Automotive News, Media & Press - American Chopper, American Hotrod make the shops look bad

I've seen every episode of both shows mentioned, and I like both of the shows a lot...interesting mix of drama with some neat insight on how stuff is built.

However, on the flipside, there's not a chance in hell I'd ever give either of those shops a dime now. W T F is going on? Boyd Coddington's shop not only seems to be filled with asshole kids, but they seemed to screw over that sweede intern. Sure, he was green, but thats because he's a fuckin intern! What'd they expect? Dont give him a stick of aluminum and tell him to weld on a frame, and then act all shocked when he fucks up.

American chopper, those guys seem to just put pieces together and are run by the worlds biggest baby. Its not that hard to glue some theme shit to a frame and let the paint guy save the day every time on the project. The paint dude seems to be the one with the most talent!

Its becoming obvious that these two shops were picked NOT for their position in the marketplace, but for their drama filled shops. I know the editors bias the cuts of the show, but if either shop cared much about their rep it seems like they'd can the show or shape up. It makes for good TV, but it certainly doesnt make me want to order from them.

This pointless rant has been brought to you by the letters j m X

I definately agree with you! :judge:

American Chopper is entertaining, at least for a while. I think the anticipation of Dad going nuts and leveling one of the kids keeps people watching.

American Hot Rod on the other hand, you're right, Boyd's shop scares me. 3/4 of his crew seem like rejects and/or mental midgets. It's an obvious attempt to capitalize on American Chopper's fame, but I think they've picked the wrong shop by a mile.

I agree that the shops are full of drama, but both produce some awesome rides. Seeing the aftermath of what Boyd's guys build is a work of art! American Chopper doesn't do alot of custom fabrication, but the bikes still look good. However, if you are looking for a custom bike, that is probably not the best place to go. As for the intern... that kid was lazy! Sure, they weren't very nice to him but he didn't do jack around that shop. He stood there the entire time with this stupid look on his face. Even when they told him to clean the cars he did a shitty job. He didn't want to work... he wanted a free ride into the US. He expected to go into that shop and just start building cars. Well, you have to work your way up! You have to show people that you really want to learn, and he didn't really do that. I don't blame him for leaving, but I don't blame the guys for giving him a hard time either. Besides... they are just tv shows. I am sure they tell them to add in more drama then its really worth. On the other hand, I know how it can get working on cars with people sometimes. It gets frustrating and things are said in the heat of the moment. That's life... but I don't think I would base their product on some tv show. Even after the show, I still purchased his wheels and I am very happy with them.

Oh my God !!! That Swede intern sucked... I can see you've never worked in a shop before ;) ALL guys in the shop do is mess with each other and talk all kinds of tall trash to each other all day long... Shit, the Swede was lucky as hell to even get some instruction and the chance to weld on that frame, and all he got was a little ribbing anyway. When he was told to go clean the cars (exactly what an intern would end up doing a lot of) he acted even MORE lazy. Blue Bear on the show is a true shop guy -- he gets crap from above and hands it down to those below.. What do you think a car shop is, a bunch of guys singing, dancing, hanging new curtains and drapes, and hugging a lot? :lol:

Now, the drama is definitely a bit overboard. BUT watching the shows a lot of it looks scripted in. There's no way Paul Sr. can get that bent over nothing, and the same thing about the shop foreman guy on American Hotrod. If there's no conflict, the networks don't think there's a show. They've been taught for 50 years that you have to have a conflict to overcome in order to get good ratings. In essence those who won't tune in for the tech content, will watch for the drama.

if you were to ever see the bikes at world biker buildoff at bike week, you would know OCC is a joke. they make nice quality "mail order" bikes, but are FAR from being the best fabricator. they are entertaining as hell as they remind me of my dad and i. the fireman and black widow bike are nice bikes, but dont hold a lick next to the big boys. heck, they dont even rank in the top 100 fabricators.

I really dig Paul Yaffe's bikes :thumb:

The sweede intern wasnt lazy, he was doing everything I ever saw asked of him and was standing around waiting for more. When you dont know how to build a car, you can only do shit when people give you something to do, and they didnt want to give him things to do because he didnt know shit. He should have been on a smaller project, under somebody that actually knows how to teach. BOYD fucked up on that one IMO, and it wasn't the sweedes fault one bit. He was lazy at the end cleaning the cars because of the beat down he'd been constantly receiving, and quit the next morning. Boyd signed up for the shit, the kid flew over, and they fucked him over.

