Building an Empire, Losing it all: The American Chopper Story

[@regularguyrunning174]

I have always thought of Paul Sr. as a Seagull type manager. He comes in, makes a lot of noise, shits over everything and then he leaves.

[@mimon-konigdesostens3922]

I always thought he was more of a Walrus type manager.

[@Nicmadis]

There is that meme picture with birds in a tree, birds lower in the tree covered in increasing amounts of shit and the words "People at the top look down and see only shit, people at the bottom look up and see only assholes."

[@pjotrslanina1403]

I have watched Orange County Choppers for some time, but I got more and more irritated by Paul senior. He demanded from Paul junior tight deadlines, and along the series those deadlines became shorter and shorter, and in the end, totally unrealistic. Although Paul junior didn't always had the right work ethic and arrived late at work, I felt sorry for him. When his father fired him, and junior started his own business, I was happy. Finally he could work according to his own rules and ideas. But at the moment that Paul senior was making trouble about all that fuss about money and stuff to junior, I stopped watching. I couldn't see that screaming, raging old man any longer. I hope that everything is going okay with junior. And senior? Well, sorry, but I don't care about him. 18:59

[@MiltJohnson-sw9lc]

@@regularguyrunning174 Best one yet 😁, I always thought that , but you put it in better words, I’m thinking we both has boss’s like him at one point in life , toxic , but jr was lazy

[@Trumplican]

this is epic i love it!

[@zerkzy842]

If you’ve seen one episode you’ve seen them all. They have to come up with a theme for a bike. Something goes wrong, they scream at each other. They somehow meet the deadline. They unveil the bike, everybody oohs and aaahs. The bike is put into storage never to be ridden, the end

[@mikethespike7579]

Yep, always the same old same. It's entertaining at first, but gets tiring after a while. But some people like that kind of thing.

[@oldbatwit5102]

Yeah, and the bikes were laughable.

[@requiemagent3014]

You just described every single early 2000's reality TV show. Pimp my ride made this formula popular and everyone followed it

[@Reaper-cm4jr]

@@oldbatwit5102 Right now when they come up for sale you can barely give away an OCC/Jr. bike.

[@MatthewLittle]

@@oldbatwit5102 On TV Tropes's page about American Choppers, they'd built a bike for Jay Leno....Leno, for the record, said the OCC bike they built for him was one of the worst bikes Leno had ever ridden. Why? Two reasons, (1) it was uncomfortable to ride and (2) the electrics were run through the taillight, meaning if that burns out, the bike goes dead.

[@thundercactus]

Kinda rule of thumb of businesses like this, and I've seen it in so many fab shops and machine shops, is that having your best talent start to come in late frequently should NOT be taken as "oh they're just getting lazy and complacent". Your best talent is your best talent because they are the ones who are dedicated to the job, they're making things better, they're making the money for the company. If they start coming in late frequently, management needs to take a step back and evaluate WHY their talent suddenly doesn't want to come to work. And again, I've seen this so many times where companies fire their best guys because they absolutely refuse to consider that they themselves might be the problem.

[@johnd4348]

You just described every place I have ever worked. Including the last one I worked. All the talent slowly left, but management blamed them instead of themselves.

[@dukecraig2402]

And then the business dies a slow horrible death, it's the free enterprise version of Darwin's natural selection and is why free enterprise is the best economic system on the planet.

[@mr.eparish3945]

Brilliant statement! I'm in that situation now. New shop "manager" the last two year price of labor went up 800$ per unit we build and it's all the welders fault but our numbers are the same all the changes said manger has made is costing us 2-4 Xtra hours on each unit but it's our fault...and let not get started with the micro managing sheesh!!

[@dukecraig2402]

@@mr.eparish3945 It wouldn't take the welders so long if the business would hire fitters that don't have to find a set of safety glasses that fit a seein' eye dog. And just so you know it's two barks for cut it shorter NOT ONE BARK. I put that last part in caps so the brail will stick up a little further to make sure you'll catch that.

[@mr.eparish3945]

@@dukecraig2402 huh...

[@GeneralSeptem]

My dad and I loved this show when I was younger, and we had to stop watching it because we both noticed after watching those two fight so much we started doing it ourselves.

[@fraseyhorse]

😂😂😂😂

[@mankind8088]

Contagion

[@longjonwhite]

Brit here. We got the show over here too and sure, I watched several episodes, but I found the bikes ridiculous and the whole family were obnoxious.

[@gumpyoldbugger6944]

Same for here in Canada.......the show sucked, the people sucked and their biggest sin of all, their bikes sucked shite........mind you the bikes built on Jessie James Jr. show also sucked.......that whole chopper craze back in the day is a massive black spot on the world of motorcycling.

[@CitizenSmith50]

Watched first 2 episodes here in Australia, and realised the "reality" was american arseholes feeding their egos ! I was building choppers back in the 60's and 70's, when the whole point of it was to make the bikes more ride-able and comfortable over long distances, so i don't agree with gumpyoldbugger6944. Not a black hole; I rode many thousands of kilometres on mine, and they served their purpose, with the neck rake and longer wheelbase they virtually steered themselves ! Try doing over a thousand kilometres in a day on a bike with a racing layout or even a sit-upright posture from that era !

[@tjroelsma]

The bikes are ridiculous when you purely look at them as bikes. What OCC produced were works of art and/or bike-styled ads for companies. The bikes were never meant to be ridden, but just meant to be bale to move under their own power. From that perspective the builds make a lot more sense.

