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Pharrel Williams owns Brooklyn Machine Works?

-dustin

boring
Jun 10, 2002
7,155
1
austin
i like Pharrell's music. he's a rather good producer, in my opinion. "Neptune Present...The Clones" is one of my more listened to albums of late.
 

dG video

I blew a mod to get this title
Feb 25, 2004
2,133
0
vermont
Well at least its not the diplomats pro-rollerblade team...
Hahaha,

I can just see it now Adam, a report on pinkbike from 2007 interbike.

"Brookly Machine Works completely re-designs their whole line! Featuring:

The Jim Jones BMX
Jr. Writer 24" hardtail
Juelz 8" Dh Bike
Bezel's 4x
 

no skid marks

Monkey
Jan 15, 2006
2,511
29
ACT Australia
The guy rides and skates and is apparently not bad at either,I don't think he's pushing gang style mentality. Won't stop me from riding one of the best bikes out there.
You could pick any bike company especially the big ones and find much more skelitons in their closets.
 

ianjenn

Turbo Monkey
Sep 12, 2006
2,998
702
SLO
If he plays music cool. If he promotes bad behavior not cool! If he rides, skates, likes the bikes cool. If he dumps a few million into the industry? Go right the hell ahead!
:lighten:
 

dexter

Turbo Monkey
Sep 23, 2001
3,053
99
Boise, Idaho
he is a SICK producer and has dope beats. also one of the most stylish guys in the rap game. hopefully he brings some sick artwork to the brooklyn bikes
 

jonKranked

Detective Dookie
Nov 10, 2005
85,573
24,193
media blackout
The guy rides and skates and is apparently not bad at either,I don't think he's pushing gang style mentality. Won't stop me from riding one of the best bikes out there.
You could pick any bike company especially the big ones and find much more skelitons in their closets.
http://www.ridemonkey.com/forums/showthread.php?t=166645

Chris, their head designer and frame builder is no longer there. So if you want one of the good Brooklyns, keep yer eyes on the classifieds - that's the only place you'll be able to find them anymore. The quality is going to go down. I hate to say it, but its true. I love BMW and chris is a great guy, but he was the lifeblood of that company.


And from the plattekill parking lot rumor mill, I've heard that Pharell IS now the primary shareholder.
 

DHS

Friendly Neighborhood Pool Boy
Apr 23, 2002
5,094
0
Sand, CA
Pfftt Joe makes the frames and always has I thought,so they'll be exactly the same quality no matter what genius designed them.
no... Chris made the dh bikes, park bike, and FQ, and the other squishy bikes

Joe made the cruiser, track bike, and some others

and at the moment, kinesis makes the park and the racelink frames
 

no skid marks

Monkey
Jan 15, 2006
2,511
29
ACT Australia
Not sure of the Racelink but I know the Parks are made in America,is Kinesis in America? I thought they were in Taiwan. I'm sure Joe will make sure the standerd is kept high no matter who's making them.
 

Stoked

Turbo Monkey
Nov 28, 2004
1,809
1
LI, NY
Not sure of the Racelink but I know the Parks are made in America,is Kinesis in America? I thought they were in Taiwan. I'm sure Joe will make sure the standerd is kept high no matter who's making them.
the parks were made at 16 powers but now they are produced over seas
 

Bobodaclown

Monkey
Apr 16, 2005
270
0
London, England
Not sure of the Racelink but I know the Parks are made in America,is Kinesis in America? I thought they were in Taiwan. I'm sure Joe will make sure the standerd is kept high no matter who's making them.

Kinesis have a production facility in Portland USA that produces product for some US based companies high end lines it has the capability to produce 20k frames a year. Their main production facility is based in Taiwan can produces upwards of 120k frames a year and they have another much smaller production facility in China produces 1300 frames plus a year. Both China and Taiwan produces a lot of forks each year for a stack of brands.

The build quality from the facility in Taiwan is amongst the best out there - my new CX frame turned up and the build quality is amazing for the price and compares to anything out there.

