Some DK history (more added)

[zed4130]

yep its official i love dk, so here is abit of there history, hope you enjoy it   
DK BMX was founded in Dayton, Ohio, USA by Charlie Danishek in 1979. Charlie's son Bill and daughter Nikki were both accomplished BMX racers, and the Danishek family's love for the sport combined with Charlie's knowledge of manufacturing drove the patriarch to design and assemble his company's first product, the now legendary DK BMX stem. For 15 years after its inception, DK stems defined the state of the art in BMX. DK stands for Dad and Kids.
Bill Danishek : DK started back in 1979 when I was saving money to buy a mo-ped. There was a local track that opened nearby (Kettering Delco BMX track). I saw a flyer for that and instead of buying that mo-ped I decided that I wanted a BMX bike. With that I began converting my bike into a BMX bike. I picked up a pair of Tuff wheels, some Dorsey handlebars with the attached crossbar- which was a huge deal back then. I picked up some chromoly cranks, some rat trap pedals and I was almost good to go. The one thing that really made a bike a true BMX bike back then was a double clamp gooseneck. At this point I had run out of funds and I asked my dad to make me one. he was a toolmaker at general motors so it wasn't to hard for him to make me one, he made it for me and I broke it. We re-desgined it, constructed it, and I broke that one too. we finally got it right and the next thing we know -all the kids in the neighborhood wanted one. The first couple stems said "wild bill, movin matt, peddlin pete, humpin harold, jurnpin jrn, crankin craig, and trick nic -that was my sister nikki. They were all personalized and engraved for about the first year. Then the first actual production run was for K and G bike shop and we called the stems simply K&G stems. Through races and word of mouth more people wanted these stems. We did a run for Barry's bike shop in Florida. Then there was a huge race in Indianapolis called the Jag and we showed our stems there and that's where the DK name really started. At the time our production was done at a state-of-the-art tool center known as GM (laughing) but slowly and surely things started to pick up and we moved the whole operation into the garage at our home. That was the birth of DK right there. It was a family affair. Once we started getting our first pieces of machinery in the garage everybody contributed, me, my dad, my mom, and my sister all spent time drilling stem holes and building the product from the ground up. A lot of my friends earned their free product too -spending time assembling, polishing, and bagging. Everybody spent time in the garage.


and some favourite pics, neil wood ,cool 



oh and my bike ,incase you havnt seen it   

some more 
In 1994/95 DK introduced its first bmx frame.
Bill Danishek : From a manufacturing standpoint it was a natural step for us. We knew the market, we had our finger on the pulse of the market. At the time we were big fans of chromoly and felt our niche market was ready for a DK frame. We felt that dirt jumpers were ready for a chromoly frame. Up to that point it had been all about racing and at the time there were a lot of aluminum frames on the market. Aluminum frames were getting recalled like crazy. We wanted a bike made for dirt jumping and racing and we did it. To this day we still have one of the best dual-purpose bikes out there -the RM59 made for jumping and speed. Thats actually where we came up with General Lee name. The General Lee (car) could go fast and man could it jump- we adapted the same theory on our first bikes.

Charlie Danishek and his son Bill Danishek decided to start a independent BMX retail buisness so they opened americas first all bmx wholesale buisness in 1995.

DK began supplying framesets and bikes in 1997.

1997 DK summer tour : Leigh Ramsdell, Jeff Harrington and Colin Winkleman.

Colin Winkleman is getting a signature bike called the Slightly Over Built (SOB).
Ride UK october 1997 : DK says: the new S.O.B frame was designed to be the strongest freestyle/street frame on the market'. In fact, the DK Slightly Over-Built frameset is basicay a Colin Winkleman signature bike, because he designed it, he refined it, and he tested the prototype for about ten months. It's also DK's first trek into the realms of super strong street ramp frames. The S O.B is built with oversize tubing all round, and we mean oversize: the downtube is 2 inch OD - and remember, this is American made 4130 cromoly, so you just know its strong. The rear end features 1 inch OD stays [just like a Zima frame] and a wishbone/pierced toptube design [like a King or Haro Blammo]. This is fast becoming the strongest way of making a back end. There is also a machined wishbone at the BB shell, and the dropouts are 1/4 inch flamcut. The headtube is also thick and machined. This frame has taken over a year to develop, and DK wanted it 100% right when it came out - it looks awesome, and no doubt it's one of the strongest BMX frames out there. Size wise, there's a 20.5 inch long topube, the rear triangle is 14.5 to 15.5 inches, and the headangle is 74.5°, so it's pretty quick steering. The headtube is 1.1/8 inch for Aheadsets. Like we said, this is American made metal, so you know it's going to go the distance. The S.O B is out right now, and the price for the frame is £303.