As for OCC sucking, I imagined they probably werent too well respected by the bike guys in the know because they dont really seem to do much, I just thought it was odd that a show would be so blatant in showing that they dont actually do much. I dont see how OCC can watch the show and not realize they look like morons who do nothing but glue some shit together and send it to paint.

I really dig Paul Yaffe's bikes :thumb:

YES!!! :cheers:

Those shows are entertaining. Most of the drama on American Chopper is for the camera in my opinion.

Overdramatized for sure. I agree about the business aspect. Sometimes they just look like they can't find their asses with both hands. I wouldn't want that impression if it were my shop. Of course, they have prolly signed away all rights to the producers and the producers spin the material for drama. Maybe it is supposed to make the shows more appealing to non-gearheads to attract a larger audience. Us true gearheads know how a shop really functions :D

I don't know about you guys but it drives me nuts every time watching American Chopper when they put the bike somewhat together, send everything to be painted and chromed, and then drill holes in the freshly painted or chromed parts. I mean come on good job screweing up someones nice work they did for you. I mean I understand that the parts will need to move some when the paint is applied because it gives the metal more thickness but you know it's going to happen so you should be able to plan it out before hand. Oh yeah and I loved the NY Jets bike. All they did was grab some parts and have it painted. They even admitted they did nothing custom on it but of course the paint made it look good. If I were to choose a painter that I have seen their work I would choose that kid who does their work. He deserves the show not Paul and Paulie.

I agree that the drama is for the camera too, they get carried away a lot sometimes, I enjoy both shows though...:)

It does not bother me that the bikes are straightforward, after all, wouldn't something more complicated take a long time to build? I'd rather see them make $20K bikes and not $60K bikes.

The Jay Leno bike was interesting, was it supposed to remind me of a Vincent Black Shadow? I only caught the last 5 minutes of that episode.

remember guys, their off the shelf bikes cost 30K, where as Borget's bikes and Yaffe's bikes are 60-80K to get something decent in the beginer show stages. OCC never claims to be the best, they just ahve a wildly popular show that people can relate to. familys fight, we just for some reason enjoy to see the worst in other people.

also for those that thing OCC just "glues" these bikes together and they are a ripoff, i guess you should be doing the same thing and selling the bikes for 30K - must be damn easy huh? ;) remember the 45 minutes of the show we see every week is over 40 hours of film edited.

anybody that has had to deal with me in my garage knows that kind of stuff is pretty realistic, lol. i now tend to work alone:D

never seen the american hotrod but have seen the chopper show many times, I like it, its entertaining..screw the technicalities, that's why its on TV, its entertaining, why else would it be there.

i can see the point about giving shops a bad name or whatever, but for guys like me that are gearheads but don't know much about bikes or custom fabrication its pretty cool.

also for those that thing OCC just "glues" these bikes together and they are a ripoff, i guess you should be doing the same thing and selling the bikes for 30K - must be damn easy huh? ;) remember the 45 minutes of the show we see every week is over 40 hours of film edited.

WERD!

Don't forget. All of your cars are "glued" together w/ "mail order" parts from the likes of MTI, Thunder, etc., etc.
Hardly anyone, in any business does "in-house" fabrication of every part of their product. It's just not practical.

I bet when Tony (Nine Ball) finishes his 69 Camaro project, you guys won't be telling him it was "glued together w/ mail order parts".

It's called "building".

Ross

I agree, I used to be really into American Chopper. When it first came out, it was something new in a series of gearhead type shows. I never watch it anymore, it gets really old. I did see a Milwaukee Iron based show once, what happened to that?

Billy Lane has been one of my favorite builders for awhile. I'm into this old school themes, and ideas. There's a guy down the street actually who builds amazing bikes. FU Choppers, he's won several shows on the east coast.

For the n00b, Billy Lane has got skills.. He builds what comes to mind and learns from each each mistake :)

I also have lost interest in american chopper. And American Hotrod has to be killing Boyde's credability... their all idiot kids except for 3 guys.
DL

has anyone realized that these shows are meant to ENTERTAIN? if they just did the technical side of fabrication, then it wouldnt get good ratings or be popular.

I am gonna throw my vote in against Boyd.... that TV episode was down right embarrassing.

