[TheForge] Re: File Making, sniffing up wrought iron

[williamsiron at comcast.net]

Frosty,

RB Wagner has taken over the franchise for Pure Iron. They did have free samples last year. They may still have free samples. They have a web site but I'm not sure what it is.

Mark Williams
Snow Hill, Maryland

-------------- Original message -------------- 
From: "Jerry Frost" <akfrosty at mtaonline.net> 

> I was more than a little interested in trying Pure Iron 
> but they wouldn't send me a few lbs. to try. I forget 
> the exact amount but it was in the 50 lbs. range as I 
> recall. Shipping to AK made that a deal killer for a 
> trial. I offered to pay whatever it cost for S&H but 
> they wouldn't. 
> 
> Sent me an Art and Metal "T" shirt though. 
> 
> I think a good part of this has to do with most modern 
> blacksmiths being artists rather than iron workers. 
> I've only met a few artists of any kind able to manage 
> business well. 
> 
> Frosty 
> ------------------------------- 
> If it ain't forged 
> it ain't real. 
> Wrought iron is. 
> The FrostWorks 
> 
> Meadow Lakes, AK. 
> 
> 
> From: "Andrew Vida" 
> 
> 
> > 
> > 
> > David E. Smucker wrote: 
> >> If there was a market it would be made. We all 
> >> (blacksmiths) like working with things like pure 
> >> iron and wrought iron -- but we don't want to pay 
> >> for it. Pure Iron is the perfict example. 
> > 
> > I fully agree. Furthermore, the "failure" of Pure 
> > Iron in the market was an indication more of the lack 
> > of a business clue than any fault of the material. 
> > People saw cost as high. I disagreed and attempted 
> > to explain to them the idea of cost effectiveness, 
> > but apparently those people were either not bright 
> > enough to get it, closed minded to the notion, or I 
> > simply was too stupid to explain it properly. I'll 
> > go with the latter. 
> > 
> > By and large, I have found most blacksmiths to be 
> > highly clue-challenged where issues of basic business 
> > management are concerned. I've never hidden my 
> > opinion on this. A material such as Pure Iron, if 
> > properly marketed, could be sold at a premium 
> > (offsetting the additional material cost, which in 
> > the grander scheme of things is almost trivial in any 
> > event) and its superior workability would save the 
> > smith in terms of labor cost. Apparently none of 
> > this ever sank in and Mike's endeavor went toe-up. I 
> > thought it was a shame, but the market spoke and that 
> > was that. I don't know whether Mike & company 
> > engaged in sufficiently effective marketing, so some 
> > fault may lie there as well, but I have learned to 
> > never underestimate the boorishness of a market. 
> > 
> > 
> > -- 
> > 
> > -Andy V. 
> > 
> 
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