. For me,the disc brakes and wider tire clearance would get me to pick a Dew over an FX.

I have a 2009 Dew Plus and I love it.

My GF had a Trex Fx picked out a few weeks before a big LBS sale.
We went and tried it out but the frame size was just a little off. I also rode the Specialized Sirrus which was nice.
We went to another LBS to try out the Cannondale Quick.

The Kona was right by the door and it caught her eye. I rode the Cannondale and then asked about the Kona and gave it a spin......rode the Cannondale again.....rode the Kona again.....rode the Kona again......went home with the Kona.

It just felt the best out of all the bikes I rode. No regrets.

Sorry I can't compare all the components and what not between all the bikes. No expert here at all.

For me...it just felt the best.

I have an 06 Dew Deluxe... (real bikes are blue). Test rode Treks, Cannondale, and as I recall a Giant something or other. I essentially chose the shop based on my experiences and ended up at a Kona/Jamis dealer. (Best rapport with the owner, and friendliest shop dog!) I opted for the Kona Dew Deluxe (equivalent to the current Dew Plus) over the Jamis Coda... just felt better.

Only changes from stock are personal preferences... Brooks B-17 saddle, clipless/platform pedals (Shimano M-324), and several iterations of handlebars, settling on Velo Orange Milan bars.

Lots of great bikes out there... the Kona Dews are certainly something to be considered. Besides, everyone else has a Trek!

Pete

Not everyone! :D

A lot of good input here, and I do appreciate it. I'm going to have to check to see if they can still get an 09 in my size. Thanks everyone!

I think they're great bikes, though I don't have one. If the LBS had the right model in my size, and in a color I liked, I might have bought one last year. The Dew line seems great.

I eventually got a Felt X City, which I simply love. I also have a Trek 7.3 FX, and it is a great bike.

So I guess my point is that you should buy the one you like best. I don't really think either is better than the other. They're just different.

but Sirrusly, around here I see nothing but Treks..NTTAWWT...

You just gotta look harder --------------------- no Treks in my stable.