Perception is everything. When you hand a guy $250,000 for a custom ride, you have an impression of an extreme level of professionalism, creativity, and intelligence.

After watching Boyd's shop in process, I was completely turned off. Does the final product look good? Yes, yes it does. And I have to recognize the ONE reason for that... the painter. He was the only one that I could see who had a good level head. Truly talented person. The rest of them struck me as cheap labor, "assemblers". And don't even get me started on Boyd's ex-wife accountant! How weird is that? And how down right unprofessional can she be? Talk about CHEAP!!! And you know darn well that she acts that way because she was told to... by the man himself.

All I can say is my perception of Boyd has dropped completely to the bottom. I agree, that show did not help Boyd one bit.

It's gotta be scripted, I've never EVER heard of a shop stopping a full day of business just so they could go ride go carts....maybe on a sunday....but not on a damn business day

It's gotta be scripted, I've never EVER heard of a shop stopping a full day of business just so they could go ride go carts....maybe on a sunday....but not on a damn business day

remember the bosses play, but the workers have to work.

most of the people that are into these shows dont even care or know to much about the bikes or rides. its all about the drama. just like nascar. i personally know of several people who are all about nascar but dont give a damn about the cars or the races for that matter. its just the personality,and drama of there drivers they tune in for. its so :gay: ! better yet its just the :barf: "thing" for the "typical" :eyes: person to be into now. i bet if you take away ALL the drama and bullshit and made it even 75% about the bikes, cars, building process etc. there would be no ratings. you cant blame the shops there making more money from the networks and sponsers then most people will ever see. its just like all the TV shows and magizines that put women on the covers and shows to attract that extra crowd. all they end up doing is getting in the way of,or take up time that they could show more tight cars. :bang: its like i could buy a playboy or something if thats what i wanted to see. i love seeing and chillin with the females at the shows in the summer but i think they should keep em off the mags and tv shows.
i thought that show rides was pretty cool ,but it didnt last long. guess there were no women in bathing suits or enough drama. :(
i know i might sound strongly about this but cars,trucks,racing are my LIFE it always has been. i mean i dont even keep up with team sports. just cars,cars,AND MORE CARS. so it just really irratates me.

yea i agree with the post above me here. take away those stupid hot chicks and the entertainment part of the media and just make us read the tech side of things. oh wait, that sounds like schooling. :boring:

also my young brother, the word is spelled D-A-I-L-Y in your sig. :bang:

It's all about the green backs. I'm sure OCC has made a TON of money off them being on American Chopper. They didn't pay for their own custom 18-wheeler by selling 20-30k bikes. BTW, I'm watching them right now as I type.

I think OCC builds to many gimic bikes. Who wants a loud fire engine siren on there chopper?....oh, oh, I do, I do. I mean WTF! I remember watching a special about Jesse James a few years back and I think that this OCC is a copycat or was supposed to be. I mean who in the hell associates Orange county with New York. The best bikes I have seen come from the other Discovery show "great american build off". I don't really care how it was made just how it looks and functions as a bike in the end.

As for Boyd, well it looks like his local High School must be sending him talent a little bit before they graduate 9th grade shop class.

I really dig Paul Yaffe's bikes :thumb:
Paul built the Maroon one that went up againt Indian Larry's old school gold bike right. I can't believe Larry's bike won the build off. Paul Yaffe's bike was one of my favorite I've ever seen. I also like Billy Lane's hubless bike. It was a cool idea.

:lol: Yeah, that's the one.. Indian Larry's bike was downright fugly IMHO :) Definitely not my style.. I can dig the tribute to Ed Roth though, Ed made some pretty fugly shit back in the day too... :lol:

I gotta throw in my .02 about the intern kid on American Hotrod. They totally screwed themselves with that deal. Assigning an intern that can barely speak English to a major project car was just plain stupid! I gotta agree that he shoulda been cleaning cars and learning a few things on the side....not welding on an aluminum frame right away...I mean come on. Ya gotta crawl before you can walk.

You can also tell that most of the drama is scripted for the camera...like the entire boxing match deal. All of Paul Sr's outbursts on American chopper are staged too.

Plus anyone ever notice that EVERY project bike that OCC builds is ALWAYS on a tight schedule and they ALWAYS finish the bikes at the last possible minute? There's no way a shop would get by like that...it's all added drama for entertainment.

