We are considering Ending the run on our current 3-Foot-long "Bruce The Shark" as we did for our
25-inch Mako Shark a few weeks ago. This should be plenty of heads up notice for those that still wish to order one before we end the edition. It well surpassed all of our goals for the run back in December and we feel it is time to move on from this original design of ours. Due to our extremely heavy order load I reluctantly report today that we are only running on time instead of our normal of running well ahead of schedule. Try as we might our build times still remain between 30 and 60 days depending on the shark and complexity of order. It simply takes us time to make everything from scratch. All vendor orders are also of course running on time as well. But we are working extra hours to try and knock this down where we can as we prefer to surprise customers with earlier delivery when possible. I know that I hate to wait myself. Even though having an actual SPFX Artist custom build you something in a working FX shop is the uniqueness we offer, waiting is still not the funnest thing. So we are working to reduce wait times. Other business; My dear friend Chuck has been gone for a few years now but one of the things he gave me has really been on my mind this year. He was the artist that made and sold those really nice sets of Bruce Shark teeth years ago. His last month of life we had some seriously good talks and in one of the last ones he told me that he had sent me out a large giftbox and told me to do whatever I wanted with it. His hope was that it would help me to provide for my family. We got it delivered just before he passed but he was in no condition to thank like I wanted to. He was a great guy and my cherished friend. Although I have kept these precious momentous to myself since then I am now considering filling Chuck's wish. I have plans of releasing a set of 7 Bruce Shark teeth in memory of Chuck. The set that he mailed me was far superior to any other teeth I had ever collected previously. I also have a few different teeth of my own to add to the collection including a Bruce 3 and original Bruce 4 tooth. With this post I am seeking interest level from the community for whether my family should invest into cleaning these up, arranging them, molding them and offering them for sale? Let me know what you think. For me obtaining The Bruce Shark Teeth directly from the exact same stone molds used in Jaws and Jaws 2 were the Rosetta Stone to helping me measure accurately to produce our first Bruce Shark replicas. They are pure treasure in my eyes and the Crown Jewels in my collection. Do you feel the same and would you like to own your own if produced afford-ably? Thank you all again for your friendships, your encouragements, for sticking up for us and for sharing our incredible shark builds!☺ Mike SCO
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After searching our storage building I have rediscovered our SCO original 2007-2009 1/8 scale Scuba Tank! Unfortunately the mold is far too brittle to yield a viable copy. The prototype is also in need of extensive upgrading and repair before investing in the remolding.
We stopped offering it years ago as when we did offer it then people demanded the yellow barrels, so I made and started releasing those. Then the scuba tank demand faded. When I have some spare time in the coming weeks I will put the New and Improved Scuba Tank [in scale with our 3-foot sharks and barrels] back on our sales site and make it available for everyone. My best estimate looking at our very full build and ship schedule is perhaps 3 to 5 weeks for the investment in restoration and remolding. It is always fun to see something Fresh and original! **The only Copy-Catting that we do is copying History's Incredible Film Sharks! No other artists, products, animals or even dolphins were harmed in the re-offering of this Incredible NEWly upgraded Bruce Shark accessory! Be nice if that ethic spread around some, huh?☺ Well, back to the SharkShop today! Cathy & I really thank you all for the oodles of prayer, kind words and well wishing over the last week on our various personal walls. Thank you all very much for your encouragements. It REALLY helps! You are all VERY kind. Cathy is doing much better from her cardiac episode that honestly was my fault. Being brought on by the stress of my latest heart surgery Friday. Not to mention its failure to correct anything once again. Another kind of heart surgery is the latest best guess they have for me this time which will be scheduled soon. It is good that I am so strong and healthy regardless of the physical discomfort. I just have to man up a bit more is all. And thank goodness we have maintained a lead of several weeks on our coming due orders for all this! In other NEWS: Thursday I asked my friend Greg Nicotero who is not on any social media whatsoever [so who's behind those pages anyway?] about the Beller/UK copycatter's shark and those odd comments they posted. Greg told me that he was sent a FREE COPY of their shark and as a courtesy return-complimented with a photo of himself and it. That's what he does for all fan-gifts as a courtesy. He simply does not endorse their product as they appear to me to be posting. We appreciate that Greg is a long time paying customer of our work since 2011. We earned that. And he owns through purchase his appreciation and inclusion of several of our shark products in his main office, and in many of his video and magazine interviews as well. Why anyone tries to mimic that, or our products really amazes me? In other NEWS: The return of our 25 inch Ultimate Bruce Sharks has met with tremendous approval and a huge increase in order volume. We are VERY pleased with this. Since we are receiving so many repeat questions here they are briefly with matching brief answers: 1.The Ultimate Sharks will begin shipping in the Fall just as we have advertised, in order of order # and paid in full status. A more specific date to be listed when we know for sure. 2. The 25 inch Ultimate Revenge Bruce and the 1/6 ScarFace Brucette Bust will be released in the Fall as well. 3. We still have plans of also releasing the FULL SCALE Great White Shark Headmount in FULL ATTACK pose, soon. When we know for sure we'll post it. It is STUNNING!