The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word METALWORK
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
M
E
T
A
L
W
O
R
K
More clues leading to the result METALWORK
- Mike and others handle casting perhaps
- Bits of iron, mark, and other things with gold inside.
- Selfish speech involving quarrel over old school subject
- First person to converse about line making comeback in a particular craft
- Fed gossip about rejected column — it’s possibly forged?
- Craft of, say, steel pan player finally accepted
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Bits of iron" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case bits of iron = metalwork.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does METALWORK mean?
METALWORK noun- Objects made of metal.
- The act of shaping metal, metalworking.