General Lee frame designed especially for dirt jumping.
Ride UK october 1997 : As for the new General Lee frame, this is DK's bike designed purely for trails and dirt jumping. Whilst the DK Pro frame is perfect for trails and racing, for those riders wanting something a little stronger then this is it. The General Lee was designed by DK's jumpers, but basically comes with the same geometry as the DK Pro XL, a bike which rode killer anyway. Extra features which are built into the General Lee making it trail safe include a thicker machined headlube, a new dowtube gannet, a pierced toptube wishbone, and fatter seat stays. It also comes with new 1/4 inch flameout dropouts. This frame hangs right up there with the awesome Standard Trail Boss and if you want another closer look at the General Lee, then take another look at the photo of Adam Volk on the front cover. Obviously this bike is spot on for jumping. Volk rules. The General Lee also comes in great colours orange or back, with great retro graphics fresh from Hazzard County - and it goes without saying that this bike is made in DK's factory in the USA with American 4130 cromoly steel. Price £210. Distributed by Hot Wheels.


colin winklemans S.O.B frame


Colin Winkelmann (February 26, 1976 – August 11, 2005) was a professional freestyle BMX rider and is the current (2000) World record holder for 'Longest BMX Jump'. He rode for DK Bicycles[1], taking 2nd place in the 2002 Toronto LaRevolution Street contest.

He started riding as a young child in Okinawa, Japan where his father was stationed at a military base. It was in Japan where he first saw magazines and videos about BMX and freestyle and started trying to do some tricks. He was a fearless rider, attempting stunts such as jumping 116 feet over 13 Ford Explorer sport utility vehicles, for which he earned an entry into the Guinness Book of Records. In July 2004, Colin attempted a stunt that involved a ramp mounted on the hood of a van that was driving toward him as he rode toward it. He failed in the attempt, suffering severe injuries, including breaking both ankles, fracturing a vertebra, and breaking several bones in his wrist. He also dislocated his ankle and right foot. He was a bit superstitious - he put his right pads on before his left pads. Colin bought a house in Greenville, NC, right down the street from the skatepark. When not riding freestyle, Colin liked to ride his 2 street bikes, mountain bike and his go-ped.

Born: COLUMBUS, OH USA Birthdate: 02/26/1976 Height: 5 ft 11 in Weight: 180 lbs. Hometown: GREENVILLE, NC USA Occupation: PRO RIDER / DK PRODUCT DESIGNER / BIKE MECHANIC

Because of his post-trauma depression and loss of ability to ever ride again, Colin committed suicide at 29, August 9, 2005 in Greenville, North Carolina
DK RM59  mirranda's sig frame


robbie mirranda in action


list of dk riders
Mike Ardelean 1997, DK is now sponsoring Midwest top jumper Mike Ardelean. - december 1998 and then riding for Huffy.

Aaron Behnke 2002 - ....

Chris Doyle 1998 - october 2006

Dave Freimuth summer 1997 - december 1998 and then riding for Huffy.

Nate Hanson december 1997 - december 1999

Jeff Harrington 1996 - april 1998

Brian Kachinski

Robbie Morales 1995 - summer1996, DK president Bill Danishek informed Robbie Morales he was no longer going to be their AA Pro .

Leigh Ramsdell 1996 - november 2000, Leigh is leaving DK and riding for Eastern.

Todd Walkowiak april 1998 - july 2000 Todd quit DK and is now riding for Mongoose.

Colin Winkleman end of 1994 - .... product designer, bike mechanic, pro rider.

Neal Wood summer 1996

[ron burgundy]

Cool story, nice one

[perry]

nice 

dad and kids , learnt something new 

[zed4130]

nice 

dad and kids , learnt something new 

i didnt know that aswell ,mate   

[SaMAlex]

Neal Wood left S&M to ride for DK but the frame he rode was a custom S&M, made to look like a DK 

[zed4130]

Neal Wood left S&M to ride for DK but the frame he rode was a custom S&M, made to look like a DK 

thanks for that alex, i knew he left to go to dk form SaM , and went back to SaM, but i didnt know about the frame    was it the six pack frame he used ?

