http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=495542
This is how it ended
I figured it was the right time to post this thread. First off, let it be known what I am about to say in this post is 100% true and can be backed up by articles released in many bicycle magazines as well as hands on experience. So I will also state that what I am saying here is not made up and I am leaving out many thing more things that would have you as a person and a rider disgusted .

Ironhorse is done. 100% . For those here who know who I am know this is true and I have not exaggerated this information at all. I kind of wish it was not true.

I was there on the last day at IH. The inventory was all sold. The parts, frames, and pivot kits were sold to a liquidater. I was there, I helped pack up the trucks. All the hard work that many of us put in to this company to succeed by purchasing pivot kits, links, frames, decals etc etc all sold for a measley amount. With the help of others, I had helped provide enough frames and parts for more than five years after the DW link license expired. All sold and the online retailer has NOTHING. Ironhorse was ruined by an incompetent owner as well as shady business deals where the company as a whole lost money but the greedy ones made money.

While at IH, I worked with up to 35 people to have each week people be let go for unnamed reasons. I had my health insurance contribution cut dramatically out of nowhere and it was not during an enrollment peroid. It was so someone could pocket more cash.. I wish IH went down because of the economy but it didn’t. Yes of course there is cuts at any business during times but I would be OK with that as long as peoples family members were not on the payroll that never worked for us. I would be OK with that if inventory was not transferred to an online company at no cost. but it wasn’t. My only thing was IH and the online retailer are owned by the same owners. The things I saw how bikes were being credited that were never paid for.

I am a bicycle mechanic as well and i work for an IBD. I support IBD’s not online retailers that don’t care about the sport only to capitalize by illegal gains. The online retailer claims to have 100% customers service but in reality it was IH customer service who sent out all the parts. Any little complaint by an online customer putting pedals on the wrong way was covered by IH not the online retailer. As many claims that were put down b/c they are not valid, they were still shipped. We would be charged by the online retailer for shipping damage not UPS. When I saw a post here that ” we hope to be your online retailer for bicycles” I was sick. I do understand getting a good price, how could you complain but when IH had IBD’s and the online retailer was selling bikes for less than IH was paying for them you see my reaction. You should understand that these small IBD’s are the bike industry not online. How about this one. I am an IBD I pay $1400 from IH at my costt price and then the online retailer has it for $1000. How could that be. Its b/c when product is free, you can sell it at any cost.

Also, IH has there recall issues that are not known about b/c each time i tried to have a recall issued. I was ignored, almost lost my job. Here are some of the recalls that should be know about:

IH Maverick Full Suspension frames from 2006-2008 will all break b/c of a weak brace.

IH MKIII 2007 rear swingarms will all crack due to incorrect welding at the factory.

Please help and call the CPSC if you had this issue. http://www.cpsc.gov/about/contact.html

There is no Iron horse warranty on your bikes anymore. The online retailer may be able to break down some bikes to cover this up for a while but they have no pivots kits. They cannot order any frames from the factory anymore.

I read in Outdoor magazine that working at bicycle company was the 4th most enjoying job except at IH.

We had good people, we were bringing the brand back but greedy people did this to IH. From my understanding IH is bankrupt, they have no money, no nothing. There is no office. I had set it up to support DW bikes after the license was over but someone needed money and from what i know about the price of what it was sold for, it was chump change .

I am not an angry employee but a person who believes this needs to be brought up to others to see how it is. I have a job that pays me better than IH so let that me known as well as I enjoy my job way more.

There are so many things I could write but let me end off on this, I cannot be sued for this since it is 100% true. I have documentation to back up all of my claims.

Cliff W. is the reason IH is not here anymore as well as the online retailer that has the “great deals”. I am sure that will be over as well. There is no support for you and I apologize. All in All working at IH has helped me meet some really great people like Ska todd and some of you. I had my good times and working at a company like this has shown me who to work for and who not to.

I just figured you guys should know the truth and for those who know me please contact me by PM and leave my name off of this thread.

I am willing to answer any questions you have but if you have a warranty issue I recommend contacting that online retailer and see what speech they have for you already.

The Poster: Wolvesinwolvesclothing was a 100% right in all his post that were removed.

Its a shame someone wants to threaten lawsuits over the truth. Just remember if you want to sue, you have to go on the stand as well. I guess like father like son.

Sell your horse or ride till its dead but from my stand point, I gave my bikes away as well as anything that had to do with IH. I am fine with my direction in life but I am sad for others like an employee who worked for that man for 26 years and got nothing, no appreciation. At one point years ago IH took there pension plan and spent it without the employers knowing it.