[@gumpyoldbugger6944]

@@tjroelsma They say art is subjective and that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.....in that case, in my eye those so-called bikes are neither art or beautiful by any stretch of the imagination nor are they bikes..........at best they are two wheeled vanity over indulgences for crass pretentious wannabe's who suffer from terminal tastelessness

[@jamesdeath3477]

@@tjroelsma If they'd looked good, or cool or anything I might agree. I get that they were mostly promo pieces and rideability wasn't the first thing on their minds, but couldn't they have made them slightly attractive looking? Art? Art brut maybe.

[@wheressteve]

A lifetime of zero leg days was Sr's downfall.

[@rangerguy196]

I ALWAYS thought the same thing when watching that show. 😂😅

[@Gordies-World]

Hilarious!😂

[@chilibeer3912]

Tell those door frames

[@therealxunil2]

oh shit!

[@somekindaguy100]

​@@rangerguy196haha you will see which muscles fade first when you hit 50s and 60s but yeah good one

[@hamo4558]

The only thing I want in life is for my sons to do better than me.

[@johnhizzle22]

That ain’t what SR wanted

[@WesB1972]

@@johnhizzle22 SRs big ego and a burning desire to be a mega wealthy media star killed the business and TV show

[@drpeppaerdrpeppaer5434]

...

[@anonymousanonymous9370]

You got a wife and kids? Nice. I doubt i ever will.

[@drointhewind480]

Specially at a trade. If I'm a blacksmith how dope would it be for my son to become better and take over

[@SwabianClancy]

As a German, I always had fun watching this with my father. Not so much because we are chopper fans, but because we never had the feeling that ‘real’ quality was being delivered here, but that bikes were being put together that just looked good. The frame came externally, the engine came externally, this was bought together etc. and in the end it was just a matter of putting Lego parts together. But then they kept emphasising how epic they were making something here. I could never take it seriously, other programmes were more ‘honest’, be it from a craftsmanship point of view or the fun factor. They were lucky with the success, but never really seemed to realise what the success was based on: show, not skill.

[@RT-qd8yl]

A very good summary

[@chris69-sf8jr]

I can still remember the episode where they built a motorcycle for Billy Joel. The plan was to work together because Joel wanted to create his own motorcycle series. In the end, nothing came of it because he was not satisfied with the quality of the motorcycle. In summary, you can say that OCC was never a serious motorcycle company, but rather just an advertising vehicle for companies that bought 45 minutes of continuous advertising with a theme motorcycle.

[@GrahamOrm]

Brit here. Lifelong biker now 65. I watched many episodes. The bikes for me were non functional art forms. The fascination was the ingenuity and skills of Junior and Vinny. Although it was his baby the obnoxious Senior wrecked the show, he should also stop missing leg day. Love your stuff buddy 😉👍🍻

[@SophiaDavis-rs3zi]

Hi graham. I hope my comment didn't sound as a form of privacy invasion your comment tells of a wonderful man with a beautiful heart which led me to comment I don't normally write in the comment section but I think you deserve this complement. If you don’t mind can we be friends? Thanks God bless you….🌺🌺🌺

[@dh1380]

What's a leg day? 😅

[@WildFungus]

they ARE non functional art pieces. the end.

[@tqrules01]

Same here, was on juniors side the whole time, being creative requires vision, doesn't matter what you do, painters take breaks to go back later to see what they couldn't, as a solution architect, I often do the same, I take a step back , let it rest and then the function I need to build and the approach falls into place.

[@cinemabunny]

I saw an interview where Paul Sr. wanted to sue Discovery after seeing the first episode. He did not expect the negative spin on their relationship. It turned out to be the show's formula.

[@CarbonKevin]

"How dare you portray my actions and words exactly as they are!"

[@ProductBasement]

The tribute bikes were always weird to me. "To honor the firefighters who died on 9/11, we made this [checks notes] ridiculous motorcycle?"

[@lolatmyage]

Yeah it has the george bush "now watch this drive" energy

[@lunisic]

What did u do to honor them?

[@donaldhysa4836]

xD

[@Dwendele]

Most of those bikes were commissioned.

[@Lord_Victis]

​@@lunisic facepalm

[@EbonAvatar]

This show was like comfort food for me in the early aughts. Every week you knew what you'd get: the Tuttles screaming at each other over absolutely nothing, and a super cool chopper at the end. My jaw hit the floor when I saw the finished Spiderman bike, that was the coolest thing I'd ever seen at the time.

[@ligmasack9038]

That wasn't even a Spider-Man themed Bike; It was called "Black-Widow".

[@dannydaw59]

That's why I stopped watching. The screaming at each other over nothing. Too dramatic.

[@dsloop3907]

Unrideable junk. decorations.

[@WildFungus]

its ignorant calling them bikes, art pieces that look like motorcycles.

[@EbonAvatar]

@WildFungus that's your opinion, I have mine.

[@BalrogUdun]

A father son project that morphs into a bitter rivalry and an explosive confrontation. Kinda hits home for a lot of kids.

[@vorhese]

You are WAY too kind with the appreciation of these builds and talent.

[@raymondwilliams5661]

They are shit bikes just crap. 😊

[@onazram1]

I agree.

[@TimothyAustfjord]

It takes a lot of talent to build bikes like they did. Doesn't mean they are great bikes. You couldn't do what they do.

[@augusta1994]

its the same thing as the car scene back then, yes its mostly tacky and "tasteless" but its mostly about how much work they put into it and the appeal of individuality

[@cuprashoe]

No I disagree, they were talented metal workers. It's just the bikes we're pointless and they we're obnoxious as people

[@take5th]

Old guy here. Hated the bikes. hated the personalities. hated the show. All realty shows are about the characters, not the physical totems the characters are centered around. To be successful, these characters need flamboyant flaws or interesting quirks, and are confronted with lots of conflict. Hate all of them.