That said, I still watch both shows

I did use something I learned from the American Chopper shows......I painted a mirror last weekend and hung it from my garage door opener (by a clothes hanger) similar to how the shop that powdercoats for them handles their parts.

I agree a lot of the situations look a little staged, but it is neat to see how things are constructed.

I think OCC is interesting because the themes for each build are interesting, it's not a bad show even though some of the drama seems staged.

Now the Boyd show is lame. A lot of those guys come across as dumb on that show. And the ex-wife is obnoxious. I don't watch that show at all.

I really dig Paul Yaffe's bikes :thumb:

And I thought I was an asshole. I realized I was not that bad when I saw Yaffe on TV. What a prick.

I thought Boyd would have a classy shop and be professional. The shop foreman and the paint guy seem to have their act together. Everyone else I wouldn't want touching my car. (except for that one guy that ended up welding the aluminum frame)

Not to sound mean but, what's up with the guy who's upper jaw doesn't move when he talks? was he in a accident or something? just curious.

I agree with the comments about OCC. It's entertaining... Mikey is funny as hell... I wouldn't buy one of their bikes. The theme bikes are all advertising. Probably a good deal for what the companies pay. They get an hour of exposure on one of the highest rated cable shows, plus a finished bike.

I saw that Boyd Cod. thing to and was like "WTF?" this is the famed Coddington? Talk aout overrated. I would never trust my car to them.

You guys dont realize that they have more than the crew you see on T.V, what you see is typical comercialized bull shit. Boyd has a bigger crew than like 7 people, they are working on more than one car at any given time. Thats like going MTI or Thunder and just following one tech around, your not going to get that great of an idea of what that shop does as a whole. Fact of the matter is Boyd and OCC have big crews turning out several cars and bikes for customers. Thats the stuff you dont see on T.V.
Trust me if they were incompetentnt and childish in real life as they are on these shows, the shops would have gotten no were. If you ever watch an episode, you sorta get a glimpse of what the other stff they are working on for customers.
Neil350

.... for those of us who don't know anything about Boyd, we all get to walk away with the impression that Boyd hires clueless, talentless clowns.

The point was that this show (staged or not) doesnt help his reputation, it actually hurts.

I saw that Boyd Cod. thing to and was like "WTF?" this is the famed Coddington? Talk aout overrated. I would never trust my car to them.

My same exact reaction... minus the "f" part ;)

Agree with the opinions about the swedish kid... Did you catch the part where the wierdo kid was like hand me a 3/4" and the kid was like "i dunno what that is" and the wierdo was like what are you stupid. There's no fucking U.S. sizes in sweden. I agree that they treated that kid like shit. If it were me the wierdo kid's nose would have been exploded after day one. I fucking hate condescending people...especially when you are a beginner :mad:

Not to sound mean but, what's up with the guy who's upper jaw doesn't move when he talks? was he in a accident or something? just curious.

Nobody's top jaw moves when they talk. Your top jaw is fixed to your skull.
However, there is something wrong w/ that guy.

Well, I like the shows, but I do watch them for the entertainment value not for any technical advice. I just don't like much else on TV so I just watch something that is at least sort of on topic with something I like. It is about cars and motorcycles. When football season come back around I'll probably be watching MNF instead. Oh well to each his own I guess that's why there are a bazillion channels out there now.

American chopper, those guys seem to just put pieces together and are run by the worlds biggest baby. Its not that hard to glue some theme shit to a frame and let the paint guy save the day every time on the project. The paint dude seems to be the one with the most talent!



How true, I could put one of thier bikes together. It's all off the shelf parts. Now WCC builds everything from scrach, but then again Jesse James does do commericals for Ricer Zone :disgust:

For the n00b, Billy Lane has got skills.. He builds what comes to mind and learns from each each mistake :)


Now that was just a low blow :nutkick:

WCC has got the skills, and probably some of the best looking bikes out. But 5 years ago he was doing the same thing and nobody cared. Now every clown out there has a WCC shirt, but wouldnt be able to swing a downpayment on a ride on lawnmower.

That's the only thing that bugs me, those autozone commercials are horrible though. Who conned Jesse into doing those, I wonder how much he's making.

Indian Larry shootout bike was ugly, the first one, the second one was cooler looking when he got away from the wire wheels. Billy Lane comes across as not mechanically knowledgeable but a good fabricator.

Rides is an okay show.

