Folks Of Interest Fatman Fabrications

I agree people have the right to be angry and frustrated not knowing what is going on, the reality is if it’s with lawyers is he may be being told not to say anything, again none of us actually know. As frustrating as it is for customers it sounds like the poor guys entire life is falling apart around him.

 

If the business is actually legally dissolved, there is no way anyone can legally call past customers of the business and discuss business matters as a representative of the company. I'm not sure if Mr. Overhaul is aware of that or not, but his ranting could be nothing more than trying to bait a good person into doing something wrong. If the facts are correct, time will tell what arraignments were made to deal with the customers. The purpose of this thread is to show support to both the customers current and potential, who have now been notified to be careful until this is resolved, and the company who has done so much in the past for the hobby and community we all participate in. Lets keep the thread to those purposes and not become a rant and vent thread that will be locked and removed.

 

Well said, but you are correct,no one knows the true story. Quite rightly, those who paid for products they'll never receive are angry. And with so many types of social media, some explanation somewhere by Fatman might have gone a long way to resolving some of the issues. Communication never seems to be an important part of almost every small business. I hope some truths and methods of recovery will come to light soon.

Please do an intro. Three posts, all complaints, doesn't give much credence to your statements.

 

I am going to guess, just guessing. He did everything he could do to save the business. Probably used his all savings and borrowing abilities to keep things going. Then something else forced him to close. Whether it was a supplier calling in their debt with a sheriff sale or some form of government forcing the closure.
This hobby is not as big as we like to think it is. There is not as much money to be made as most people think there is. The new car manufactures think of making 1000's of items. A business like this thinks of making 10's

 

I’m finally going to say it, despite the fact that many are not going to like it:

There is no situation in which he went out of business in December and did not know this was inevitable in November, when he was still taking orders. Especially considering that the business was over 20 years old. He knew what he was doing.

Sorry, but there is also no situation in which this was the right thing to do.

 

Unfortunately, it can be human nature to not want to face the bald ugly truth. It is valiant to "fight to the death" to try and save a failing business, but it is never a good idea to continue taking deposits when things are uncertain.

I have some experience with this. My wife was diagnosed with breast cancer (both sides!!!) in early 2020, just in time to coincide with the shitfulness of the Covid onslaught. Yeah, things got real tough running my sole operator business, but priority had to go to my wife's surgeries, treatments (still ongoing) and recovery. I was honest and forthright with customers/suppliers/lenders about the situation and we got through it as best as we could. We are still trying to get back to square one and will be for some time to come. It is important to us that we can hold our heads high. Call me old-fashioned, but if it sank me, I was not going to let it take anyone down with me. Sometimes you just gotta take responsibility, stare the monster in the eye, and do what needs to be done. If you think you can fool the monster, you are only fooling yourself and you will get eaten alive. Happens all the time....

Yes, you have to move forward with optimism, but you can't let your optimism blind you to what is sometimes staring you in the face. You have to fight smart.

I sincerely hope for the best possible outcome for all involved.

 

Well spoken and I sincerely hope your wife beats the cancer.

 

I am sorry, but I am going to disagree with this statement. I lost my wife in '23 after a 9 month battle with cancer. IF, and IDK the validity of if his wife is sick or not but for arguments sake I will assume it to be true, he was focused on something more important, and trusted someone who turned out to be incompetent in all the aspects of running a business opposed to working FOR a business (and of course assuming Tim was already operating on a razor thin margin like most small businesses are) all it takes is a few small issues to topple the first domino. And playing devils advocate for a moment, if he was trying to save it, I could see not causing a "bank run" by saying anything that could sabotage those actions. Yes, at a certain point he also should have made a judgement call to not taking more orders when there were other orders not yet fulfilled.

I understand the anger and frustration of possibly losing money. But if he has filed for bankruptcy, and you have people saying bad things about you and your company, telling people to contact the credit card company.. (and guess what, if he has filed for bankruptcy, then even contacting your CC company is no guarantee you will be refunded because who will reimburse the CC company?? ) then one of the first things the lawyers would tell you is STFU. do NOT say ANYTHING that can be used against you by anyone attempting to file fraud against you. So if you are expecting any answers anytime soon.. you need to realize it is not likely to happen.