Good luck and I hope this clears things up. I know the online retailer sponsors this thread and MTBR and moderators please contact me for confirmation of everything i have written. I can confirm everything and back it up. If this thread is removed, it is because MTBR wants to keep getting paid by a fraud online retailor. I hope this stays but if it doesn’t I recommend getting a new bike as well as going to another forum due to the conflict of interests.

bloody hell I was looking at buying an Iron Horse 6 point 4 too

glad I havent as yet

I was looking at a 6 point 6. Think i’ll look else where.

that’s a shame, always fancied a Sunday,

hope you do all right wherever life’s undulating trails take you!

all those sunday riders who said mr hill made a bad move will be eating their words. especially when they need spares!

first DW, then their star biker. those on the inside seemed to know.

Never liked the name Iron Horse

Flipping heck.

You should go into the office with a hunting rifle.

Better inspect my MkIII for cracks. Then save up for a Pivot or Turner.

EEK

kiwijohn – just get a Giant

Yep
Nope.

is that Kiwi for something? 😕

More or less.

Sounds like a clusterf*ck of epic proportions.

I feel for the bloke as he has obviously been treated like dog-do.

Telling people though that their frame will definitely fail due to a manufacturing error after stating that there is no longer any warranty or back-up support is a bit shitty though. All that will happen in the UK is that when an Iron Horse frame fails a disgruntled customer will go back to the bike shop waiving a copy his post demanding a new frame whether the frame failed due to a manufacturing defect or not. In the UK all I can see coming out of his rant is angry customers and people slagging off their LBS and Jim Walker.

As the end user, the contract will be with the shop, not the company. Could be complicated with warranty issues arising now…

My Sunday will be staying, I like it too much to sell just because the company has gone bust 🙂

When there’re no more frames & no more spares, what’s a shop going to do? Not a lot, I imagine.
Might be looking for a new frame sooner than I wanted to. Can’t get a DW link frame cheap anymore, so might get another HT.

WTF – did you all just take a ‘gullible pill’? I mean, I’m not saying that this isn’t true, but this guy’s ‘account’ (more like bitter, twisted rant) does read like a fake eBay listing, you know the sort, where the illiterate runt tries really hard to make it sound genuine but clearly comes across as being a lying toe rag.

Of course it might be true, but people seem to be taking it at face value.

GeeTee – I’d take it as 100% genuine seeing as Ska Todd posted it up on Ridemonkey’s Sunday tuning thread (if you know who he is it might just change your mind). 😉

No no, I’m very happy to change my mind. I was just surprised that an audience as cynical as the STW massive suddenly seemed so willing to accept an uncorroborated (within the realms of the thread) statement. Usually you have to have a BBC Radio 4 documentary made on a subject before the STW massive will accept it as true!

The rumours about Iron Horse going under have been going around for quite a while now. How much is true, who knows.
The rumours of money being syphoned out of a doomed company are certainly disturbing.

on SDH. dunno where its ccome from. seems to be the importer.

“The forums have been buzzing all day with rumours about the demise of mountain bike brand Iron Horse. We spoke to UK brand manager Martin Astley to get the truth.

He told us that Iron Horse’s parent company has gone bust, but assured us that the brand looks set to be sold to a new owner.

Martin insisted that, contrary to internet gossip, warranties would be honoured and people with Iron Horse bikes would still be able to get replacement parts.

He told us: “The truth is that World Wide Cycle Supply, the company that owns the Iron Horse brand, along with K2, Columbia Sportswear and Jeep Bikes, has gone bust. K2, Columbia and Jeep have been sold to a new company formed by Worldwide employees called East Coast Cycle Supply.

“The Iron Horse brand will be sold to somebody – the deal is being done at the moment – so although people are saying Iron Horse has ‘gone under’ that’s not the case at all. Iron Horse will continue, it’ll just have a different owner. We don’t know who it is yet, but we should know next week.”

Martin insisted Iron Horse owners had nothing to worry about, saying: “We (Iron Horse’s UK importers Jim Walker) will continue to do warranties in the UK and we are planning to continue forward with Iron Horse. Whoever buys Iron Horse, we will continue to work with them.

“We don’t want Iron Horse customers to panic. We will continue to service their bikes and we still have parts. A lot of the stuff that’s been said on forums isn’t accurate. Hopefully we’ll be able to make some kind of announcement next week.”