Who has the best copper wire?

[Lancaster]

I'm asking this question because I am almost out and I need a good supply for the upcoming season. I mean, I have been buying wire for years, and I know where to get wire. That's not a problem.

In the past, I had a supplier very close to home where I could just pick it up at any given time. I have since moved, and there is no place near, and it looks like I will have to order it online.

Last year, I was at a competition and left most of my copper wire in a box in the garage. I bought some wire from Julian Adams, who happened to be vending there, and it seemed to be some of the softest wire I've ever used.

Before I order from him, I wanted your opinions. Where do you get your wire, and why do you get it there? Is it convenience? Price? Softest wire? Cute sales girl? Let me know your preferences please. Thanks.

-Troy

 

[Brian Underwood]

I buy it all from Jim Gremel mostly because it is the easiest source, I trust him, and he knows what he's doing. I've never used copper from anyone else, so I have no comparison, plus I'm biased because he is my teacher. Just throwing a source out there...

 

[Bill S]

E. v. W.

seems Jim Gremmel, and Julian Adams usually end up top of the list.

 

[Adair M]

I bought wire from Julian Adams. It is excellent. When I was at Boon's he used wire from Jim Gremel. Maybe even softer than Jim's.

You can't go wrong with either of those two.

 

[daytona1911]

yeah, as far as copper Jim Gremmel is heard over and over even over here. i haven't bought it so Im not sure of price, but used it from a friend on his trees who is an unwavering supporter of Mr Gremmel and it seems to be consistent and high quality. I heard that Joshua roth now sells it as well. Not sure of quality, but I've been happy with whatever I've purchased so far.

 

[Beng]

I bought my wire this year from Julian. Great price and great guy. He also carries
A reasonable good looking wire caddy. http://adamsbonsai.com/adamsbonsi2013_003.htm

 

[pjkatich]

I'm asking this question because I am almost out and I need a good supply for the upcoming season.-Troy

That's what happens when you start wiring big junipers Troy.

I've purchase wire from Julian and been very happy with his service.

Cheers,
Paul

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

I've been very happy with Jim's wire...and prices. Have a box on the way in fact!

Heard all good about Julian's too, but haven't checked his prices lately.

for quality, you should expect comparable, making it an issue of price, IMO.

 

[jquast]

I've bought from Julian in the past as well and was very happy with the product as well as his customer service. Great guy to deal with.

Jeff

 

[Beng]

Even though Julian's copper wire prices now have a 20% surcharge added onto his listed wire prices they are still well below Jim Gremels on all sizes. Some wire sizes are half the price of Jim's it's a no brainer in my opinion unless Jims is much much better then Julians which i doubt. That said if you're in Jim's area it may be more cost effective to save on shipping by picking it up locally.

 

[berobinson82]

I've picked up wire from Julian also. Great guy to work with. It's a convenience that he is so close also.

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

Not exactly...
Julian sells by the foot, and Jim sells by the pound, so it requires some calculations to compare.

14awg has 54' in 1 lb.
Julian sells 50' rolls at $.14/ft, plus 20%, making it $.168/ft.
Jim sells 2.5 lb rolls at $.163/ft.
Jim's 8awg is $.005/ft cheaper

8awg is almost exactly double the diameter of 14awg, so it has 27' in 1 lb.
Julian sells 25' rolls at $.40/ft, plus 20%, making it $.48/ft.
Jim sells 2.5 lb rolls at $.41/ft.
Jim's 8awg is $.07/ft cheaper

 

[Beng]

Ah thanks! good to know for the future. Makes a lot more sense why so many people by Jim's wire. When I just looked at the price and wire gauges it seemed opposite. Since I am no good at math who has the better price if you go by the price of Julians introductory wire kit? The wire lengths in it are the same as his normal single wire sizes. The introductory has 1 each #'s 8,10,12,14,16,18,& 20 -- $46 + 20%.

