Tonic Fab

Fall Guys / Loochin' / Bonus Section / Black Angels

2008-05-14T14:18:00.000-07:00

Some Fall Guys will be ready to be painted and shipped at the end of the month, so if you'd like to enjoy Fall Guy-dom this summer, let me know!

Looch got 2nd over-all (pro/semi)and won Jr. X in dual slalom on this Howie last week-end at the Fluidride race. Sweet!

Building the Underground Bonus Section. Melvins Soundtrack? NW Classics. Now go ride.

New Black Angels album is out. Those with a few bucks and tuned-up ears should indulge themselves.

-L

Build It!

2008-05-13T09:58:00.001-07:00

Howdy. Outta town visiting my fam. Saw this with Mom. Good stuff.

Just a few recent photos.

Supernauts are coming together. If a bike can be described as "muscular" this is it. These chainstays can really stay the chain.

Chainstay Yokes going to the heat treater. We shipped the Dukes of Chazzard Howie last week which means everything is gone. For the moment.

With a tear in his eye, P-Funk sold his Superbird, and built this sweet road bike for "racing triathlons." Did I hear that right?

Charlie and Aaron's trails are getting dialed. Our Jam Date is set for June 1st.

Berm-to-Gap-Out. Pinner line. Speaking of pinners, Charlie and Aaron got 4th and 5th in Semi-Pro at last week-end's Fluid Ride race. Congrats!

More black frames. If you'd like a black frame, expect a strange decal color.

"Tiny Dancer" Bike Check

2008-05-07T09:16:00.000-07:00

Here's my final "bike check." I'm getting a new bike soon, so here's the final version of my rig. Not much has changed over the years..tires are probably the biggest difference from when I first set the bike up.

Damn near 5 years old..Yikes! I'd say my bike is set-up fast and loose.

My bike is covered in all kinds of sweet prototype decals. Like this woodgrain set.

I've got a few nice parts on it. Thomson stem. Can't go wrong there.

Profile Madera Rear Hub. I drilled/cut down/chamfered the axle. That's my "mod."

Disobey Face.

My brake lever is pretty sweet. I "rawed" the end of it with my finger.

Oh yeah! Bikes and Dogs and Dirt.

A little street ridin'.

Frame: Fall Guy.
Fork: Sherman Jumper. Stiffened with a shim-on-spring.
Grips: Odyssey Gary Young
Bar: Truvativ DH. 2" rise x 28" wide. (new bars hopefully soon!!!)
Stem: Thomson X4
Brake Lever: Avid
Rear Brake: ?
Cable: Odyssey Linear.
Headset: Chris King
Seat: Odyssey Junior
Seatpost: Thomson
Seatpost Clamp: Yes
F.Wheel: Atomlab Wheel
R.Wheel: Madera Dexter Hub / Atomlab rim 12t driver. LSD
F.Tire: Primo Dirt Monster
R.Tire: Intense Microknobby
Chain: Yes.
Sprocket: Profile Imperial 28t
Cranks: Profile Madera 175
Pedals: DMR

Posting 2 Ninja videos in 2 days? Ninja Terminator.

Who's Talkin' Nau?

2008-05-06T09:45:00.000-07:00

An absence of fresh riding photos or anything to say bike related.

Well, hold that. Thanks to everyone who decided to get a Fall Guy from this first batch. Those went fast.

We've got another batch that should be ready to go at the end of this month, so if you are thinkin' about it, and you read this blog, you know what to do. Send me a deposit and color choice. Ride a Fall Guy to work, and it'll pay for itself by 2012. Or I'll eat my hat.

Speaking of bike sales..we still have a Dukes of Chazzard Orange Howie without a home.

What else...we are making a small run of Supernauts. Crazy to imagine this, but each one had a home until know. Unfortunately one of those homes has encountered some unexpected medical expenses, and now a Supernaut is available.

Enough sales pitches. On to Random Thoughts.

"HIGH CLASS, if you ain't rollin, bypass
If you ain't holdin, I dash yo.."

Nau Clothing. Nau out of business as of last Friday.