☺ 4. Yes, everything we make can be customized as far as paint and gore. There are some limitations, but simply please communicate with us what you want, even to matching photos and screengrabs and I am sure we can accommodate almost everyone. 5. Yes, the 1/6 Bruce Busts will be a complete set with one shark from each film. 6. No we cannot release a full schedule of all our planned products as that would open us up to being ripped off even more than we already have been. 7. Yes, we are still considering making a Bruce shark available for a kit-build but are still fearful of being recast and run out of business by unscrupulous types that do wrong and then are so shocked when we defend ourselves from being abused by them. Some people, right? So no kits for the foreseeable future. Just another freedom squelched by bad people I guess. Other than that this UPDATE got LOT's longer than it is FUN to read so we’ll be merciful and end it right here. Thank you again my friends for your kindness[es], encouragements and friendships! Mike SCO By way of an UPDATE I wanted to address the White elephant in the room. And that regards the overdue nature of the Release for Pre-Order of our All New 25 inch Upgraded Ultimate Bruce Collector's Set Sharks.
So where are they? To be honest they are partially overdue because I was down sick for 3 weeks in April. That's a long time. It threw off our schedule pretty hard. And they are also partially overdue because I got a wild hair you know where to add in even more detail to the first 3 Ultimate Bruce Sharks. Indeed the detail resolution is simply STUNNING! Then they are also overdue because I could not decided which Ultimate Bruce Shark Prototype to release so I posted that we would be releasing for Pre-Order TWO VERY Different Ultimate Bruce 1 Sharks! YEP!! And lastly they are overdue simply because since April we have been flooded with new orders. And by flooded I mean to post that our order volume has quintupled! Actually almost 22% more than quintupled. It has been crazy double-time, and then some! We are still in happy-shock. The reasons given us for many of these sudden orders has been most replying that they are showing support for our family business over Beller's odd UK copycatter drama.Thank you again for all of you and your kind encouragements during this latest hassle of theirs. I guess no press is bad press apparently? Let the chips continue to fall where they may we say☺. Now, this is sensitive but needs to be spoken to, I think. But, a bunch of others have admitted that their reason for suddenly buying our sharks was that they had put off getting one of our sharks for years, but are now motivated honestly because of my slip in health back in April and my impending heart surgery. Which by the way has been moved to next month. To be clear it is not open-heart surgery. I am not dying nor am I in a wheelchair! I don't know who would start such rumors aside from that odd Diva that lives to shovel rumors behind the scenes stirring up folks. I am not in deteriorating health my friends. Nor do I have any cancer. And I do not need any transplants either. I am quite strong for a man my age☺. What I have is a set of conditions where my heart beats out of rhythm around 180 to 200+ beats per minute. Normal men my age should have 65 to 85bpm. Further proof that I am simply not normal... Ahem..☺ But my type is not the deadly type, it just exhausts me. A quality of life issue only. Kinda imagine trying to go through your day with a heart-rate higher than someone running a marathon! But it is not all the time thankfully. And I am still working 7 days a week and 8 to 10 hours a day. So there's further proof how healthy I really am, right? There you have it. I hate to be so personal, but that's the best way to squash the latest rumors. We sure wish they'd leave us alone so we can just make excellent sharks for people with excellent taste. Some people, Eeesh! Regardless friends, we have the most Awesome and the most-collected Bruce Sharks in history. And the All New Ultimate Bruce Collector's Set Sharks ready to mold but we've just been buried filling orders this month. I'll take wondrous problems like this everyday of the year HooooRAH! OK, so now what? I am trying to get ahead on 27 pending orders and hope to mold the first New Variation of the All New Upgraded Ultimate Bruce Shark in-between them. So my goal is to have the All New Collector's Set Sharks up for Pre-Order within the next few weeks at most. Here's to hoping I am early or at least on time with this New Goal. Thank you friends, Mike After coming back to him and adding in details a few times a day over the last few weeks I believe that I can now release that I am quite pleased with everything about our All New 1/12 scale, 25-inch long Ultimate Bruce Collector's Set Shark. He's done.