[sonic-1]

when did DK start doin the six pack n any idea what year mine is ?

[TwoBobRob]

Spell the mans name right for fcuks sake   


Colin Winkelmann.      R.I.P.     


One of THE most influential riders of his era.  A little respect please.

[SaMAlex]

Ive got a DK stem in my shed. I think its an early one cos its square backed (rather than the rounded backed one at the start of the thread). DK stems are nice, but I always thought it was a shame they were so thin. I always went for a wider stem like a GT mallet, a TNT (or Redneck).

Havin said that, I think I might use this DK stem on my Mad Dog build, even if it is quite short.

[zed4130]

Spell the mans name right for fcuks sake  


Colin Winkelmann.      R.I.P.    


One of THE most influential riders of his era.  A little respect please.

thats how it was spelt were i got the info from, sorry   
Colin Winkelmann (February 26, 1976 – August 11, 2005) was a professional freestyle BMX rider and is the current (2000) World record holder for 'Longest BMX Jump'. He rode for DK Bicycles[1], taking 2nd place in the 2002 Toronto LaRevolution Street contest.

He started riding as a young child in Okinawa, Japan where his father was stationed at a military base. It was in Japan where he first saw magazines and videos about BMX and freestyle and started trying to do some tricks. He was a fearless rider, attempting stunts such as jumping 116 feet over 13 Ford Explorer sport utility vehicles, for which he earned an entry into the Guinness Book of Records. In July 2004, Colin attempted a stunt that involved a ramp mounted on the hood of a van that was driving toward him as he rode toward it. He failed in the attempt, suffering severe injuries, including breaking both ankles, fracturing a vertebra, and breaking several bones in his wrist. He also dislocated his ankle and right foot. He was a bit superstitious - he put his right pads on before his left pads. Colin bought a house in Greenville, NC, right down the street from the skatepark. When not riding freestyle, Colin liked to ride his 2 street bikes, mountain bike and his go-ped.

Born: COLUMBUS, OH USA Birthdate: 02/26/1976 Height: 5 ft 11 in Weight: 180 lbs. Hometown: GREENVILLE, NC USA Occupation: PRO RIDER / DK PRODUCT DESIGNER / BIKE MECHANIC

Because of his post-trauma depression and loss of ability to ever ride again, Colin committed suicide at 29, August 9, 2005 in Greenville, North Carolina.


that stem will look great alex, 

sonic yours is a 2004 model, it was mine   

[dialledbikes]

DK's a cool company and with deep BMX roots.

I always liked their first race frame (the DK Pro) from when Robbie Morales and Cory Muth were on the team.  I've also got one of those original General Lee's (like the orange one in the pic above - but mine is black) which I picked up used on Ebay for about $160 complete bike with Slams, Kastan cranks, etc.

I'm a bit disappointed that Neal Wood didn't ride a DK when he was sponsored by them.  Neal's always been one of my favourite riders mainly cos he is/was rad as fook on the track and at the trails, but also cos he seemed to "keep it real" (whatever that cliche means).  I thought Neal would have kept it real and rode a DK (though I suppose if it was a DK designed frame made by S&M that he rode, that's a custom built DK, so not that bad really).

[Stace]

 '96 / '97 









 

Will get round to building it up at some point 

[SaMAlex]

I went riding with my mate Geoff on friday. He has got one of those orange General Lee frames, just as his normal bike. Its not any kind of "Build", its just his bike. Although he is starting to think about getting something lighter.

[zed4130]

thats nice stace     and i dont know why more riders dont seem to like dk' s    there nice to ride, ive just got back from trying mine out down the old track, it was sweet, 

[zed4130]

the fames arnt light, but sometimes its the wheels etc, i ran racing parts on my old 6pack, it was much lighter, plus there frames are full 4130, you know they wont break, i took my 4pack/general lee    out today, it was sweet to ride, 20,75 tt and much lighter than my mates bikes, and his has profile cranks, and pitchforks, but his back wheel is heaver than mine ,

[zed4130]

Well I have the bog standard DK Dayton Zed so what could I change on it to make it lighter?. The only thing I have done is put a better front brake on and changed the pedals from DK to Primo .

the wheels mate, made a big difference on my old 6pack, the seat and cranks aswell, tires, stem, bars, i could go on, but the cranks and wheels defo, the standard stems are heavy aswell,

[zed4130]

oh and the forks are pretty heavy, although my mate was surprised how light my new one is, its lighter than my old 6pack was,