[@jordank5328]

Yeah, I only watch TV shows with no conflict and dull characters

[@lbowsk]

@@jordank5328 You watch what you want to watch. Afford the same civility to him. I loved the mechanical aspects of the show but hated the interpersonal BS, especially the oldest guy and presumably the most mature, Paul Sr. What an obnoxious tool.

[@ront769]

@@lbowsk I watch as many car rebuilds as I see on T.V but I'm not interested in the manufactured drama and intentional tantrums.

[@McCheeseincakes]

"Old guy here" and "Hate all of them" was all of the information needed.

[@everyonesthoughts7151]

Same, I like boring, predictable, lame characters too 🙄🤣

[@MrHubbmuscle]

As a gym owner, for many years I believed Paul Sr was pinning 💉

[@MiltJohnson-sw9lc]

Can’t be argued

[@alabar9795]

yes he was, it came out publicly some time between jr leaving and 2012ish when the show ended,

[@somekindaguy100]

Mate you don't have to be a gym owner to work that out I assure you . Steve Wonder could see it

[@sitoudien9816]

Was it all roid rage or his natural charming personality.

[@muddobber6863]

It's pretty obvious he still is in the videos with bikes and beards.

[@apenneukende]

The moment Paul Jr got fired created amongst the best meme templates of all time!

[@linkfan95]

I remember those. I created plenty a memes with that shit lol.

[@lookingdown8290]

Did you realize that Senior took Cody's bike back from him? The kid never really had it. It was all for the show. Senior sold it.

[@platty9237]

WAT 🙁

[@platty9237]

I did some quick research. Apparently, Cody never received the bike, which led to a lawsuit that was eventually settled out of court.

[@paulrasmussen8953]

​@@platty9237 senior was the problem

[@chrishackett554]

They were never bike builders, they were bike assemblers. About 85% of each bike was other vendors. Paulie Jr had some visionary theme bikes that in actuality could only travel about 20 miles in the real world.

[@alexforce9]

Why so low tho? I dont have knowledge on bikes but if it can drive for 20 miles why not more?

[@muranziel]

​@@alexforce9 They often had to sacrifice tank volume.

[@alexforce9]

@@muranziel I see.

[@despizedicon]

you get it... I've seen a bike from them in person...that sold for 40k in 2003. Very unimpressed, they are all mostly cookie cutter frames, and lame arts and crafts accents welded on thinking it looks cool.

[@Draknfyre]

In their sales contract you agreed that none of their bikes were actually to be ridden but rather sold as display pieces and any injuries obtained from riding them was your own responsibility. This is because they were *highly* unsafe and had already gotten hit by lawsuits over accidents resulting from the bikes failing. Including one where the frame literally broke in half while the customer was riding it. So they put that clause in to CYA themselves.

[@michaelleoanrd194]

I got sucked in so deep with this show because my roommate was a super-fan. To the point that he bought a motorcycle because he was inspired by the show. I tapped out somewhere in season 6, I think. My favorite bike on the show was Sr's Shunshine Bike and they didnt even build it, they just cleaned it up and got it running.

[@Rizzle280]

I worked for dave at goodys popcorn for a while, he had these guys build a bike for the wounded warriors project, sold raffle tickets for the bike, then disappeared with the bike, and the state took the store for non payment of taxes. Thats a crazy story that i wish more people knew about! This video reminded me of all of that drama

[@MATT-DREWS]

Yall remember junk yard wars?

[@GrigoriZhukov]

Now that was cool.

[@PatrickAguilar]

Best show ever

[@sirsplintfastthepungent1373]

Monster Garage > Junkyard Wars

[@pinkyellowblue007]

That was the british version of Monster Garage

[@kerberos623]

I liked the brittish original scrapheap challange better. There is some talk of a reboot of that one.

[@SteffiReitsch]

A bunch of blue collar blokes who hit the jack pot, squandered it all, and now back where they started.

[@TheWonkster]

Ain't that the way

[@bobbillings]

No not really. Paul Sr doin just fine at his new AC restaurant and museum in Florida and Paul Jr still doing some builds at his shop and has also a museum and gift store next to his shop. Both attend many motorcycle conventions and rally's doing autographs and pics and are still regarded by many fans.

[@SteffiReitsch]

@@bobbillings The old man's having to work in his old age with no savings and Jr. with his little shop, both of them just scraping by.

[@dukecraig2402]

​@@SteffiReitsch Don't believe that drama for a second, Paul sr never relied on that motorcycle shop for money and probably never made a dime at it, he'd already made his fortune with his fabrication shop which was very successful, I couldn't stand that show, I never watched it and thought the bikes they built were an offense to the eye, but I will give Paul sr credit for building up his fab shop the way he did. As far as the bike shop goes he didn't make money per say on the shop itself but The Discovery Channel was cutting him big fat checks for each episode especially after the first year or two when it became a hit show for them, guaranteed he had an entertainment agent and an entertainment lawyer to deal with The Discovery Channel and get him the best deal possible, and he wouldn't have put any of that money into his bike shop, already having a successful business he wasn't stupid about his money and wouldn't have dumped it into that abyss. Any work he's doing is because he wants to, not everyone wants to sit around watching reruns of F Troop after they retire, which I myself think is foolish, between liking F Troop and being sick of having people tell me what to do I'm looking forward to retirement here in a couple years and waking up every morning with my biggest concern being what I have to come up with to entertainment myself that day.

[@mr.eparish3945]

​@@SteffiReitschyeah judging by his personality if he had money everyone would know and he wouldn't be selling plates of food in Florida

[@MarlinRando]

I enjoyed watching them make the bikes but couldn't make it past season one. I hate 'reality' shows.

