At Old West Iron, we’re proud to offer more than just off-the-shelf hardware — we offer heritage-quality craftsmanship and custom ironwork designed to fit your exact needs. Whether you’re restoring a historic homestead or building your forever home, our team is here to help you get it right.

But with custom work comes a custom process. This guide walks you through what to expect when ordering a manual quote or custom iron product from our forge, so you can feel confident and prepared every step of the way.

Why Custom?

No two projects are exactly the same — especially when it comes to heritage builds, timber frames, or creative restorations. That’s why we offer:

• Custom sizes and specs

• Unique textures, hole placements, and fastener options

• Completely original designs based on sketches, inspiration photos, or blueprints

• Hardware to match antique pieces or restore historically accurate detail

For many of our customers, custom is not a luxury — it’s a necessity. And we’re honored to be the team you trust to bring your vision to life.

Requesting a Quote: What You Need to Know

If you’d like us to manually quote a custom order, you’ll need to send the following information to our team via email:

• A clear list of products (SKU or linked product pages)

• Desired quantities

• Any sketches, photos, or architectural drawings

• All details on size, finish, or installation requirements

Including all relevant details ensures that our team can create a quote for you as quickly as possible and that your quote comes out correct the first time, which will help to avoid change order fees and lead time delays. We recommend going over your project details and visiting our site (especially if you're customizing or ordering an existing product) before contacting us so that you know exactly what you need and which details we'll need to know.

You may call or IM us, but we're likely to ask you to send an email anyways. This will ensure that we can include all relevant departments in the planning and keep accurate records of your order.

Once we have all the details, our team will write up your order manually, calculate the cost, and send you a formal quote and invoice.

We’re Happy to Guide You — But Not to Place Your Order for You

We understand that some customers prefer to talk through their project over the phone. We’re happy to walk you through the ordering process step-by-step — helping you locate products on our site or answer specific questions.

However, if you choose not to place the order yourself and ask us to write it up manually, please note:

We charge a $35 Custom Quote Fee for manually written orders.
This fee helps offset the time it takes our team to prepare, format, and calculate your order — a process that can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours.

This fee also applies to manually-written quotes for products that cannot be purchased directly from our website, such as custom designs or sizes.

Why the charge? We're a small team with big responsibilities, and hand-processing every order is time-consuming. This fee ensures we’re compensated fairly for our time while still offering you personalized service.

➤ See Our Policy →

Lead Times & Design Fees

Custom work takes time — and we want to get it right.

• Shop drawings are included with some custom orders.
  ➤ If revisions are needed, please note: additional drawings are a billable service.

• Lead times vary based on complexity. Most custom orders require:

  • 1–3 weeks for design and approval

  • 2–8 weeks for fabrication and finishing

You’ll receive a timeline estimate once your order is quoted and approved.

➤ See Our Policy →

Change Orders & Revisions

If you need to change your order after it has already been finalized, a Change Order Fee may apply. This helps cover the cost of time, labor, and materials already invested in your original design that may now need to be scrapped, as well as the time of the agent who helps you to make your adjustments and communicate them to the shop and design team.

➤ See Our Policy →

Customization Cost: Built Into Most Orders

When you place a regular (non-manual) order on our website and select options like textures, finishes, hole placements, or fastener types — rest assured: these “customizations” are already priced into the product and listed clearly when you check out. Why mention it? Sometimes this cost is listed separately on your invoice, but this does not mean that you were charged any more than you agreed to at checkout.

That means you won’t be surprised by upcharges later. But for one-off custom shapes, unique size or design needs, or made-from-scratch pieces, we will quote you individually.

➤ See Our Policy →

Summary: What’s Billable and What’s Not?

Need Help or Have Questions?

We’re here to support your build — not just sell you products.

Whether you're unsure about what you need, have a complex restoration, or are building from scratch, our team is ready to walk you through it. Just keep in mind that true custom work takes time, thought, and care — and that’s what we specialize in.

Written by the Old West Iron Forge Team — crafting authentic American ironwork from our Idaho forge since 2011. Experience-backed, veteran-built, and proudly Made in the USA.

Ready to get started?
Visit our Custom Order & Manual Quote Policy page or Contact Us to submit your request.