Over 60 people will lose their (probably good paying) jobs. I've been on the sharp end of that stick. It sucks.

Incredibly, Nau donated nearly $225k to good causes in it's short life.

Nau blames “.. the current highly risk-aversive capital market, we simply could not raise the necessary funds to continue to move forward.”

I don't understand their failure. There's nothing radical or original about their business model.

Connecting the dots on some cultural trends People With Money pay attention to and sourcing out of China is hardly original.

That's a fairly well traveled and successful path.

As far as clothing companies go, American Apparel is far better at smashing "business paradigms" than Nau. And taking far greater risks.

What's wrong with taking a page from the the small scale entrepreneurs and artists they associated themselves with on their website? Start small.

I'll readily admit my understanding of business is in it's infancy, but who knew Goods would out live Nau?

Why does this Ninja movie look more like showdown between Portland hipsters? Don't bother with why. Just enjoy this clip.

-L

Dialed-In

2008-05-02T10:41:00.000-07:00

Freeride is a strange term. I really don't know what it means..it's an "everything and nothing" label.

For riders like P Funk, Freeride is all about the the B's: Bowed-Legs, Back-Wheel- Landings, and his favorite pro rider, Bobby Bourdin. Or was that Bender?

For myself...? I like riding XC, and doing some jumps along the way. I ride a light bike, with clipless pedals, and the crotch pad in my shorts is the only "armour" I wear.

Anyway, Post Canyon has a lot to offer. You can pedal around all day, ride some stunts, or not, shuttle, or not, and just have a fun day on your bike. I guess it's mostly considered a "Freeride" area, but it can accomodate a huge variety of riding styles and abilites. Take a couple minutes and fill out this survey if you ride here.

Now for some dialed set-ups:

Billy, dialed.

Kent's bike is still in customs, but it's dialed.

-L

Tonic Owners Club

2008-05-01T08:13:00.000-07:00

You've seen Nathan's riding here before. I'm really looking forward to seeing him ride at our jam.

NICE! Sweet table.

We put gyro tabs on Quebec Fred's bike, and judging by this photo..they work! What's up with those two having a cell phone session while the sun is out and there's a park to ride? Probably talking to eachother.

-L

99 Problems....

2008-04-30T08:41:00.001-07:00

Billy at Thrashbike. To quote Team Robot: Billy's got 99 problems, but a ditch ain't one.

-L

Photos of bikes and riders!

2008-04-28T07:20:00.000-07:00

The Baaron on concrete. PFunk and the Baaron escaped some not-so-nice weather a couple week-ends ago with a little road trip to Yreka. Nice riding.

PFunk and I did some street riding last Friday. The cool thing about having your own bike company is that a tuck over a little hip still gets you a free bike. That you eventually pay for.

A table over the same hip. Street riding is fun.

Any interest in these? This is a rare Mavic XY 24" rim. It's a race rim that's long been out of production, but I've got a source for a decent supply of them. Good choice for your "Ulitmate Fall Guy Build."

Abbitt sent in this photo of this bike. Now, how about some riding buddy?

Hey Olympics! Jumping out of pool is cooler than jumping into one! Inman ad for Lotek. Damn.

-L

Tonic Fab Reduces Trade Deficit!

2008-04-25T07:04:00.000-07:00

As of Febuary 2008, our trade deficit with China sat at about 38 Billion USD.

We recently shipped a Howie to China. This means Tonic has put a dent in that figure somewhere on the order of 0.000000001842%!! First round is on us America!

A Howie somewhere in China..

Looch..

The pain in his knee became enough to go see a doctor. Turns out he rode both the Fluidride race, and Thrash Bike with a broken knee-cap!! He'll be out for a few weeks..which means he'll be healed up for our Jam. Weather has been pushing this back..

If you answer "Who's got the 10 1/2?" with "Best Black Flag Album" you might enjoy this chart I saw on HTATBL...

I heard this guy just moved around here. Andrew Burke. I saw this at Foyer Clothing. Pretty cool reel if you've got a few minutes.