[@harbard642]

I was a kid when it was broadcasted. I have to admit... I enjoyed it... A lot

[@soowhite7694]

Me too

[@mrpoizun]

Well, you don't know the past tense of broadcast, so.....

[@harbard642]

@@mrpoizun English is not my first language so...

[@TYSuggested]

Same here. To me, Vinnie and Rick were the real stars though.

[@montoyamma]

This show changed my life as a kid and I went to a trade school and my entire life revolved around the automotive industry. I truly love cars and motorcycles forever

[@poopy_pants_joe1194]

Really? Most of what OCC did, came out of a box brought in by the UPS man. Terrible work, covered in paint.

[@GamesFromSpace]

As long as you got your sense of professionalism elsewhere :D

[@GamesFromSpace]

As long as you got your sense of professionalism elsewhere :D

[@michaelshark5040]

I actually have a lot of fond memories of the show. I grew up watching it with my dad and grandpa. It definitely made me appreciate my own family. My favorite parts were always when rick or vinny would going through how they solved some of the technical problems, and show casing their skills. I ride now, and I still think the choppers are a little insane lol

[@1962egl]

What went wrong? A 50 something year old man decided to get jacked up on steroids.

[@lunisic]

Wtf r u talking about have u ever seen someone on steroids? Was that some kind of dig at someone who isnt obese and likes to wear tank tops?

[@lbowsk]

BAM!

[@somekindaguy100]

Haha nope

[@michaelcrosby6071]

Roid rage allegedly

[@1962egl]

@@michaelcrosby6071 without a doubt. You take enough androgens and you’ll fight your grandma.

[@recklessted]

Watching a decade of chopper content on Discovery didn't get me nearly as interested in motorcycling as watching a handful of Fortnine videos.

[@alexhorne4189]

The tw200 video changed my life.

[@dontgetmarried]

Exact lmao

[@leward]

You forgot the GEICO bike that Sean from Bikes & Beards just bought, it’s atrocious!

[@bigal3055]

2:06

[@pegcity4eva]

It's hilariously terrible

[@maverick1685]

@@bigal3055 There is a 2nd GEICO bike - "Miss Geico" bike with a supercharger.

[@RyanWehr]

I’ve been following him and his journey to get that bike running. It’s hilarious.. it’s so over the top and complicated and it’s just junk

[@ligmasack9038]

@@maverick1685 That's the one he has.

[@ThatBugBehindYou]

The crew at American Choppers lost all my respect when they came to a presentation run by Buck Strickland over here in Texas and they just stood around yapping instead of bringing even a single bike.

[@jfabian1912]

My dad and I would watch this show when I was a teenager. He often cheered Paul Sr. on. My dad was a narcissist as well.

[@wArRgArBl117]

Not only did I watch it, I had a poster of their black widow bike on my bedroom wall and for several years my childhood dream job was to be a fabricator like Vinny. I didn't do it but it's funny to look back on now.

[@marcush4741]

I am GENUINELY happy that the angles of these forks are now the number one way to know you should offer less than half the asking price.

[@jeffsecrest8135]

They were a replacement for Jessie James show and the main issue is OCC bikes are junk.

[@dimebagvinnie644]

Ok l aydeeeee

[@dimebagvinnie644]

I'm sure you build the bests bikes 😂

[@tylergaye5457]

​@@dimebagvinnie644Idk why you're getting salty about it, their bikes are famously bad

[@dimebagvinnie644]

@@tylergaye5457 you are a gossip girl

[@PatrickRiendeau-m3v]

Their bikes were tacky and gimmicky. Not on the same level as Indian Larry, Jesse James and Billy Lane to name a few.

[@bytesandbikes]

I've got nothing against choppers, but the OCC show was the worst kind of brainless drivel. I don't get why anyone would want this on their TV when you can go outside and meet jerks anywhere.

[@Deathtrap617]

It’s because men want soap operas too

[@EnsignGeneric]

Data point of one, but as a little kid with a big creative drive, the realization that somebody could just take a bunch of raw metal stock and make a crazy cartoon machine out of it was a massive draw. The drama, eh, I tuned that out.

[@LuvzToLol21]

It was the bikes for me, lol

[@matturner6890]

That era of TV was aggressively stupid.

[@cobblerwillorange]

What I remember of that show: "Bike, Bike, Bike, Bike, Bike, black widow bike, ya built the bike too slow, ya built the bike wrong, Bike, Bike bikebikebike" 😂🎉

[@gervanwilliams1409]

Everything you say about Senior having main character syndrome and being a narcissist are relevant. It was crazy to see how little this man acted like a dad and more of a self-serving overbearing A&@. I’m glad Junior went to find his own separate success. I can relate so well. Some of our fathers fear our success, and instead of supporting and celebrating us, they resent us. Such crap. But, the actual reason for their resentment is simple: They were not contributors to our success and their guilt is eating them alive.

[@otepdotnet]

they are both narcissist..but what I like about Sr is he wanted Jr to go to work on time just like everyone of his employee does

[@gervanwilliams1409]

@ “On time.” Jr. was not an assembly line worker putting jiggers together for a pc. He was high skilled “partner” who delivered high quality work, and the berating about arriving on time was just a mask for more underlying boss problems. Even if he wants to deal with the late issues, there are ways he could talk to Jr. and show him the impact (if any) it’s having on both the work, and the team. Yelling just to yell or show big daddy boss wasn’t the way. Besides, yelling at adults is just so disrespectful, even if you intended to make a valid point. Respect was gone. Losing respect for parents is one of the easiest thing to do, despite how much you love them. This is terribly difficult to regain. Senior deserved loss of respect by Jr. wholly so.

