In A1:
=left(B1,3) & "-" & left(c1,16)

or in VBA

sStr = left(Range("B1"),3) & "-" & left(Range("c1"),16)
Range("A1").Value = sStr

--
Regards,
Tom Ogilvy

"Kat" wrote in message
...
In column A, i need to build a new char string where the
first three char come from column B, then a dash is
added, and the first 16 char from column C. I couldn't
get the recorder to do this for me.

Example

Column A | Column B | Column C
App-Mushrooms, Stuffed | Appetizer | Mushrooms, Stuffed
Portabello