A friend of mine had two of them. I think the base machine cost about
$50,000 10 or 15 years ago. He did pretty well for several years until the
Chinese beat him out with their cheap labor.
They really are a labor saver for those who sell into the architectural
metal world. These days most of those guys I know need to have at least 3
or 4 options for their customers. Some only want security, some want "the
look" from 10 feet away, at lowest possible cost, and some are proud to have
paid for the hand craftsmanship. If you stick with the high end stuff
only, you can get pretty hungry since 2008.

Pete Stanaitis
---------------

"pyotr filipivich" wrote in message
...

video:

http://www.wimp.com/blacksmithmarvels/

All the stuff which smiths used to spend hours hammering out, now
semi-automated.

Is cool to watch. "Be the first one on your block!"