[@otepdotnet]

@@gervanwilliams1409 yeah, what I love about the show are the lessons that you can get from it.. Its full of drama but its authentic

[@ethanedwards7557]

The Snap On bike was perfect for what it was. It wasn’t supposed to be a bike you want to ride, it was supposed to be an advertisement on wheels.

[@matturner6890]

What a waste of material

[@ftkinney]

I wonder if it’s sitting at the snap on offices on display in a lobby or collecting dust in storage.

[@themonsterunderyourbed9408]

All the builds they did were advertisements on wheels. 99% of the comment section is too braindead to understand it. They were never meant to be ridden. They were meant to be art pieces, not bikes. The snap on bike was actually perfect for what it was. Snap-on is actually about excess. Their tools are way overpriced for what they are and there are cheaper brands that are just as good if not better.

[@Ramblin_DMC]

I met Paul Jr at a car show once. Really nice guy.

[@Voodoo_Robot]

Meet, mat, mote.

[@captainlarrynosleepfishing5350]

How about Mikey living in a tent ⛺️ in the shop’s backyard? 😳

[@tylerhopkins7080]

oh, cool. i really liked your video on the bike and the whole time i was thinking about the tv show. i don't even wanna know how many hours of these guys i watched when i was younger. looking forward to this one.

[@everydaybladesinc]

I agree that the Ferrari bike was bad but the snap on bike with the wrenches holding on the handle bars Was sweet. Also the Lincoln bike was beautiful

[@slowdownwereonfire]

Paul Sr looks and acts exactly like my dad. The stuff with him doting on Cody hit home because my dad always has surrogate sons that better fit his vision of what I should be. I’m in my 40s now and all that’s gotten my dad is a guaranteed ticket to dying alone. Hope Sr gets off his bullshit before the same happens to him.

[@eval_is_evil]

You know sometimes fathers feel very competitive towards their sons. This makes them behave like douchebags. I hope you know it's not your fault ,right?

[@georgekisselbrock8937]

Don’t count on it. Stay strong. If I had an old man like him and the undertaker ask me what to do with the ashes, I’d say the dump landfill or the toilet.

[@greglee1465]

Thanks Bart. Great video. I loved this show and the talented craftmanship. Paul SR, was insufferable. Loved Mikey and Vinny.

[@jfu5222]

I like going around corners on my motorbike. I've always said every chopper has one or two parts that could be used on a café racer.

[@jfu5222]

@@TUGG75 Good luck with that.

[@noremorse4379]

Just learn to ride properly

[@camiloduran3907]

My understanding is that the bikes are crap. I have watched several videos where they say that the bikes are useless. Even Paul Sr. said that they were made for display. Jay Leno is one of those critics.

[@RyanWehr]

Very uncomfortable. You would not want to ride more than an hour before your body would hurt

[@martyf3531]

On one of the "Beards and Bikes" videos, Sr says that most of bikes were for show only and were not necessary quality bikes. Also one season, network awarded several fans a custom bike, Paul Sr, tells Paul Jr to throw something together using spare parts laying around just to get bikes out.

[@johnnydodge]

Man this was a great video and succinct. I appreciate the history of the show. My favorite is when they take the Expedition and ram the office Lol Thank you kind sir

[@SophiaDavis-rs3zi]

Hi. I hope my comment didn't sound as a form of privacy invasion your comment tells of a wonderful man with a beautiful heart which led me to comment I don't normally write in the comment section but I think you deserve this complement. If you don’t mind can we be friends? Thanks God bless you….🌺🌺🌺

[@VashMaverick09]

I liked Paul Jr, I really identified with Mikey, Paul Sr was like my father and I haven't spoken to him in close to 10 years. I watched this show and I loved some of the bikes, the Gears of War 3 bike, the 9/11 bike and I remember the snap on bike episode. It was a show that shaped me and showed me you can be creative with steel and metal.

[@iggyzorro2406]

I remember watching the first episodes of A.C. on Discover channel and talking with Senior and Vinnie at the NY Motorcycle Show at the Javits Center. Vinnie seemed cool - SR. was sitting in a folding chair with his arms crossed in his cut-off shirt scowling. I said I saw the special about them and he said they were going to expand it to a regular show. The Spiderman bike was there and when I said it was so beautiful I'd be afraid to ride it (meaning not to get it dirty) Sr. snapped, "All our bikes are for riding." It looked pretty impressive, but I've never liked the chopper with extended fork look. thanks for the vid.

[@georgekisselbrock8937]

“All our bikes are for riding” Senior says. Sure, along with a pair of clown shoes to go with them.

[@GrigoriZhukov]

@iggyzorro2406 oh dang I'd have laughed right at him... house to bar maybe, don't miss the gas station on the way.

[@patrickmalone9380]

It's stubid raking out forks is bad idea makes bikes run wide and unstable .bikes for people like driving trucks

[@NigelHearne-yv7en]

​​have you seen any 'Swedish choppers' they love their long extended forks.. their bikes are crazy compared to anything OC ever built

[@davidvanbrunt4233]

Ego and temper was there downfall....imo.

[@45asunder1]

So Jr wanted to come in late, ignore deadlines, and be offered a partnership? I'm with Paul Sr.

[@yzmoto5753]

When you're salaried and working 60 - 80 hrs a week, I'd say there isn't really a concept of late.

[@45asunder1]

@yzmoto5753 there is something called work ethic.