 

I expect this thread will be closed soon because no positive, true information is forthcoming. In fact, it might be worthwhile to table the discussion until someone with actual facts (should they still exist in our world) can post them.

 

The downside is I've seen this happen before.

Small business, son gets cancer, family starts running out of funds, dad starts dipping into business account to keep family living at previous means. Dad figures he can muscle thru the hardship with the business "helping". It doesn't happen and soon both the family AND the business are broke.

Shop goes out of business and creditors, parts suppliers etc are left high and dry.

Seen that scenario happen twice thru the years.....

...

 

I was able to contact the legal team in North Carolina and they confirmed that I was on the list of customers with open orders who would be receiving a letter - just as the website said. Letters were mailed out on the 7th with a possible delay to mail delivery on the 9th for Carter’s funeral (i didn’t know mail wasn’t delivered on that day). We had 9” snow at the end of last week which might also have delayed mail. I was told to expect a letter this week. Since I paid by credit card my bank filed a disputed charge claim. Who knows i may be a lucky one. On a brighter note, I did contact JW Rod Garage in Wisconsin. They make a hub-to-hub mustang II kit for the 53-54-55-56 Ford Fairlanes. Requires spring housing portion of frame to be cut out and fabricated offset frame pieces to be welded in place. I expect to go that route if I can confirm a refund from one or the other potential sources.

 

Look, quite a few of us on the customer list are also small business owners. Life happens, we get that. If illness or whatever else caused the owner to be focused elsewhere and the shop went to ruin, so be it. We'd understand, we'd work with him to keep moving. Most of us have gone through very hard times too

The issue stems from the total communications blackout, the repeated different stories (none of which were wife's cancer BTW) and the silent close up of the company. Tim's hands may be tied now, but they definitely we not through all of 2024 when he was still taking orders and delaying deliveries. All he had to do was pick up the phone

Here's the bankruptcy attorney. Call and see if you're on the list. If you don't get the attorney, his assistant can confirm for you. Confirmation just means you'll get a letter
https://www.essexrichards.com/attorneys/john-c-woodman/

Here's the NC sec state website. You can look up Fatman Fab and see it's indeed dissolved. They're not coming back
https://www.sosnc.gov/online_services/search/Business_Registration_Results

The bankruptcy attorney letter is just a confirmation of dept to Fatman fab. It also carries a 120 day limit, so those who changed address or are caught up in their own life issues will be totally SOL

 

I am sorry about your wife. No one should have to go through that and I hope you are doing okay considering.

I simply think the timeline of events is highly suspicious. I hope that it is not true about his wife being sick, but if so I wish he had been more open about it. There is so much we could have done to try and help.

 

Ok, I waited until today to reply back to this thread. Today, we drove down and picked up my friend Randy's chassis. Tim gave him a list of all the loose components that we received and a list of all the things he did not have, along with part numbers and where Randy could buy them from. Randy received the letter from the attorney last week and will be submitting the costs from that list for potential reimbursement.

Tim has engaged an auction company and they are tagging, photographing and inventorying everything for an online auction. (I believe he said it would be mid March but I could be wrong.) After receiving the dollars from that auction, plus hopefully selling the intellectual property (designs, etc.), he will pay people back proportionately. He hopes to get enough money to fully reimburse everyone but has to pay the auction company, the attorney, etc. So, time will tell.

Here is what I do know. Tim was unaware that things were amiss and did not take money from people knowing that he was going to have to close. He has endured lashings on social media plus he has beaten himself up over it. One thing remains clear. He is trying his best to not screw anyone but reality is he may possibly come up short. I want to remind everyone, he could have simply declared chapter 7 and walked away. Instead, he is going through the painful process of selling off everything and trying to make everything as right as he can.

He is about 60 years old and doesn't really know what his next move is. Perhaps, whomever buys the intellectual property will hire him because he does have a lot of knowledge of the products. It's a shame but that is how Fatman Fabrications is going to end.

 

Thanks for the update. It sounds like Tim is trying hard an it is all very sad. I suggest we all take a breather.

 

Curious when your friend placed the order for that chassis?

For those interested, here's the auction website
I don't see any frame jigs or anything beyond large tools. Could simply not be pictured
https://www.globalauctionguide.com/...xU_nNWOOYXby8mO0iw_aem_9mSDCMcsncVGh7KK08vPZg

 

He place the order about a year ago. Tim called him and asked him if he was in a hurry and he told him no, that it was ok to push his out to the end of the year.

