I consider(ed) Denny to be a friend.
I hope for the best for him.
I have respect for someone who announces intent to shutter a business and make sit clear he has debt and obligations and is going to make good on them. I have been in that exact position and am glad so many were patient to be paid-except for the accountant who got me charged with evasion! And the attorney who sent me a bill for reading the letter I sent him firing him due to inadequate representation.
So much for my new year resolution-LOL
Anyone looking to build parts for older Rovers should take a long, hard look at how Greg handles it. That's the way to enter the market, and build up a solid, dedicated following and brand. From there you can safely take it to the next level if you want to.
I don't remember what the deal was at this point, and I wouldn't repeat it either way, but I do recall something happened that jostled his ability to continue projects.
Denny was a cool guy, but like many others, he seemed to misunderstand (not underestimate) the commitment required in fabricating custom parts for a niche market. It takes dedication, or at least fixed and highly limited production. It was the disappearance that pissed me off. He was
almost on top of it, but I think those last few rungs of the ladder were just too much.
His level of motivation was high, and his creativity was impressive. Perhaps he went too far in his attempts to respond to the market and innovate without an established, core product line.
Then, nothing. Of course, you know where people are today, but they just land in denial quite often and won't communicate when they get buried. You can be a cool guy all you want, but as soon as you do that, it's over. Some people just hate that reaction, and I'm one of them.
It's not like Columbia Overland, where the guy made great products but is a certified fucking spinster and lemming ready to follow any scheme off a cliff regardless of the fallout, and won't even keep the most simple of promises. Waste of time, that guy. Fuck that shit. I suggest people avoid associating with Alex entirely. He'll present himself as a business professional, but he's a fucking hack.
That comes from direct experience over a lengthy period; not some supposition.
Denny was different. I think he got buried, but I like people that stand right up immediately and say it, rather than leaving designs that everyone could use, and arguably the best
of their kind, to rot in questionable IP limbo.
Coming back years later is too late to correct any financial concerns without the potential of people demanding interest. It's going to suck, but hopefully he'll manage it.
Fallout 4 and 76 annoy me for the same reason. It's hard for someone to jump in there and compete with a niche establishment, and when the guys essentially maintaining the genre fuck it up, what is the consumer to do? Every failure of manufacturing in the Rover industry scares people away from new guys.
Of course, he's
not the sort to have intended any of this. I'm just more critical of apathy than most. Denny was and likely still is a stand-up guy who just bit off more than he could chew in the face of life's obstacles. HLC could have been legendary. Somewhere here I've still got the prototypes for the spherical rod end adapters, actually.
Maybe HLC will be awesome again. I hope so, and I'd even be willing to work with the new owners if required. Their best bet would be to tap Denny as a design resource. He's too good to go to waste.
Columbia can suck my cock, though. What a waste of time that was.
Cheers,
Kennith