Ben

 

[buddhamonk]

Not exactly...
Julian sells by the foot, and Jim sells by the pound, so it requires some calculations to compare.

14awg has 54' in 1 lb.
Julian sells 50' rolls at $.14/ft, plus 20%, making it $.168/ft.
Jim sells 2.5 lb rolls at $.163/ft.
Jim's 8awg is $.005/ft cheaper

8awg is almost exactly double the diameter of 14awg, so it has 27' in 1 lb.
Julian sells 25' rolls at $.40/ft, plus 20%, making it $.48/ft.
Jim sells 2.5 lb rolls at $.41/ft.
Jim's 8awg is $.07/ft cheaper

Thanks for doing the math. I thought the same thing but didn't know how to get the math right...

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

who has the better price if you go by the price of Julians introductory wire kit? The wire lengths in it are the same as his normal single wire sizes. The introductory has 1 each #'s 8,10,12,14,16,18,& 20 -- $46 + 20%.

Ben

Sorry...I got ya this far, but didn't hunt down the length per pound on all the gauges. Just important to note that Jim's rolls contain more wire.

I'd say this, the quality and reputations of both these guys' product makes the small difference in price almost negligible, and its likely shipping would make or break any savings.

 

[Beng]

Originally Posted by Brian Van Fleet View Post
Not exactly...
Julian sells by the foot, and Jim sells by the pound, so it requires some calculations to compare.

14awg has 54' in 1 lb.
Julian sells 50' rolls at $.14/ft, plus 20%, making it $.168/ft.
Jim sells 2.5 lb rolls at $.163/ft.
Jim's 8awg is $.005/ft cheaper

8awg is almost exactly double the diameter of 14awg, so it has 27' in 1 lb.
Julian sells 25' rolls at $.40/ft, plus 20%, making it $.48/ft.
Jim sells 2.5 lb rolls at $.41/ft.
Jim's 8awg is $.07/ft cheaper

Was going to try to figure it out. But this online calculator says that 14awg has 80 feet per lb and 8awg has 19.9ft per lb. http://circuitcalculator.com/wordpress/2007/09/20/wire-parameter-calculator/

I must be doing something wrong cause that would mean that even with the 20% factored in for 2.5lb of Julians 8 awg is 24.00 compared to Jims at 27.00 and 2lb of Julians 14 gauge would be 20.16 compared to Jims 22.00. My math skills are sub par though, so i'm pretty sure I did something wrong even with this web pages calculator and my computers calculator.

 

[jkd2572]

I have never used copper. I'm going to try some. Is it really that much better????i I realize maybe for show, but do any of you see a real functional benefit? Honestly I don't know. I have only ever used Aluminum.

 

[Beng]

Coppers nice cause you can do difficult bends with very little wire. It goes on easy and then gets stiff after bending. To give an example to bend a 1 inch trunk on a deciduous tree you may need 3 thick wires next to each other. With copper you could do the same bend with one wire, plus once it's on it stays in the same position.

Never wire a tree into its pot with copper though, and make sure clippings don't fall onto the soil because when they corrode and they will they're toxic to your tree.

 

[Lancaster]

That's what happens when you start wiring big junipers Troy.



Well after 18 replies, it looks like we have a consensus... Jim Gremel for the west coast, and Julian Adams for the right, I mean east coast.

Thanks everyone for your comments.

Paul- Yeah, the bigger juni's take some wire, for sure. But man, are they worth it!
Can't wait to see it in your pot!!

-Troy

 

[lordy]

If I recall correctly, Julian may anneal his twice to be sure it is all nice and soft.
Regarding small price differences, this is pretty normal with buying goods sold by weight. The more you buy, the lower the unit price. That should translate with either per foot or per lb.
I buy printing paper at work. If I buy 10,000 sheets I get a better price per pound than if I buy only 1000 sheets, for example. Simple volume pricing. Think Costco.