[@yzmoto5753]

@@45asunder1 yep. And I'd tell you the same thing I'd tell anyone else if I'm working 80 hrs on a salary no OT. If you wanna pay attention to what time I show up in the morning, then I'm gonna start paying attention to what time I leave in the evening.

[@45asunder1]

@yzmoto5753 i have worked 80 hour a week, that didn't entitle me to show up late for work

[@gabrielalvarez9570]

If it weren't for Paul Jr, Nothing there would get done

[@stephenwilliams926]

American Chopper they never showed you any Engineering going on 😮

[@zacharykelly7434]

I remember ONE TIME where SR was obsessing over the geometry of a springer front end, but he didn't do any engineering he just yelled about it

[@rockets4kids]

That was never their target audience.

[@GrigoriZhukov]

They did engineering?

[@dimebagvinnie644]

I'm sure you're a genius

[@zacharykelly7434]

@dimebagvinnie644 if engineers were geniuses they wouldn't simplify pi to 3

[@rolfdenver]

You talked about the bikes being impractical, oddly proportioned, and aesthetically unappealing, but the same can be said about Paul Sr.’s massive biceps and mustache.

[@CorkyMcButterpants]

Almost non-existent line of ladies queuing up for moustache rides with Snr.

[@SophiaDavis-rs3zi]

Hi. I hope my comment didn't sound as a form of privacy invasion your comment tells of a wonderful man with a beautiful heart which led me to comment I don't normally write in the comment section but I think you deserve this complement. If you don’t mind can we be friends? Thanks God bless you….🌺🌺🌺

[@richiedagger733]

I always thought the fire bike was the most horribly tacky.... but I guess we can't talk about that since it's for the 911 fire fighters..

[@losfogo7149]

There is nothing more Us-ish than making a fire-themed chopper to commemorate the victims of 9/11. Seriously this shit feels like it was pulled from a south park episode

[@bikerbardofohio5076]

Every one of their bikes were tacky as hell

[@dimebagvinnie644]

But here you are , dying to talk about occ 😂

[@richiedagger733]

@@dimebagvinnie644 hardly, I kind of forgot about them until I was reminded by their recent youtube presence.

[@mrpoizun]

@@dimebagvinnie644 Projection, nimrod.

[@MrBuellMike]

I dig how lots of the riding shots are „mirrored“… big HD-Style V-Twins with their Primary on the RIGHT side, and Teutul Sr. (obviously) riding AMERICAN Country Roads on the LEFT side… hilarious.

[@gwwayner]

'Choppers' might be eye candy, but hugely impractical and uncomfortable on public roads except for glass-smooth pavement in a straight line. A hard-tail with the pitiful thin seat would quickly pound my lumbar region into submission on the frost-heaved back-roads around here!

[@tylergaye5457]

At least actual choppers CAN be ridden comfortable or not. The bikes they made really can't even be ridden.

[@StrGzr101]

Respects, bart. You humbled my attitude toward OCC. Thank you.

[@oceantransistor]

More money more problems. The ego unchecked is detrimental.

[@Nacnud92]

The legend Mikey was always the best part of the show for me. Dude was hilarious.

[@garrettstater7700]

I love how you said his dad didn’t respect him, of course he wouldn’t respect his dads wants when talking about Paul jr being fired, many parents just feel they deserve respect, and even deserve their kid just feeling comfortable around them my parents put me through a lot and they can’t handle the fact that I don’t feel comfortable or safe around them and they try and tell me how I feel about things and have zero respect for my feelings ever and they actively get in the way of me moving forward in my life and still stalk me and track me and even drive by my work cause they think I’m not there it’s creepy and so much they’ve done feels illegal

[@extragoogleaccount6061]

Uhh... that sounds seriously rough. Obviously that paragraph doesnt even cover a few percent of what is going on. But I just wanted to say: Get a lawyer and a therapist! Or at least speak to a lawyer you can return to when something goes sideways with your parents.

[@mignas]

Loved this show back in the day. Usa was still considered a real pinnacle of freedom and this workshop, in my eyes, was a proof of that. Making bikes and a tv show at the same time is a dream come true. I miss times when discovery channels were showing real content. Disc Science channel especially has shown so many real life future predictions (in tech, physics, pharma etc.) that they still continue to manifest 15 years later.

[@hotdog720]

Idk how anyone could listen to these guys talk for 3 seconds and think they would be real nuanced artists.

[@leandergihr9598]

But they gifted us one of the best memes! And probably the only thing I know about this show.

[@Nancoman]

I worked for my dad, who was an Electrical Contractor, for 28 of his 47 years in business, up until the end. The employees used to make fun of us, being like the Teutel's! Honestly, it was just like it, I like to think it was more about him, his business, than me, or me working half my life there, too. It ended with him running the business into the ground, just like OCC.

[@chrisdavidson911]

Snr pulling the contract out over Jnr's arrival time, when he was quite happy to overlook Jnr finishing crazy late most nights, and ultimately firing him for it. That's the guy in one perfect snapshot.

[@tjroelsma]

There was a lot more to it though: Jr was a gifted designer, but he didn't really understand how to build a bike. Vinnie and Sr often ran into problems translating Jr's drawings into reality, but when they needed to change something and consulted him about it, Jr immediately threw a tantrum, which then caused Sr to go ballistic. On other occasions Sr simply didn't like Jr's designs and they clashed over that. Vinnie leaving to start his own shop was in my opinion at least partially driven by him wanting to get away from the endless drama. Many other OCC employees followed suit.

[@mrpoizun]

Junior was a spoiled little twit.

[@walmorcarvalho2512]

@@tjroelsma You are right, but I still give Junior more sympathy because he was more willing to help on the daily operations than his father.