He's another >original< masterpiece, in my eyes. I won't take the time to mold him this week having the heart surgery but once recovered he's the next thing in line since we are entirely caught up with all paid in full June sharks! Having so many PM's everyday pressuring for the release of our New Upgraded Ultimate Bruce Sharks I am sure that this will make lots of folks happy. All four are about everything that fans have been requesting they want to see in our 25-inch sharks for the last 4 or 5 years. A most stunning complete set of film sharks in every way. As usual we'll release everything as far as information, photos and the new lower pricing when we are able to and when it is wise for us to. Thank you friends, Mike Those that have 3-foot sharks due in May and also 1/12 3D Bruce Sharks they are almost completed and they are the priority for next week's completion and shipping!
Those awaiting the shipping for the April/May 1/6 Bruce Busts will be happy to know ALL are on the bench[es] and being built in order of order dates and paid-in-full status. Basically everything is right on schedule as usual. That's over 200-feet of work-tables crammed with sharks and parts! On behalf of my family I thank the Jaws and shark fan communities for their OVERWHELMING support in the last 4 weeks. We have seen people BRAGGING over our quality and workmanship all over social media! Thank you for circulating good words about us. Our family depends on happy customers spreading a good report. Also it was no secret I got pretty sick there for about 3 weeks. It was a domino effect we believe that I caused myself for working too hard all the time. Up to 14 hours a day with no days off in recent memory. Having been perfectly healthy for over 2 ½ years I was really caught off guard to get sick at all. But I am almost back to where I was. And I am back in the shop working 8 to 9 hours a day. As it should be. We decided to not release any photos this week of our All New 2015 1/12 scale, 25-inch long Ultimate Bruce and Ultimate Scarface Brucette Collector's Set Sharks. We were going to yesterday but in light of recent events we want to hold back. We decided to let the amateur-crook that has so poorly copied our products, right down to the wood style display-bases that we created ourselves and have been providing all decade, to run his course like the human Flu-Virus that he is. For those that missed this oddness, a copy-catter from the UK sent Jim Beller the 'Jaws Collector' a free shark several weeks back and they both seemed to spend every waking moment promoting the daylights out of it. There's no accounting for taste or ethics I guess. I believe that they still maintain what Jim posted which I read as - since I don't own sharks and never patented my products/[stands] that his artist is free to express himself creatively on his wall; or some such double-talk. Because copy-catting is so original, and so ethical right? Some people.... So, the last BIG THANK YOU of today goes out to all our customers and friends that have encouraged us and stood up for us all over the place [ 188 so far ]. And from the forwards being sent to us for also proclaiming in all four corners of the Nurn [Facebook] that our sharks & service are truly superior! THANK YOU ALL for such Encouragement! This is why we try so hard to do the right things by you all. My family and I are truly Blessed to know you. Thank you for being such good and solid friends and customers. Mike & Cathy Schultz SCO Hi Everyone!
