Key Takeaways
- Paul Teutul Jr, known for his work on American Chopper, left Orange County Choppers after a big argument with his father, Paul Teutul Sr.
- After waiting a year to end his non-compete clause, Teutul Jr started his own custom motorcycle shop called Paul Jr Designs.
- Teutul Jr's business has thrived, with collaborations with big brands and the creation of unique custom motorcycles, solidifying his place as Orange County Choppers' archrival.
Paul Teutul Jr needs no introduction. He is pretty famous in the world of custom-made chopper-style motorcycles. He rose to fame thanks to the reality TV show American Chopper, which documented the daily workings at Orange County Choppers.
Teutul Jr used to work there as the chief designer and fabricator. Paul Teutul Sr, his father, is the owner of this shop where they built some insane custom bikes and, of course... choppers. The father and son duo were known to have huge verbal arguments due to their contrasting opinions. The pilot of the show American Chopper aired in March 2003. In 2008, Teutul Jr left Orange County Choppers after a powerful argument with his father.
After waiting a year for the non-compete clause to end in his contract, he started his custom motorcycle shop named Paul Jr Designs. Teutul Jr is a married man now and has a beautiful son. He still has the zeal to create custom motorcycles, which is evident from all the cool projects that his team has been churning out from PJD. We will also go as far as calling PJD the Orange County Choppers' archrival.
Updated August 2023: We have updated this article with what Paul Teutul Jr is doing today and if the father-son feud that shook the Orange County Choppers universe is resolved. We also tell you why Teutul Jr is just like his father when it comes to making cool custom choppers.
What You Didn't Know About Paul Teutul Jr From American Chopper?
Paul Teutul Jr didn't grow up in a life of luxury. Before Orange County Choppers and well before his rise to fame because of the show American Chopper, he used to work at his father's business, Orange County Ironworks. Teutul Jr did not get special treatment despite his dad being the owner. After completing his education and learning the skill of welding, he started working full-time at Orange County Ironworks.
He didn't start at the very top, but his first job was keeping the shop clean and assisting other Ironworks employees by running various errands. Thanks to his skills, he eventually climbed the ladder and was soon supervising at the Orange County Ironworks. Teutul Jr is the eldest of Teutul Sr's four children. He has two brothers and a sister. Only one of his brothers has been in the limelight—Michael Teutul, who featured alongside Teutul Sr and Jr in American Chopper.
Teutul Jr, Orange County Choppers, And Legal Battles With Teutul Sr
The father and son duo left the Orange County Ironworks to start their new custom-built motorcycle business. This decision resulted in the birth of Orange County Choppers. Soon, they were approached by Pilgrim Films and Television with the idea of the show American Choppers. Its pilot aired in March 2003. The original show ran for six seasons, spanning over seven years.
The show soon became quite popular thanks to the fantastic craftsmanship of the bikes made at Orange County Choppers. Some of the most insane bikes depicted on the show include Black Widow, Comanche Bike, and the World of Warcraft Bike, among many others. Behind each of these bikes were the fantastic skills of Paul Teutul Jr and the amazing team at the shop.
But apart from these excellent bikes, the show was also quite famous for the fights between Teutul Jr and Teutul Sr. The father and son duo butted heads on almost every episode of the original series. Eventually, their disagreements led to Teutul Sr firing Teutul Jr in 2008 after a massive argument between them.
The rift between the two grew to such an extent that the father sued the son for forcefully buying back the latter's 20 percent share in Orange County Choppers. The legal battle between the two continued for a long time, and eventually, Teutul Jr had to sell his stake in the business to his father.
What Did Paul Teutul Jr Do After Leaving American Chopper?
Teutul Jr occasionally tried to reconcile with his father after leaving the Orange County Choppers. In the one year he was waiting for his non-compete clause to end, he helped the team at OCC in a few builds. However, in 2009, he left the shop to start his custom bike shop named Paul Jr Designs. As for the show American Chopper, the original series ended in 2010.
After leaving his father's shop and exiting the show, Paul Teutul Jr focused entirely on growing his own business. This helped the son finally concentrate more on his creativity away from the regular fights with his father. His business grew thanks to his fantastic custom-built motorcycles, which soon led to many collaborations with more prominent brands. The most radical was a cool retro-vibing electric bicycle called PJD-E that looks like a cute little chopper.
Apart from creating cool choppers, Paul Teutul Jr's company also makes cool merchandise. Because of the impressive publicity he garnered from the iconic American Chopper show, people still remember the prodigal son. Life is currently blissful for Teutul Jr, juggling between family and friends and building cool custom choppers.
That said, it was not the end of the TV career for Paul Teutul Jr. The show's producer came back with a spin-off of the original series titled American Chopper: Senior Vs. Junior in 2010. The show featured both the OCC and PJD and ran till December 2012. After that, a few other show spin-offs were made, with the latest installment ending in 2020.
Do Paul Teutul Sr And Jr Get Along Now?
Though Paul Teutul Jr's small screen career might have ended for now, he seems to be doing well in his personal life. In an interview with People.com, Paul Teutul Jr. said regarding working with his father, "Working together was the downfall of our relationship, and I'm not willing to give that up again".
Despite all the altercations between him and his father, the duo was able to reconcile and heal their relationship and are currently on good terms with each other. They kept their businesses separate but did collaborate for fun. Apart from his thriving business, Teutul Jr has a few other things to be happy about in his life.
What Is Paul Teutul Jr Doing Now?
He married Rachael Biester in 2010, and in 2015, his son, Hudson Seven Teutul, was born. Teutul Jr met Rachael, a model/actress, when she appeared on one of the episodes of American Chopper. While Junior stays busy designing and building motorcycles at his shop, Rachael also runs a fashion clothing and accessories gift shop in the same area.
Paul Teutul Jr has also written a book titled "The Build: Designing My Life of Choppers, Family, and Faith." In this book, he talks about his life's journey, his relations with his father, his period working at the Orange County Choppers, and how he found God.
He has expanded professionally and started various other businesses besides PJD. Teutul Jr also does podcasts in which he talks about various important topics, such as preventing veteran suicides. According to Celebrity Net Worth, Paul Teutul Jr. has a net worth of $2 million, which he amassed from his glamorous TV show days and his current venture.
Paul Teutul Jr Designs Is Turning Out To Be OCC's Kryptonite
If Paul Teutul Sr was the charisma of the American Chopper show, then Paul Teutul Jr was the brains behind the beautiful builds. He was the chief designer and fabricator at Orange County Chopper. In one of Teutul Jr's Ask Me Anything sessions, he mentioned never being creative. Only after joining the world of motorcycle building did he hone his metalwork skills into an artistic one.
We saw a glimpse of his artistic side on American Chopper. But the full extent of it is now being showcased via his own custom house—PJD. One cool example is the Sturgis Buffalo Chip chopper by PJD. It has hand-engraved spoke wheels, a nickel-plated frame, a hand-tooled leather seat, and loads of copper-plated elements. The latest build from Paul Teutul Jr Designs is even wilder, as his team built a wild chopper for Reliable Scaffolding and Shoring Services. The best way to describe it is that this wild motorcycle looks like something The Ghost Rider would ride.