[@danielbeach5947]

This is actually well done. Sometimes I look at the views before I watch something, and things with lower views are often poorly done. But not this, I don't know if your channels just starting but you're articulate and well produced

[@FatMenace]

Videos with low views doesn’t mean it’s low quality. Dumbass.

[@stonecoldprose]

These guys were referred to as "Orange County Clowns" by the chopper guys in Jacksonville.

[@-elijahriggs-]

DUUVVALLLLL?

[@ALmizzle415]

Were those the guys without a show?

[@YouTubeIsNotGood]

​@@ALmizzle415 I doubt they were obtuse cvnts like you and the Teutels

[@sublimebud]

I lump American Choppers in with Deadliest Catch for some reason . Both were pretty cool to come home to after school , burn a doobie and relax after a day of school b.s. I think nostalgia is the word im looking for

[@kimmichaels899]

Sad, many of us Americans have worked our fingers to the bone and never made headway! So be thankful for what you had if you were great even for a minute. Having food and shelter is a blessing for most of us..

[@redfin382]

You can't tell me the fire bike was any less goddy than the snap on bike. I think choppers are ugly. I don't want to be uncomfortable when I ride just so people look at me.

[@deltaskyhawk]

My experience with American management style is that yelling until one gets their way is part of the management style book.

[@rudetoy8264]

Not really, just bunch of lowlife muscle their ways through degraded engineering of otherwise good Harley motorcycles

[@thiaguinhooitodois2211]

My experience with the European management style is that losing WW2 then crying to the U.S. for help is part of their management style book.

[@gumpyoldbugger6944]

@@thiaguinhooitodois2211 dream on mofo.

[@mikesapp3241]

Also we throw wrenches across shops like it’s an Olympic Sport.

[@guffmam6995]

​@@thiaguinhooitodois2211 USSR is in Europe...

[@NitroModelsAndComics]

I come from a patched in biker family. To say that all the chopper madness of the early 2000s was funny might tend to understate it all. I had a jockey shifted, rigid in the 80s as a bar hopper. Laconia and bikes were part of life here in SE Mass. Jesse James and the first part seemed OK to most of us. We even bought Jesse' oil tanks through Easy riders. But Drama is not our thing and the Turttles were anti everything the Bros were about. Hate to say it, but they ain't bikes. And their resale and even ridability is a testament to their designs. A welder does not a builder make.

[@mikeskidmore6754]

No Mention of Paul Sr's Bankruptcy .. You need a Part II to cover all of the Financial Failures of Paul SR. Now he is hooked up with a Reputable guy in Florida Bart an HD Dealer that has at least 2 HD Locations and another location with another Brand.

[@ozzielinkin]

Great episode ! Your description of paul seniors personality sounds just like 45’s personality.

[@biggtrux]

All the "bikes" they built were cartoons. Caricatures of motorcycles.

[@theovertonvoid2869]

Reality TV producer and editor here. AMA.

[@gwynnromano5881]

I got a very close up look one of their bikes. Absolutely beautiful, but obviously not meant to be ridden in the real world. More a showpiece or work of art. As with all of these “reality” shows more BS than reality. Keep in mind that the writers for the Discovery channel created a lot of the drama on all of these shows.

[@acidhermit]

I really liked to watch this show back in the day with my dad. I always preferred their "old school" style of choppers over the flamboyant over the top modern ones, but some of those were also pretty cool too.

[@eightyd2554]

What 50k bikes that are terrible to ride wasnt sustainable?

[@Motocentrick]

I'm not huge into the whole chopper thing, but those bikes were worth more than 50 Grand when they were selling, and the dude made tens of millions of dollars off the TV show. It was pretty sustainable it's not like he went out of business. They are still making bikes to this day

[@k4106dt]

@@Motocentrick I watched a you tube video last week of a tour of the former OCC building of the defunct business. It is now a public storage facility.

[@fific9571]

My husband's father could never be supportive or happy for him. He was jealous of his son's success, pure and simple and putting him down somehow made him feel good about himself. Paul Sr is the same type of father.

[@robrobinette]

Short version: Mediocre bike builder gets reality tv show. They build crap bikes on camera but people keep buying them to be on the show. The show loses it's luster and everyone stops buying their crap and then things get really weird.

[@SophiaDavis-rs3zi]

Hi. I hope my comment didn't sound as a form of privacy invasion your comment tells of a wonderful man with a beautiful heart which led me to comment I don't normally write in the comment section but I think you deserve this complement. If you don’t mind can we be friends? Thanks God bless you….🌺🌺🌺

[@yankeetango]

I enjoyed the show. Got fully invested in the personalities and drama.

[@fearsomename4517]

Vinnie was great. Senior couldn't build a bike if his life depended on it.

[@bartmotorcycle]

🤣

[@mrpoizun]

Wrong. He was the only one who finally built an actual chopper on the show. Junior couldn't build a rideable bike to save his soul.

[@fearsomename4517]

@@mrpoizun Bullshit!

[@fearsomename4517]

@@mrpoizun Bullshit.

[@walmorcarvalho2512]

@@mrpoizun Yeah but the thing is, most of the time Senior just sat around bossing people, while Junior was at least trying to help with the day-to-day: drawing/designing, touching base with the clients and the suppliers, helping with assembly... Now the real heroes of that shop were Rick and Vinnie, those two were the only ones that really knew the trade.

