Comments on: Preview: Falcon Kestrel

By: Old Fogey

Old Fogey — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 14:39:04 +0000

T’s comment above should be posted at the start of comments on every bike builders page!
This would be a sad old world if we all liked the same thing, but we can all admire the talent, thought, commitment, effort and innovation that goes into producing any of these individual and unique bikes.

By: T

Sat, 15 May 2010 20:38:20 +0000

To anyone out there who is the slightest bit critical of other peoples work (especially work of this caliber)…What have you built lately?

By: Jimmy James

Jimmy James — Tue, 11 May 2010 06:38:24 +0000

Hey Jefferson – no problem, I can somewhat answer your question. First off, the Bullet was completed in a tiny windowless shop in Silverlake that was cheaper than a 1 BR apt, without any employees (some friends donated time, but this was just during final phases). Otherwise it was completely built by Ian. The Kestrel was built in their new facilities which are the larger area you’re talking about. That spot took quite awhile to set up — they made a lot of their own machines (an industrial mixer was made into an English wheel, for instance) and renovated old ones they bought for cheap – again, this takes time as they didn’t have a lot of funds to set up. I do not know their exact financial situation other than I assume they’re functioning like any other start up — with massive loans to finance what they hope is a viable venture.

I know there were many lean years there for Barry, including a couple years (well documented by this point) that he lived in his friend’s backyard in a tent, building bikes and selling them on eBay. His slow climb out of financial destitution has been years long, and now he’s hopefully getting to the point where he doesn’t have to eat ramen any more. Hopefully the Kestrel allows him to sell a future bike for the price it deserves, because he’s earned working his way out of poverty. Hope that clears some vagueness up for you!

By: Jefferson

Jefferson — Sun, 09 May 2010 14:24:06 +0000

It is too bad that people took the fact that I called their first build awesome as an insult to their craftsmanship. I really love their bikes.

However, judging from their website and coverage of their builds they have been around since 2007 (assuming that the Bullet did not just pop out of thin air), employ 5/6 people and rent a considerable industrial space in Los Angeles, and are constantly collecting rare and expensive parts and materials. If they are completing and selling 1 bike every 20 months, even if the bikes cost into 7 figures, how do they keep the doors open?

If you do not know the answer to that question please do not respond in misdirected anger toward me and just think about it.

By: Jimmy James

Jimmy James — Sat, 08 May 2010 07:13:12 +0000

I’m not sure that the fact they’ve only made 2 bikes in 2 years (Jefferson – their first bike was 2008 and their second is in 2010 – that’s not 1 bike in 3 years) means they’re not a real brand. Quality takes time. Frequency of output does not equal value of brand – actually its usually the opposite. You can go get a Deus bolt-on and have it done in a couple days if that validates you. Or you can wait for a craftsman to put out a bike every couple years, and enjoy the results.

Terrence Malick takes 10 years between movies, does that mean they’re not as good as Michael Bay just because he puts out a movie every 2 years?

By: Maruice Poonwhiddle

Maruice Poonwhiddle — Thu, 06 May 2010 19:25:35 +0000

2nd what Swagger said.
Waiting to see what they do with their 10 bikes plus the teaser descriptions on their site is part of the fun.

By: Swagger

Swagger — Thu, 06 May 2010 17:39:46 +0000

I’d imagine, like everyone else out there that’s actually building something….he(they) have to supplement with other forms of income. However looking at the level of craftsmanship that went into the other bike and that’s present in these photos, there’s no reason to think that that a bike every couple years is particularly bad.
You want quick turns? I bet OCC can whip you up something in a couple weeks…