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lololololloll goooood luck. They are also now selling through Tucker so maybe try to email tucker. I did get a response after some time but it's just a an absolute nuisance. I am on Pro Taper & the Answer Rider Support Programs, both ran through Tucker now. If things do not look up by end of season i'll be switching away from all house of tucker brands
contactus@tucker.com
Maybe some back story - Tucker, in a mass layoff - let go all the Answer and Pro Taper employees that were in their California office back in 2020. Only 1-2 stayed on...but have since left, and everyone who gave sh!t about those companies has either quit or been fired. Now i don't know what's going on there, but it will never be what it once was. The brands will always be around, but the soul of those companies will not.
Maybe it was a blessing, because now I work for a better company that gives a sh!t about moto and wants our industry and sport to grow.
A little history about this company. It was originally named Ed Tucker Distribution. They merged in the 80’s to make it Tucker Rocky.
Tucker owns Protaper and Answer (in the 80’s, they also owned Race Ready)
Their down hill spiral is a typical corporate America story.
For many many years, MSR was marketed as off-road while Answer was MX. Tucker Rocky actually developed the original cross-bar less handlebars after originally bringing to market the then state of the art Answer Alumilites. Thus the creation of now ProTaper.
The parent company which owned Tucker Rocky CEO was getting towards retirement age, and handed the company to his son; JA Lacy. This is where the end of Tucker Rocky ie Answer, ProTaper, MSR, and an assortment of others started.
J.A. Lacy wanted to put his name on the company when his dad turned the business over, and phased MSR out - and for the most part, phased even Answer out of the game with no pro level support.
They closed down all offices, and forced all employees to their Fort Worth Texas headquarters.
J.A. Lacy definitely stamped his name on it, and then wrote it alongside the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing paperwork.
For everyone @ Tucker Rocky, thankfully Monomoy Capital Partners bailed the company out of extinction. Thus after Chapter 11, the name was changed to just Tucker.
Now, it’s all corporate America. Numbers.
They could care less about you, the sport, quality, or their employees - only numbers.
They were considered part of the big 3 along side Parts Unlimited and Western Power Sports. Soon, it will be down to power 2….
Enjoyed that history. I had the same issue with customer support multiple times so...I'm not a customer anymore
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I worked at tucker rocky in ny in the mid to late 90s. They were partnered with bikers choice harley parts. It was always a shit show and they left the area long ago.
When investors come in and buy up companies they no nothing about usually does not end well. I used to work at white brothers and left before they were bought out. Once the investors took over it was a short time after they shut the doors.
To answer your question, read Benny's post....they don't give a F about your email. Sorry about that.
Someone will come in here and try to do damage control, but we know.
Welcome to the winning world of Renthal
That sucks. I emailed info at protaper . com in 2021 about a clutch perch and someone responded in 3 days.
I have also emailed them asking about several different part #s that have been out of stock for 6 months plus. Never received replies to multiple emails. Don't even know how they sell anything seems like one of the most unprofessionally ran businesses I've ever encountered.
“For many many years, MSR was marketed as off-road while Answer was MX. Tucker Rocky actually developed the original cross-bar less handlebars after originally bringing to market the then state of the art Answer Alumilites. Thus the creation of now ProTaper. ”
Actually… Eddie Cole started/ owned both Answer Products and Pro-Taper. Tucker Rocky had nothing to do with either company, until Eddie sold them. A good friend of mine was the one who helped develop the Pro-Taper (cross bar-less) handlebar, while working for Eddie/ Pro-Taper.
https://www.motorcyclepowersportsnews.com/many-choices-only-one-ansr/
Haha i'm in that photo with Hannah and Cole...i've never seen this before. Thanks for that link!
So that's what happened to them...
Definitely. Usually when a company is getting ready to sell, they start to downsize payroll, usually by making one person do the job of three or four people. Then they give the numbers over to the potential buyer like, “look how efficient our employees are and how low are overhead is!” Then they sell, the new owners don’t know shit, and the employees are overworked and quit or get laid off, then they either sell the business again or file for bankruptcy.
Bummer answer gear is my favorite. Their new stuff has been awesome, but alongside some kinda ugly stuff. Would love to see a resurgence in such a historical brand.
That's a sad riddle. Not easy to grow market share like ProTaper did and lots of people like the bars.
Once Parts Unlimited buys them you should be able to get some answers. So hold on a bit lol.
Pit Row
I could totally see Parts Unlimited buying Pro Taper
how does Hayes fit in? Hayes sells pro taper parts on the bicycle side. theyre a small outfit but provide great CS.
I think that has been a separate thing for a long time. I don't think tucker even sells the bicycle stuff themselves.
The rumor of PT being for sale has been going on a while now so maybe the new owners will do a better job with them.
I did not make that up out of thin air lol so we’ll see how the next few weeks go…
Been waiting for this thread since I left Pro Taper in 2018.
I was the only customer service representative for the company at that time. It was owned by MAG then (they also owned Renthal during that time period but sold back to Rosenthal, more on that later).
It was by far the best job I’ve ever had. Helping riders/parents of riders find the right bar they needed gave me so much fulfillment and I finally felt like I found my purpose.
Enter the President of MAG (I will spare names cuz he has since moved on to ruin another company probably). This guy was a real piece of work. His office was 5ft away from me and he watched me like a hawk stalking his prey. After I completely changed our procedures/processes to further help our customers and create an all new sponsorship program, this douche canoe comes up to me one day and says “you need to focus on sales, not helping people.” I tried in the nicest way possible to explain why the motocross community and our customers need this type of customer service and he was so focused on sales and EBITA etc. that he just didn’t want to listen to anything I had to say. The business slowly started to fall from there. They sold Renthal back to Rosenthal because Renthal’s business/marketing model was focused around racing and they didn’t want to develop new products. I remember the president saying “Renthal will be dead in 5 years because they’re business model is terrible.” Great incite there lol.
I left because I could see the writing on the wall. Crazy that one single person’s greed can destroy an entire business.
Anyway, long story long, buy Renthal. It’s a better product with way better quality control and employees that are passionate about the industry.
I once emailed you some questions about grip glue and you sent me some free grip glue, donuts, and a set of grips. I only bought Pro Taper after that. Still is the best customer service story I’ve ever had.
I switched to Pro Taper in 2020 because their Fat Bar has a better feel. And now after reading all this, I’ll stick with Renthal for good.
Lots of MAG refugees here it seems. I worked in the retail side and left in October 2017. It was as much of a shitshow as people say. Lots of people high up making stupid decisions and when it would inevitably fail, they would get promoted out of their position and a mid-level manager would get fired. I was a mid-level manager. lol
Edit: This isn't just bitterness talking because of my situation. I could start a helluva online powersports retailer with guys they whacked.
Are Protaper bars made in China?
When I was working for them I was told the manufacturing changes constantly based on the cost. Some were made in the states, others were made wherever they could get the best deal. In contrast, Renthal makes all of their bars in one facility in the UK.
The whole idea of “focusing on sales” goes out the window in my opinion based on customer service experiences like this. So glad I could help back then and I hope more companies in the industry stay customer focused.
I would argue you were focused on building the brand which directly leads to increased sales. You were building guaranteed repeat customers.
That explains the quality control problems you talked about. I have yet to find a made in listed on any Protaper bar or packaging. I think the grips might say where they are made.
Post a reply to: Riddle me this Pro-taper....