-L

Welded and Machined Stuff

2008-04-22T09:09:00.000-07:00

Greg Melms sent some sweet stuff over. How incredible is this fork??? He's considering making them available to the public. They ain't gonna be cheap, but they will be about the sweetest way to hold a front wheel in your bike ever made.

Duchamp would be proud. And JMC.

Greg's also been applying his magic to some more commonly available bike parts. Check out this Superstar(?) Stem and tighten-from-the-bottom top cap.

If you are going to run a rigid fork..check this out. This is a one-off Fall Guy with a lowered down tube. This makes clearing a suspension fork crown impossible, but it's perfect for running rigids. Much stronger, and no added weight.

"Looking down the barrel of a gun.." Nope..Supernaut headtube. You can't tell much in this photo, but this is a trick part. Would you like a Supernaut? We are building a few protos..right now actually.

Supernaut chainstays. This bike is coming along.

-L

Tim - Not Eliminated!

2008-04-21T12:50:00.000-07:00

Tim from NY sent in this photo of his new coated Fall Guy.

Tim's major goal this season was getting X-Factors dialed in.

Since getting his Fall Guy, Tim's X-Factors are not only dialed, he's actually got a new variation called the Xander-Roll. Pronouced "Zander Roll," its a Vander-Roll X-Factor. Wild!

-L

Booster Shots

2008-04-18T07:15:00.000-07:00

Fall Guys. Tony figured out how to turn the drop-outs in the lathe. Smooths the transition between the 2 welded parts. Tonic Fab is a sweatshop. A detail-sweatshop. Anyway, I can't believe it..this batch of Fall Guys is now spoken for. One of these bikes is getting a unique graphic treatment.

Ryan blasting his Howie and checking his tire pressure.

Ryan's got pop.

Chaz, blazting . Thank Paul for this photo. Heal-up buddy!

Chaz loves risk. This restaurant requires anyone ordering this particular burrito to place some form of identification on the table while they eat "in case of emergency."

This is interesting.

The Sustainable Car Chase

2008-04-17T06:35:00.000-07:00

Hollywood faces unique a challenge.

How to respond to growing public concern about the condition of our environment, without abandoning traditional story telling devices such as a car chase or trip to outer space?

Directors are beginning to calculate both the actual and theoretical "Carbon Footprint" of their work.

For example, car explosions.

Cars exploding from either impact or gun fire can be found in virtually every major release. Studios are now purchasing Carbon Credits as a solution to offset the pollution generated from burning these vehicles.

Other changes are more subtle. When Earth is threatened by Space Aliens, Hollywood writers have traditionally sent humans into space to defend the planet. Green thinking is questioning that long commute.

By waiting for the Aliens to come to earth, the battle is kept local. This greatly reduces the "Theoretical Carbon Footprint" of the battle. The communties leveled by waging war with Space Aleins also creates new opportunites. Rebuilding cities destroyed by the aliens creates good paying, local jobs. It's a win/win situation.

Anyway, here's an example of a car chase you can enjoy with a conscious. Very little fossil fuel was used in this scene.

-L

Clicked / The Dukes Of Chazzard / Mirage.

2008-04-16T08:26:00.000-07:00

TKC comes through again with great photos.

Billy Clicked. Liquid Dirt is a site I check on the regular.

Billy, opposite Table across a hip.

Looch. This is called "on point."

Here's a close up of Chaz's 3 year-old Fall Guy. Clapped out is being too kind.

I think we'll call this orange the "Dukes Of Chazzard."
If you'd like a Dukes of Chazzard Howie, get on it. It's the only one left. Then no more for a while.

No, it's not a Mirage! That's a Campy Mirage hub converted to a female axle.

Thrash Bike Wrap-Up

2008-04-15T07:39:00.000-07:00

Billy and Looch had an incredible time at Thrash Bike. Sounds like fun, well attended and well run event. TKC came through with excellent photos, as usual.

Although Tonic Fab does not care about contest results, Billy winning Pro at this Ditch is pretty cool. Congrats Billy.

I think the heat was a bit of a shock for Billy and Looch. It knocked Billy out for the trails day. Anyway, standing in the center here is Mike from Atomlab. One of the best guys in the industry.