Back to the point BMW will always make cool stuff. And I am sure that Joe will keep the quality high they have a good rep and they will want to keep that for the future of the company. I am sure they will come out with some sic paint jobs blingbling ;)
 

manimal

Ociffer Tackleberry
Feb 27, 2002
7,212
17
Blindly running into cactus
according to a monkey that doesn't post much anymore but who's family has a good part of the shares in BMW; pharrell IS the new owner. BMW was about to shut down but he bought it. the only changes in the works from what i've heard is that the hoodies will be designed by pharrell and sell for about $120.
 

Shortbus

Turbo Monkey
Feb 27, 2002
1,013
6
Stuck in the 80s
This makes me think on whether RLs will now be cheaper because of this? I mean honestly it's not subtle justifying the price of a brooklyn, but having it handmade in brooklyn (ahem by doc) was about 80% of the justification IMHO.
 

CKxx

Monkey
Apr 10, 2006
669
0
damn do these rappers own everything now? this is a sad day. one bike i will never own now. just because i wont suport the hip **** hop gangs
Apparently you aren't familiar with the man. He by no means promotes the "thug lyfe, yo." He is a talented producer. And this is comming from a non-rap fan.
 

coma13

Turbo Monkey
Feb 14, 2006
1,082
0
damn do these rappers own everything now? this is a sad day. one bike i will never own now. just because i wont suport the hip **** hop gangs
this is one of the most ignorant things i've ever seen posted on this board... :banghead:
 

nervous_john

Chimp
May 31, 2004
25
0
I have to admit I'm a bit befuddled by the direction of this thread. I'll tell you what, lets play a game. It's called hypothetical scenarios.

Scenario A- Enzo Ferarri has sold all his shares in Ferarri to Rod Stewart. Since all design, manufacturing, and creative direction was orchestrated by Enzo and he is no longer affiliated with the company the lovely Ibiza who is was previously head of Business interest will be assuming his responsibilities. Since Rod Stewart is the majority shareholder he will be essentially making all executive decisions. It's all cool though- I'm sure nothing will change. Quality will remain high and the products exceptional. Having Rod pump music bucks in the company is only going to be good for everyone and the industry. I have full faith that Ferarri will continue to be a powerhouse of automotive engineering and design and not be driven into oblivion by two folks who have never designed or manufactured an automobile or have any love for that which they are producing. In fact here's my down payment now...

Scenario B- Nervous_john (me) has now bought out all shares of Pharrell Williams limited. I am the majority share holder and will now be writing and performing my own songs under the previous name. I can't write music and sure as hell can't sing but why should that matter? Everything is going to be totally cool. champagne will flow, it will be all Benjamins and bentleys biatch. Who wants an album?

Hmm.. I don't know about you guys but neither of these scenarios sound very good. Brooklyn Machine Works loses the main input into their creative direction, manufacturing, design, and I would venture to say customer relations and the prevalent attitude is "everything is alright no matter who is making the bikes". Does this sound a bit crazy to anyone else or am I the only one? Joe and Pharrell maybe the two most amazing, brilliant, and creative folks on earth- I wouldn't know. Why? Because I have never seen either of them at the mountain, never ridden a bike either has designed, manufactured or assembled, or had a conversation- biking related or otherwise with either one of them. In addition- and this might be a low blow- I won't have a chance seeing as how in the last several months Brooklyn Machine Works at 16 Powers street has yet to answer the phone or return a phone call. Forgive my lack of faith but any money I would have spent on another Brooklyn product will have to be funneled elsewhere. I don't do business with plumbers that have never snaked a drain, electricians that went to beauty school, or buy meat from a vegetarian butcher. A 3700 usd bike frame has a lot to do with knowing who- not where- made it, the care that went into it, and the service I recieve if I have a question or problem. That, plus the performance and unique character of the racelink, is what the extra cash over a Giant Glory goes for. Do as you wish with your hard earned money but please don't patronize and insult those who purchased a product from a company they cared about by posting the "whatever. You guys are whiners. Everything is going to be exactly the same" crap. I'm pretty sure if Iron Horse severed affiliation with Dave Weagle most of the riders on here would burn the IH headquarters to the ground not post about how we're all going to hold hands and everything will be great. As Kanter said and I've stated before- get the real scoop and call them. The ringing at the other end of the phone will answer any questions you may currently have.
 

no skid marks

Monkey
Jan 15, 2006
2,511
29
ACT Australia
I spoke with them a week ago.
Park frames are made in the USA.
The designs of the frames are already in place,wait and see what comes next,why slander a company just to hear your own voice. Who knows whats in store, might be a lot of cool T-shirts only,but who knows. I'd sure as hell still by a Brooklyn and am waiting for a new frame I know they're working on.
 

