UNION TWP., Ohio — Ron Boyle makes toys. The 61-year-old has for most of his life.
In his home office, there are power tools and bottles of super glue scattered across the room. You can barely see the top of his desk. 3D printers hum, etching designs into plastic.
On the wall, a neon light says "welcome to the jungle."
"Hot off the presses,” Boyle says, holding one of his most popular creations. “Still warm."
During football season, Boyle makes outsized Bengals necklaces.
"What's more fun than having a giant chain on your neck?" Boyle said.
For him, it’s about spending time with his daughter — the inspiration behind those necklaces.
"It's always nice when football season rolls around, because I see her more,” Boyle said.
His daughter is 32 now, and she’s engaged. Sadie Boyle is not the same little girl who wore a RoboCop-style Bengals helmet when she was 2 years old.
Sadie’s parents split up when she was young, and the Bengals soon became her thing, partly because it was a way to connect with her dad.
In Ron’s basement — decorated floor to ceiling with Bengals memorabilia — Sadie wears Who Dey earrings he made. The two look through a scrapbook of her Bengals fandom, and Ron puts glasses on.
“I can’t believe you have that picture,” he said.
Sadie remembers the first football game she ever went to. The Bengals played the Cleveland Browns. She and her dad walked by a Browns tailgate and people threw dog bones at them.
She was 11.
“I was pretty much hooked,” she said, laughing. “It was just sort of our thing after that."
It meant a lot as a kid. It means even more now. Because in the fall, Sunday is their time. It's the only time they get anymore.
“I don't think our bond would be as strong if it weren't for our mutual love of the Bengals," Sadie said.
But during the team's Super Bowl run, the Boyles hadn't been to a game for years. After Ron bought tickets to the home playoff game against the Oakland Raiders, he wanted to make something special for his daughter.
“Go big or go home,” Sadie said.
So the two sat front row for the Bengals’ first playoff win in 31 years — wearing their giant chains. When asked about experiencing that with his daughter, Ron starts to cry. He shakes his head, and Sadie leans on his shoulder.
They laugh.
“Now I think she’s as crazy as I am,” Ron said.
….
Want a chain?
Ron tells us he's made more than 2,000 of them. And if you want to check one out, he sells them starting around $30. Just search "Boylermaker customs" on Facebook — or send him an email at boylermakercustoms@gmail.com.