Billy, cranked.

Nice.

Here's Looch modeling a Profile Retro shirt. Sweet!! Profile is also making a run of 40th anniversary cranks.

YES!!

Looch gets busy at the ditch.

Looch is riding an Orange Howie. I think we'll offer it as a stock color. We got a few Howies painted yellow too. I like the yellow.

-L

Thrash Bike

2008-04-14T07:56:00.000-07:00

Looch and Billy went down to Thrash Bike is San Diego.

Teisuke got some photos. Could could a bike company get a better distributor?

Rob L. is going to have trouble finding Looch's Orange Howie in this photo.

Billy's grey Howie. This is also how many Howies are still for sale.

-L

Minty

2008-04-13T08:57:00.001-07:00

Quick Update.

If you are waiting for a Mint Green frame, this is for you.

I had some forest green decals made to see how they would look against the mint. I think tone-on-tone is pretty happening, but I also think terry-cloth golf shirts are bad-ass.

If you'd like these instead of black decals on your frame, lemme know.

Would you like to see this for other colors? Again, lemme know.

These will look great right before being torn off.

I think I correctly changed the settings so comments can be left without a google account.

-L

Week In Photos / Fifa

2008-04-11T07:30:00.000-07:00

Just a few photos from the past week or so.

Brett from New Zealand sent this in. Something tells me he could fill a football stadium with a lecture on how to achieve this for yourself.

Other People's Kid Photos. Usually the last thing you want to see, but who isn't going to laugh at this?

I may play a Pinner on television, but The Baaron is the real deal. This photo is from Pinkbike's coverage of the Fluidride race.

Fall Guy production is rolling along. The transition from Potential Fall Guy Rider to Actual Fall Guy Rider is something I recommend experiencing at least once in your life.

P Funk is wearing an old Stump 503 shirt. I have one too, and it's one of my favorites. Erik J. does good work.

I broke out my old Dyno Helmet last week. The cool thing about this helmet is that it totally protects the rider from hearing people laughing (at them.)

You know what? I don't know how they get the paint in there either.

I'm sure that Other People's Dog Photos are as bad as Other People's Kid Photos. Just close your eyes.

This is rad.

-L

I Got High / Carpet Killer.

2008-04-10T08:34:00.000-07:00

We met Ryan a couple of years ago at this indoor jam Tonic oganized. Tony made custom belt buckles for winners of various categories.

I really wanted to win the high jump competition. I thought I had a fair shot at it. First prize was the "I Got High" buckle. Turns out I wasn't even close to winning. A kid named Ryan won I Got High, and I can't say I wasn't insanely jealous. Anyway, Ryan was looking for a new frame, and decided to get a Howie. He wanted Kelly Green. We've never done a green like this, and I think it turned out well. Anything we can do to keep Ryan high is cool with us.

Nick Brandeth. This e-mail's subject was "Yes!" I imagine his land-lord would have an etirely different reaction. Anyway, Nick's an amazing photographer who I think you'll be hearing more about. He's got some work on the Atomlab site.

Nick. I think he rides a custom Brooklyn Machine Works.

-L

Goose Egg

2008-04-09T07:44:00.000-07:00

Race reports from Team Robot?

I've heard racing in California ain't worth the drive. Soil Saloon begs to differ.

The Fluidride series has the Robots Excited. Good courses, close to home.

Los Tonics, riding in Robot Mode, went downhill faster than many humans! Looch got 3rd (Jr. X). Chaz and Aaaron, 4&5th (Semi-Pro) and P Funk, 8th "in his category."

I'm waiting for a "sub-beginner" class to be created so I can race with results too.

Sea Otter's huge price increase has resulted in some idle time for the Robots which could be applied to a short, but sweet NW trails safari.

Feeling broke? Go hiking. It's usually free.

-L

Berm Burner / Sweet Joints / FBM R&D

2008-04-08T10:10:00.000-07:00

Looch checks in with some nice riding at his local trails. Looch and Billy are going to to Thrash Bike this weekend.

