Complete Metalsmith, ProPlus Edition (Spiral-bound)

~ Tim McCreight (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

I was blown away — this is truly complete. I hope it gets the recognition it deserves… it's a masterpiece. -- Bruce Baker Studio

This package includes the Professional Edition of the book plus electronic versions of Design Language and also Practical Jewelry Rendering. -- Tammy Powley, About.com

… a completely new learning experience, not just a revision. McCreight has invested a lot of time, effort, and love… -- Tom & Kay Benham, Lapidary Journal

Product Description

If one is good, two are better. The ProPlus Edition includes the Professional print version (a 312 page, hardcover book), plus a CD that contains the full text of the book in a format that you can read, search and print on your computer. Included materials are, short video clips, the text of two additional books, plus unique calculation software for desktops, laptops, and PDAs.

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Product Details

• Spiral-bound: 312 pages
• Publisher: Brynmorgen Press; Book and CD-ROM edition (February 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1929565070
• ISBN-13: 978-1929565078
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 8.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #150,211 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

79 of 81 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book - companion cd is "okay", July 22, 2004

By	Tyler Gingrich (Hilliard, OH USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This new "pro" edition of The Complete Metalsmith is everything you would expect it to be. Detailed, accurate, and filled with many useful diagrams. It is a significant improvement over the regular edition in terms of topic depth and scope.

The CD includes the full text (searchable pdf) of the pro edition which is very nice to have. It also includes the entire first edition of the Complete Metalsmith AND Practical Jewelry Rendering as scanned pages. The original version is interesting from a historical perspective -- it's amazing to see a handwritten tome of that length.

The application "suite" is delivered as an executable Jar file for Macs and PCs or as a standalone executable for PocketPC or Palm. I've only tried it on my desktop PC so far. The tools include various converters, calculators, and lookup tables that automate some of the calculations included in the book. I would think if you carry a palm/pocketpc it might be a nice add-on -- as a desktop tool, the suite is kind of "useless" since you can find most of this stuff on the web already.

I wholeheartedly recommend the pro edition of the Complete Metalsmith. Is the CD worth the $15 price difference -- I'd have to say "maybe" which is why I gave *this* edition only 4-stars. The searchable pdf of the pro edition will definitely come in handy. I also will make use of the book on jewelry rendering. I don't expect I'll be able to effectively make use of the toolsuite since I don't have a palm/pocketpc OR a desktop computer anywhere near my jewelry studio.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Complete Metalsmith Review, November 22, 2007

By	Elle (Australia) - See all my reviews

This is a great book, well written & easy to understand, Tim writes in plain, conversational English. A book for people with a good solid basic knowledge on metal manipulation/brazing/construction these people will get the most from it & be inspired by the ideas. If you are new to metals then this book will have Big gaps of assumed knowledge (but it is the Pro Plus Edition!)
The spiral binding is not a godsend, it is awkward to use, even harder to close & is leading to burring where the holes in the page for the spiral are.
I have not yet checked out the CD, as mine arrived sans CD, however Amazon have been great about it, so it should be in my post box.Why did I pay extra for the CD? Because (and this goes for the book too) what I have learnt MOST in the last few years of metalsmithing is that Everything is more useful than first appearance... the more you do & learn, the more you will find to do & learn from your refference book collection; and the more you will find in books you thought you knew from cover to cover.

9 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Don't waste the time or money!, October 10, 2007

By	Ojoosama "msb" (Orlando, FL United States) - See all my reviews

I ordered the ProPlus Edition (book & cd) and received only the book. I returned it for an exchange of what I had originally ordered. Again I received the ProPlus Edition WITHOUT the cd. Unfortunately I needed it for a class. I lost time, but more importantly, trust in Amazon. To top it off, when I received a credit to my credit card for the original purchase, I was credited for a $10 book I had also ordered at the same time, NOT the $42 of the ProPlus Edition. So... I had to contact Amazon again for the full refund. Buy this product somewhere else if you need the disc included. Otherwise, the $19 version of the Pro Edition seems worth it...