Sandwich

Pig my fish!
Staff member
May 23, 2002
21,032
5,922
borcester rhymes
yeah it makes me sad...but my racelink was one of the handwelded ones... (<50) and that's one of the reasons I bought it. As long as they support my frame, I'll continue to ride it. I'm gonna stock up on bearings n ****...

I just hope they don't go walmart.
 

jonKranked

Detective Dookie
Nov 10, 2005
85,573
24,193
media blackout
Well then it must be true:huh:

for those of you with any sense, that was a subtle hint that the information came from the horses mouth.

nervous_john: thanks for stating blatently what some of us have been trying to subtly hint at. yes joe may be a good engineer, but Chris basically was BMW (well at least the bike division - Brooklyn Machine Works is actually a massive machining warehouse with tons of customers in many other industries). I am not a BMW owner, I wish I was. I have hung out with Chris many a times at Plattekill. He builds bikes because he loves to ride and wants to make the best bikes possible. He's not in it for the money in any way shape or form. He also offers the hands down, undisputed BEST customer support for his frames period. A friend of mine needed a linkage bolt for his racelink one weekend at Plattekill. Chris happened to be there, so my buddy asked if he had the bolt. A minute or 2 later Chris pops out of his van with it, "here ya go." Bam. on the spot. no charge. It is reasons like this that BMW owners are such a tight knit group, and very loyal to Chris - because he is loyal to them. They share the same passion. Like I said, Chris was the lifeblood of BMW. Now that he's gone, so is the passion. Those who truly loved BMW for the service and personal touch that Chris added are going to remain loyal to Chris, not BMW.
 

jonKranked

Detective Dookie
Nov 10, 2005
85,573
24,193
media blackout
I spoke with them a week ago.
Park frames are made in the USA.
The designs of the frames are already in place,wait and see what comes next,why slander a company just to hear your own voice. Who knows whats in store, might be a lot of cool T-shirts only,but who knows. I'd sure as hell still by a Brooklyn and am waiting for a new frame I know they're working on.
Actually, Doc was working on that frame. Now that he's gone, its not going to be a new Brooklyn frame.
 

no skid marks

Monkey
Jan 15, 2006
2,511
29
ACT Australia
I love my Racelink because I think it's one of the best designed bikes ever. It's nice to know Doc made it but that's just a bonus,I'd be buying a Racelink again if I didn't have one tomorrow. Doc may have been the lifebllod but I'm guessing in his years with Joe he's left his lagacy behind. What bike do you ride? do you know the owner,welder,designer,investors of that company?
 

CBJ

year old fart
Mar 19, 2002
12,863
4,163
Copenhagen, Denmark
Just like Enzo passed away other people took over. I don't see why BMW ownership couldn't keep the spirit of the company and build new bikes by hiring new people to design them. Hell maybe even better bikes and more products to choose from like for example a dedicated freeride rig. Just because you run a business and want to make money doesn't exclude you do a great job.

I don't know much about the people behind the company so the above is just a my general point of view on business.
 

jonKranked

Detective Dookie
Nov 10, 2005
85,573
24,193
media blackout
I love my Racelink because I think it's one of the best designed bikes ever. It's nice to know Doc made it but that's just a bonus,I'd be buying a Racelink again if I didn't have one tomorrow. Doc may have been the lifebllod but I'm guessing in his years with Joe he's left his lagacy behind. What bike do you ride? do you know the owner,welder,designer,investors of that company?

Actually, yes I do know who welded my frame, who designed it, who owns the company. I was actually there when they painted it. They're all my friends. Its the Draco Industries Vigilante (still technically in prototype stages). Here it is:

http://derpbrap.com/bike/DSC00201.JPG