Nobody's top jaw moves when they talk. Your top jaw is fixed to your skull.

I know that. ;) I just couldn't figure out the best way to describe it.

I know that. ;) I just couldn't figure out the best way to describe it.

I know what you are saying. Something is goin on there. Looks like he could have some kind of muscle disorder in his neck or jaw, etc.

for those that think indian larrys bike was ugly, you dont appreciate or understand the old school chopper. the day of the BIIIIG chopper (12+ feet long) is a new school look. the 260+ mm rear tire is new school. the MAJORITY of old school bikers do not like those bikes. go to a real bike show like laconia, bike week, or sturgis and you will figure it out. i happen to like the big bike as well as the "novelty" of the old school bikes as well. Indian larrys bike was a sweet combination of new and old school, not just a plain jane looking "show piece" - something Yaff does. IL's bikes are actually meant to be ridden.

and for those that think OCC doesnt do much, just look in the background and at any given point, you will see 7-9 frames laying around because they just got delivered ready to build for other customers. the shop that we all see if for the SHOW. they have other fabricators and techs building customer bikes.

as for WCC, jesse james is a total sellout, and i mean that in a good way. he has always been about the money and his OTHER interests in cars, trucks, and other toys. he isnt into just choppers, not even close.

Still looks bad.

My uncle has a 72 hardtail.

I wouldn't trust OCC to swap out a set of valve covers. let alone build a bike. These idiots are using the friggin angle grinder as a lathe, hammer, saw, nibbler....

There was one episode where JR needed a spacer "and it's real important that the ends are square..." you could just see the wheels turning in his head about how he could rig this thing up. BUY A GODDAM LATHE!!! He ended up using a bandsaw as I recall, and a disc sander- sweet, sweet precision- Yathzee!!

Final asby is great- Hammer, grind, hammer...close enough. WTF! And people are lining up to buy from these guys. Jeez. What do these customers say "make sure ya put plenty of decorative fence iron on this one...the last one didn't have enough."?

Total hacks.

My same exact reaction... minus the "f" part ;)
lol. Same here, WT? just doesnt look right....

Nobody's top jaw moves when they talk. Your top jaw is fixed to your skull.
However, there is something wrong w/ that guy.

In the episode today 3-26-04, he said he flipped a car with Boyd's son on the salt flats. He said he has nine plates in his face. He is barely getting his taste back. :shocked:

Nobody's top jaw moves when they talk. Your top jaw is fixed to your skull.
However, there is something wrong w/ that guy.There is no "top jaw". It's your maxilla and it is a fixed segment of the anterior skull.

The reason his lips, etc don't move with his speech is due to massive cranial nerve damage. It'll take a very long time for the peripheral nerves to re-anastamose and will most likely never reach their previous state. He's lucky to be alive after the accident he was in.

Your resident medical student signing off.

There is no "top jaw". It's your maxilla and it is a fixed segment of the anterior skull.

The reason his lips, etc don't move with his speech is due to massive cranial nerve damage. It'll take a very long time for the peripheral nerves to re-anastamose and will most likely never reach their previous state. He's lucky to be alive after the accident he was in.

Your resident medical student signing off.

I just have to say that is so cool. I love when we step off car talk for a moment and people's truer passions and skills peek out....

... Gear heads are EVERYWHERE! <delusional> YOU CAN'T STOP US!!! WE WILL PENETRATE EVERY LEVEL OF LIFE.... GOVERNMENT, MEDICINE, LAW, SCIENCE, ENGINEERING, IT, WEB DEV, FAST FOOD... .. .. ..psy.... psychology ... . . <breathe breathe breathe> . .... . .. </delusional>

Where am I... .. (passes out) :zzz:

... Gear heads are EVERYWHERE! <delusional> YOU CAN'T STOP US!!! WE WILL PENETRATE EVERY LEVEL OF LIFE.... GOVERNMENT, MEDICINE, LAW, SCIENCE, ENGINEERING, IT, WEB DEV, FAST FOOD... .. .. ..psy.... psychology ... . . <breathe breathe breathe> . .... . .. </delusional>


Yes, we are everywhere. Gearheads are amongst us all ;)

The show, Rides, is pretty good. However, the MOST impressive individual I have watched on any of the shows is Mr. Foose. That guy is a genius.

Chip Foose can do it all....he's a wicked illustrator, and he's also able to fab up all his own stuff! His ideas are top notch!