Just wanted to report that I am in the shop and making sharks to fill orders again today. It has been a very good week! Another priority in between orders is the continued assembly and painting of our prototypes of our All New 1/12 scale 25-Inch long Ultimate Bruce Collector's Set Sharks. I write once again "assembly" as the production sharks are made as kits for us to mold and assemble as such; so I have to assemble them for photos in non-permanent and non-damaging ways that also will truly convey what a finished production shark will look like. As all have learned since 2008, they ALWAYS look even better and more detailed in person! In this effort, although due to recent events we feel some pressure to rush ahead, we are still balancing out our needs as well as filling preexisting orders where needed first and foremost. Those that know us know there's much to look forward too. We are VERY excited to try and get them out rapidly for Pre-Order, and to release the All new LOW prices. Indeed, I spent all winter while snowed in [for maybe 4-5 months!] recreating all of the Ultimate Bruce sharks. There has never before been anything like these in accuracy and richness of detail; especially in this scale. I promise that they'll be more than worth the wait. In other news it looks as though the doctors get some of my time over the next months for this and that. Looks like only a few days here and a few days there. Nothing to write home about. The priority now is getting those Pre-Order busts completed and shipped as well as all the sharks due in May to their patient and rightful owners. As far as the next few months we want you to start preparing yourselves for us to release the 25-inch Ultimate Revenge Bruce to complete the Ultimate series, AND the big ½ scale Bruce Dorsal Fin, AND the All New 1/6 Scar Face Brucette Bust, AND the Entirely New LIFE-SIZED Great White Shark Bust, in full attack pose. We have a few more but are going to hold on to them for now until we are able to make good on all our orders, pre-orders, prototypes, private commissions and getting all healed up and 100% better[er] again. Tomorrow I believe is the best time for us to release the true account of one of the most INCREDIBLE opportunities that my family was ever given a few years back that I have never yet shared publicly. It is an amazing story that will surely hit you like a .50 cal going off! More about this then tomorrow! A good day to all my friends today! Mike Hi Friends!
Dictionary.com defines "Aboveboard" as: "In open sight, without tricks, concealment, or disguise." Recently in the Jaws Community it came to our attention that another artist had made an attempt at producing his own Bruce Shark for sale. Sadly, this individual has attempted to copy-cat everything he could from us ranging from the shark's features right down to our unique wooden-style display stands and our long established photography style. He even directly copied our OLD prices, the funniest part! But the most disturbing part about this whole situation is that this artist freely gave a well-known "Jaws Collector" one of these sharks as a gift and in return this collector decided to whole-heartedly review and endorse this imitator while slighting our family's 8+ years of hard work. When questioned about this completely unethical behavior we were met with hostility and told that we were offensive to the copy-catting artist. Now, everyone is free to have their favorites, however, we've fielded a great amount of email asking us about this questionable display of ethics and so far EVERYONE see's clearly what is a cheap knock off of us and not even an accurate Bruce depiction... except for the aforementioned "Jaws Collector". One old saying captures this incident perfectly. It explains how a bribe can blind the eye of the receiver and pervert justice. We would like to make it clear to our customers and all fellow fin-fans that every single review about every single Shark City Ozark shark has been earned. No "Freebies" have ever exchanged hands in order to receive "Glowing remarks". Our work stands on its own without having someone "in our pocket". We are purposely holding off on posting our All New Low Prices on our 25-inch Collectible Sharks just because we will not be rushed by this "copy-catter". We'll post more photos, descriptions, and reveal the new low prices soon. I am getting stronger every day and recovering well ahead of the curve. Thank you friends for maintaining us as the Professional Industry Standard since 2007! Mike, Cathy, and the Entire Schultz family of Shark City Ozark Hi Everyone!