[@mist3h]

I watched this show as a youth and enjoyed it. I’ve never touched a motorcycle or had a drivers license of any type and I don’t really care about motorcycles. I did massively enjoy the welding work, paint jobs, upholstery work and general creativity. The fighting and drama wasn’t very enjoyable to me. I’m also a woman and I’ve never been to the US. I remember finding the family obnoxious and appreciating the non-related employees, who worked tirelessly and had to put up with the toxic work environment. I remember intermittently feeling annoyed with or pitying the family sons. I was never offered to work for my family or relatives. I feel like life is just very different for people who get to coast.

[@heatherporterfield7343]

I have always liked Mikey. He is the kind of guy I would want as a next door neighbor.

[@dimebagvinnie644]

You love the grateful dead too right ? Lol

[@gulfstream7235]

He was the brains of the operation...

[@KevRyanCG]

Man this show got me back in the day, I loved it. But I knew full well it was stupid nonsense as I watched it. My favorite is still Paul giving out about the mess and tools being everywhere and Paul junior saying 'IT'S A TOOL TRAY!'

[@James-sir]

If you send this to Paul Sr. He would be annoyed enough to do a video about you.

[@heatherporterfield7343]

@@James-sir ROTFLMFAO. 👍😁👌🇺🇸

[@TheShape.]

The other CLOWNS spammed the f*** out of hating the Geico bike & the OCC bikes.. then turned into complete p****** once meeting Sr. (even offering to buy a bike)

[@ChannelUmptyThree]

Not a rider but a fan of motorcycles. I honestly don't like the over exaggerated look of some of the motorcycles they built, but I do appreciate the craftsmanship.

[@AlexRye-sv6no]

The fact that anyone believes the drama was real makes me lose hope in humanity

[@rztrzt]

People think WWF is real...

[@thetwogardens6048]

TV is completely Contrived. Total Garbage now . At least TV back in the 60s and 70s was entertaining .

[@ileutur6863]

If it wasn't real, why did the real life business split between father and son?

[@thetwogardens6048]

@@ileutur6863 There was also a split between Daffy duck and bugs Bunny , that was really soul destroying for me .

[@V-max97]

I got my first atv in 2003 and been riding motorcycles and ATVs for over 20 years. My cousins and I were huge fans in our preteen years and I made several trips to occ through the years and got to see their first shop, store, final main building. Regardless of what the bike community thinks of the Tutels they were responsible for introducing motorcycle to suburban America and inspired many people to start riding in the early 2000’s. Even when the show ended and they were still operating in New York they were a pillar of the community up there. Between open mic night and bike events it was the place to be. Not to mention all the tourism they brought to the community. Aside from the restaurant you got to take a full shop tour and got to meet some of the guys. I got to see Jim Quinn work a CNC and got to see senior in a business meeting in his office. When OCC left New York officially because of Covid restrictions (most likely Florida being more business friendly) the local community certainly took a hit. It’s sad to see an empire now a former shell of itself and now a storage facility.

[@DdHenley307]

Jesus that Ferrari bike might the ugliest vehicle I've ever seen. Throw red paint on a Cybertruck and you would have a contender

[@IndyMotoBoy]

Bro, you tell the story like no one was ever alive to see American chopper in the last 10 years 😀

[@cinemabunny]

When Junior was fired, I thought it was unfair to bust his balls over being 45 minutes late yet no mention of them being there until late into the night.

[@papatorr3669]

Well, you did a great video that I enjoyed watching about a show I couldn't bring myself to watch. I saw their motorcycles as impractical works of art. Your take was very kind. I love your videos, Just wonderful.

[@Siskiyous6]

I want a chopper, I am 64, rode most of my life. I have a Royal Enfield 411, very practical. But in my heart I want the joy of something most people will never have, something cool.

[@stupidhead9117]

Choppers are the opposite of cool. It’s not 1978.

[@stupidhead9117]

You’ve already got a cool bike.

[@williambarry8015]

​@@stupidhead9117 people in Thailand absolutely love extreme choppers. They may lose favor here in the west but elsewhere they're more popular than ever.

[@artvertex4152]

The 411 is way more cool than a chopper.

[@jpo1056]

Been there, done that. Have pictures of the police bike and fire bike with friends and myself doing "security" for them at a police/ff hockey game for charity. Both bikes were non functioning, and both were in desperate shape. Senior did not care for them, and it showed. Numerous visits to the Irom works and second location only showed seniors lack of respect for junior, Mikey and Vinnie. My opinion, I could be very wrong...but I doubt it.

[@SophiaDavis-rs3zi]

Hi. I hope my comment didn't sound as a form of privacy invasion your comment tells of a wonderful man with a beautiful heart which led me to comment I don't normally write in the comment section but I think you deserve this complement. If you don’t mind can we be friends? Thanks God bless you….🌺🌺🌺

[@monumentsNmelodies]

American Chopper, not Choppers. How do you do a 19-minute clip on a show and mispronounce the name multiple times? lol

[@ElliottMiller-ud6pr]

I, too, was stunned at that. Dead giveaway the show was not as important/formative to the narrator as claimed.

[@gregvangaasbeek813]

The father always said "Every good thing must come to an end". Your thoughts and words eventually become your reality.

[@janvanaartrijk9673]

This was a terrible show. The bikes were really terrible and I hated all the characters in this show !! Terrible people, constantly acting in a childlike manner.

[@smizmar8]

I was a kid in Australia when this show came out, this era really was the beginning of reality TV. At first American chopper felt so fake, and I had no idea that chopper bikes were a fad at any time anywhere, but I was like 14 or something. Reflecting on this video and my experiences watching it, I think this is what people really wanted when it came to reality TV, to see a narcist "boss" type character struggle, and see the reactions of the people who had to deal with it. To quote Willem Dafoe in Spider man from 2002, "the one thing they love more than a hero... is to see a hero fail, fall, die trying."