Episodes
Aug. 25, 2021
Special Report: MWFA 75th and Table Top
The Mid-West Fastener Association table top show, 75th anniversary black tie gala, and annual golf tournament were wildly successful. Kicked off by a pair of unofficial but equally energized events, FSTNR Week '21 was recei…
Aug. 13, 2021
Episode #167 - Pass the Chips
Fastener industry legend and chip shot artist Mr. Robbie Gilchrist describes current market conditions, the future of the rep business, and how the NFDA found its way (18:28/1:30:25). AIM Testing Labs partner Rob LaPointe ex…
July 17, 2021
Episode #166 - The Flotilla
Fastener distributors rely on firmly grounded suppliers, especially in stormy seas, so it’s good to know Star Stainless Screw Company has an experienced captain at the helm. President Tim Roberto Jr. opines on the choppy ove…
June 19, 2021
Episode #165 - Diversions
Sales activity continues to boom, along with supply chain headaches, so naturally INxSQL founder Bob Reynolds and the uncancelable Joe Truckey of Cal Fasteners turn their thoughts to summer golf (1:41:19). In pursuit of anot…
May 12, 2021
Episode #164 - Safe and Effective
It’s safe to say Jake “Valdez” Davis of BTM Manufacturing and Bob “GQ” Baer of Abbott-Interfast have been training with varying degrees of intensity, but will their efforts prove effective during the upcoming Tough Mudder ev…
April 15, 2021
Episode #163 - Worth Hearing
From a rural Texas workshop to the minds of fastener users around the world, technical educators Randy Lammers and Aaron Keevan share their vast knowledge on the exciting new webcast, Würth Knowing . They explain their visio…
March 19, 2021
Episode #162 - Our Dinner with Charlie
During a veritable banquet of fastener industry intel and commentary, Mr. Charlie Kerr of Kerr Lakeside serves up a super-sized portion of predominantly fastener-related banter. Who ordered the surcharges? (1:35:17) Brighton…
March 10, 2021
FTR160 Excerpt - Tough Mudder
Jake "Valdez" Davis of BTM Manufacturing and John "Cool Hand" Butler from The Olander Company inadvertently sign up for a grueling obstacle course race. But like the resilient industry they support, they’re sure to make a st…
Feb. 19, 2021
Episode #161 - Not Lonely
As dark winter storms freeze the country, MWFA president George Hunt III plans for a heated race come summer, and ever expanding product lines for Brighton Best International (1:27:54). Expansion keeps good company as Würth…
Jan. 21, 2021
Episode #160 - Strange But Good
The fastener industry reports booming business, while the world at large seems poised for something else. What gives? Tough guys Jake “Valdez” Davis of BTM Manufacturing and John "Cool Hand" Butler of the Olander Company att…
Dec. 17, 2020
Episode #159 - Threadnosed
As the year winds down, the fastener industry is buoyed with optimism, even as it faces growing market pressures and wild uncertainty. Keeping things jolly, Buckeye Fasteners manager, Larry Kelly shares the frostified back s…
Nov. 21, 2020
Episode #158 - Don't Mess with Jess
If the fastener business sometimes feels like mortal combat, one group seems prepared. YFP president, Jake Glaser leads a wide ranging conversation with fellow youthful thread warriors London Penland , of Eurolink, and Young…
Oct. 29, 2020
Special Report: Optimas CEO Marc Strandquist
Bold strategies and a new leadership direction for industrial fastener supplier Optimas Solutions are the topics as newly appointed CEO, Mr. Marc Strandquist discusses key points of their exciting recently announced initiati…
Oct. 18, 2020
Episode #157 - One More Rep
The screw biz rebounded sooner than expected, but the customer meeting game still has a long way to go. Veteran sales pro Jackie "Kind of a Big Deal" Ventura guest-hosts a timely segment that details the current picture, as…
Sept. 22, 2020
Episode #156 - Virtual Vegas
The one sure bet in the fastener industry is the Vegas show. But with this year’s long-odds cancellation, the FTR boys needed a way to unload their huge supply of giveaway Vegemite . They decided to set up a virtual booth an…
Aug. 15, 2020
Episode #155 - Out-of-Synchness
Things don’t seem to fit together the way they once did, but an otherwise ripe market always seems out of whack to the inattentive. So when the circumspect Mr. Andy Cohn , of Duncan Bolt, joins news editor Mike McNulty to di…
July 21, 2020
Episode #154 - Stay @ Home Tour
Feeling right at home in their new roles with LindFast Solutions Group, Bernie Longen and John "OJ" Simpson explain recent developments and things to come as the fastener industry powerhouse supplier hits its stride (1:17:49…
June 18, 2020
Episode #153 - Non-Standard
As the “new abnormal” grinds on, industry veteran rep Rick Rudolph relies on his standard cordiality and grace to serve fastener companies in the New England region (10:41). AIM Test Labs founder Carmen Vertullo along with E…
May 16, 2020
Episode #152 - Absolutely Threaded
Thread game veterans Rich Cavoto and Bob “GQ” Baer explain the origins of the infamous Naperville Fastener Association , share fitness training secrets, and offer ideas for an improved city driving experience (1:32:18). Newe…
April 23, 2020
Special Report: A Test of Courage
Lessons of basic courage and practical survival unfold along with the story of a New York based fastener manufacturer during the outbreak, as told by Jason Wagner and Ilian Dimitrov of The Richard Manno Company, during a sup…
April 16, 2020
Episode #151 - The NEW Fully Threaded
During a novel edition of fastener talk radio, we hear stories from industry insiders across the operational spectrum. Jun Xu of Brighton Best, Mike Topolewski of Perigee Manufacturing, Joanne Bialas of International Fastene…
March 19, 2020
Episode #150 - Quarantined
The fastener industry was interviewed at the precipice of dramatic upheaval during the recent Pac-West/NFDA joint conference. None could have foreseen what was actually soon to unfold at the time FTR placed its microphone in…
Feb. 19, 2020
Episode #149 - Best Threaded
Are services the critical factor for distributor survival in the new market? What caused the dramatic shift in the FDI reading? Which fastener association is best dressed? MWFA president Paula Evitts along with fellow office…
Jan. 18, 2020
Episode #148 - Anti-Social
Largely unavailable on any social media platform, the latest episode of predominantly fastener-related talk radio radiates fresh digital effluvia into the audio stream of a new decade, as Goebel Fasteners makes its podcast d…