Complete Metalsmith, Professional Edition

Rating:
Summary: Improved Edition of a Jewelery CLASSIC
Review: 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 hard covers are nice and the elastic tie to keep the book closed (and any loose notes you've accumulated inside) is a really nice addition. I'm not a big fan of spiral binding -- I'm sure it's the only way to make a thick reference that will lay flat on the workbench, but the spiral binding makes the pages difficult to turn.

If you're a jewelry professional, the pro edition is definitely the way to go. If you're a beginner, the regular edition is probably sufficient (and $15 less).