 

I'm confused how he could get the chassis after this process had started.....that should have been part of the auction so the proceeds could be divided between all that were taken by this company - that chassis should be "clawed back" by whomever is handling the liquidation....if I were you, I'd consider deleting your post, at minimum it is inflammatory to those who got nothing - worst case it puts your buddy back in line with everyone else

 

They did not file Chapter 7. He voluntarily closed and is self liquidating. This chassis was paid for and my buddy IS in line because he paid for a complete chassis and didn't get everything. It was not an asset of FatMan. He is filing paperwork like everyone else to try to get the $$ back that he is owed.

 

Not going to get in a pissing contest. A lawyer is being paid to liquidate this company - this is likely a forced liquidation or forced bankruptcy - lenders can request the courts force bankruptcy - the owner does not have to file. That chassis has no VIN and your buddy did not have a lien on it - he is VERY lucky he got anything - no one else will get a damned thing ,- by the time the lawyer, secured creditors and suppliers get paid there will be nothing left - this is a shame - guy didn't know how to run a business - it's simple,if your paying out more than your taking in, your on a highway to hell - bullshit to blame it on a bookkeeper, their job is to pay bills, reconcile accounts and produce reports THE BUSINESS OWNER ASKS FOR - A monthly review of the balance sheet and P&S would have saved this company - he could have made small changes to pricing and inventory along the way.....again, a shame - such a good product and strong reputation

 

A fairly common small business story. great skill doesn't equate with business acumen.For many years, my partner and I ran a multi-million dollar veterinary hospital with no formal business training and very little spare time to learn it. We survived but there were many very shaky moments. Sad for Fatman to end this way.

 

It’s also bullshit to spout off about what is happening when you have no clue. Happens all to often these days.

 

Yep. All I can think sometimes is "Objection, Your Honor, conjecture...."

 

You didn't read a damned thing in this thread. He had no secured creditors and has paid his suppliers. He is self liquidating. You automatically ASSume too much.

 

My apologies - so this guy owed no one a dime, had a backlog of customers, a great reputation and a quality product and the business is going under - I understand perfectly now lol

 

Rockable, I have a long background in building race cars and hot rods. Is my best avenue to go see Tim in Mint Hill about purchasing the business? Any ideas?

 

Actually it sounds like he was having financial struggles and was trying to work through it. He apparently paid his suppliers and did not have debt or liens on his materials or equipment. At some point, he realized the business wasn't turning around and if he continued operating he would not have enough resources to pay back the customers what they had paid. If that is the case he is doing everything and more than most businesses would do. He apparently contacted legal representation to make sure he was doing it right and is continuing to execute the plan. I hope if this is the case and that he comes out of this without loosing everything he owns. The unknowns for everyone speculating on what is going on is how much in customer deposits is he trying to pay back and how much is the physical and intellectual property of the company worth. Guaranteed he will lose more financially than any single customer and his life will be changed in ways that none of us would want to go through willingly. So lets stop speculating on how he is trying to get over on the customers. If he was that kind of person he wouldn't even try to take care of the customers and he would come out of the situation a lot better off.

 

Hopefully this gets in under the wire before the closing of this thread...............
Being completely positive here, and yes, I know it's much easier to have that mindset when you're not out the money (or product), but this isn't some "fly by night" operation where the guy has a reputation for bilking people.
I do understand because I came close to getting #$@!& (long story), not by Fatman Fabrication.
I've been one to respond quite often to the question "are you in any hurry" for this or that, mostly because I've had more than one project going at a time and I'm slow, even putting down a deposit thinking it would make a difference as to the speed of the items' completion, it rarely has.
I'm making a bit of a PSA out of this tragedy to just say, use this as an example of how life can throw a curve at the best of us, whether it's an individual or a well known shop.
I've never been a gambler but that saying of "only bet an amount of money that you are willing to lose" seems to be the best advice here...........and never say you're in no hurry.

 

There is on an online auction for the hardware. (See above.)

Yes, seeing Tim is the right thing to do regarding all the designs and fixtures, etc.. i.e intellectual pproperty.As far as I know, he is on site every day right now.