We wanted to take a minute and talk about some of our plans and ideas for 2015. We are always looking for ways to make the best sharks & collectibles possible, all while maximizing value and saving our customers money! Cathy and I have been strategizing for months now and I think we've come up with some great new ideas and products for 2015, and we’d love to share them with you: Firstly, we have retooled the master prototypes, increased detail levels and streamlined the casting process involved in making all the 25” Ultimate Bruce Collector’s set sharks. We've listened to you and we’re thrilled to announce that all of the shark’s fins are molded onto the body instead of as separate detachable pieces. This alone improves overall quality, lessens our labor/expenses and saves you all money too! You won’t believe your eyes when you see the New Ultimate Bruce & Sequel Shark Line. Yes, the Revenge Bruce is slated for release in mid-2015! Also we are looking at making smaller limited edition runs of each Shark product this year. As most of our kids have moved out and now work and live on their own, the three of us remaining Schultz's are looking at ways to maximize the most out of our work weeks. After all, we three can only make so many sharks per week! Our goal is to once again start selling the Ultimate Bruce Collector's Set Sharks within the next two to four weeks time. The New prototypes must still be assembled, painted and have their days before the camera to be ready for posting online to sell. And as you know we are still keeping our heads above water maintaining the nonstop stream of orders already made as well as finishing other New Shark products for release in Q2 & Q3.☺ Going forward, we are also planning to sell display stands separately for the 25-inch Ultimate shark line. These newly designed Ultimate Bruce Sharks rest perfectly on their bellies balanced by their fins & body pose. Each piece displays beautifully right out of the molds, and eliminating the need for a stand will help us keep prices down as expenses continue to rise throughout the fiscal year. For those wishing to display their shark on a stand, we will still offer several to choose from to purchase separately. Currently, the majority of our transactions are conducted through PayPal. Everyone loves the convenience and confidence we feel shopping with PayPal, and of course we will still be offering PayPal as one of our payment methods. However, steadily rising PayPal fees greatly increase costs for both us and you the customer. Therefore, if our Continental U.S. customers pay by check, cashier’s check or money order then we will pass this savings directly to our U.S. customers in the lower 48 states! This can be well up to $30 or more depending on the items ordered! Something fans have been asking about for years, and we’re happy to make this happen! No wonder these time-tested methods have been used since the 1880's to purchase by mail! So stay tuned to SharkCityOzark.com in 2015 for all of the exciting details! We will be offering new and upgraded sharks at more affordable prices than ever before. We are so excited to show everyone what we’ve been working on, 2015 will be the best year yet for Shark fans! Here's a quick double whammy set of generic answers that we are using for the most common questions that we are answering all day long.
Hang on, here weee gooooo! 1). Why don't you repose the mouth, head,eyes∞, or add a water base-barrel-scuba tank, victim, chum marker, bird, seal, swim-fin, dog, fish, Quint, surfboard, turtle, Chrissy, boat, Spielberg, debris etc ∞ to the All New Bruce Bust? > Answer < A Water base doubles the labor, expenses and final price of the product. Clear resins are approximately $128 per gallon and add almost 4 hours production time to EACH head in this Very large scale. Our goal is to keep things as affordable as they are impressive. This bust is quite unprecedented as-is. >Extra Answer< **The more people want then the more things cost and then the more people might complain about said cost as well as why it didn't also come with X & Y + Z accessories with a BOGO coupon for only $1.99 If we didn't add it then it would have cost either you or us too much * Those who appreciate what we are offering will be very happy fans indeed 2). Please tell me the price/size/photos/shipping info of 'X' shark that you have not released for sale yet? > Answer < We have released and do release ALL information, photos and prices the very second that we can. If we have not advertised the photos yet then they are not taken yet. We are releasing photos and information as fast as we can get things done. We are close to providing more information on the Ultimate Bruce Collector's Set Sharks most likely within the next 2 weeks or less. We are also currently hampered by working on a flood of orders and by severe winter weather, but we are making progress everyday. ***** Please keep checking our SCO Products page and we also update or Facebook when we have releases. We care and we are trying but we are only 3 people filling orders and working to release almost a dozen >-Never been done in 40 years before-< Shark products at insane new prices and levels of perfection |
Mike V. SchultzOn The Bench... Archives
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