TKC just recieved some Howies, and took some nice photos. We'll be shipping more this week, so hold on Japan!
As far as Howies go..they went! We only have one more available in Mint. To anyone who bought one, thank you very much.
Some Fall Guys are coming though and we should be able to ship at the end of the month. If you'd like one, get on it.

FBM Research Team At Work.

-L

Chickens, Dies, Parties

2008-04-07T10:50:00.000-07:00

When you are taking care of chickens sometimes a little help is nice. Although accepting help from a dog may represent a lapse of judgment..

What happens if you own an older Fall Guy, and love new Tonic Finish? Send it in an get it re-finished, or simply live on wondering what could have been.

Some Blue Howies buttoned-up and ready to go.

Tony is making some bending dies. These will allow us to form the chainstays on the new track frame. This bike is going to look incredible.

Speaking of chainstays, here's some Fall Guy chainstays in process..

Here's a nice Fall Guy from Wisconsin.

Aaron Lutze had a great little pump track / BBQ party at his house last week. I"m not a pinner, but I do play one on television. This tire is part of my pinner costume. Its a 1.75" Intense Micro-Knobby. A very fast tire (even if you aren"t.)

Aaron, charging it.

Rocker Dave. Someday, he hopes to drink a beer on Oprah.

P-Funk at warp speed. I don't think the pump track could be ridden faster. I suggest a 4 lap average time to determine the Master Pumper.

Cory Tepper. Good shooter, and rode the crap out of the track too.

-L

John Cardiel

2008-04-03T14:14:00.001-07:00

Sorry about the lack of news. 2 days is about 2 years in Internet time. For some reason I haven't been able to load photos. This is a bummer, cause I got loads.

Videos seem to work.

I really don't know anything about skating. I learned about John Cardiel on an episode of "Epic Later'd" on Vice TV. Jon broke his back badly a few years ago when a truck hit him, and wasn't supposed to be able to walk. He's getting around pretty well now, and riding a bike.

His skating was pretty nuts. Very Josh Stricker. 17 seconds into this video is probably the raddest thing ever done a skateboard.

-L

The Snot Rocket / Iggy's Words

2008-03-28T12:47:00.000-07:00

Alfred Bobe is New York City bike messenger who's been riding this Tonic for the past 2.5 years. This frame has won Monster Track twice, and is used everyday in one of the hardest environments I'm aware of. Alfred's been a huge supporter of Tonic, and I'm very grateful to have such a quality individual riding for us. He's really encouraged us to go forward with our track frame, and that's exactly what we are doing.

Here's a little nugget from Iggy Pop:

21st Birthday

On my 21st birthday we opened for Cream. I had spent the day transporting a two-hundred-gallon oil drum from Ann Arbor to Detroit so that we could put a contact mike on it and Jimmy Silver would hit it on the one beat of our best song. I got it up three flights of stairs into the Grande Ballroom, by myself, and then we discovered that our amps didn't work. And when we went out onstage everybody yelled, "We want Cream! We want Cream! Get off, we want Cream!"

I'm standing there, having taken two hits of orange acid, going, "Fuck you!" It was one of our worst gigs ever.

I went back to Dave's Alexander's house with him. I was heartbroken. I thought, My god, this is 21. This is it. things are not going well.

Dave's mom served me a cheeseburger with a candle in the middle of it. The idea was to keep going and things would get better. Don't give up.

7000 Words!

2008-03-27T10:08:00.000-07:00

The great thing about photos is that each one is worth 1000 words.

These 7 photos represent 7000 words. It would take a long time to read 7000 words. Even if those words somehow created a story to make reading them more interesting.

Anyway, here's a cool old BMX brand I've recently become aware of. RRC. 4 Great Ideas.

Greg Melms checks in with some updates, including a new fork for his 26" bike.

These drop-outs are incredible.

Greg's also got a 24" super-cruiser in the works. Them's 13.75" chainstays.

Still buzzing about the pump track. Sooo fun.

OK. I know what you are thinking.."What's with all the frame-on-a-scale photos? That's lame." OK, you are right. This is last one. It's a painted Fall Guy.

Chaz at speed.

Raya, checking out the dirt work.

-L