01-20-2021, 01:55 PM | #1 |
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Lawrence, KS
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cauldrons
One of my players wants his character to own a couple of cauldrons. One of them would be 2 gallons in capacity; let's look at that one.
How much should it cost? The Basic Set says that group basics, including a pot sufficient for 3-8 campers, costs $50. High-Tech says that a group mess kit for 4 people, including a skillet, bowl, and pot, costs $15. Low-Tech says that a metal box with capacity 1 gallon (probably comparable to the pots included in the above) costs $367; and LTC3 says an uncovered metal pot is 80% of the cost, or $294. I don't think these are consistent; and the first two define sets of gear that *include* a cooking pot. Even if we assume the pots in the first two are only 1 gallon, that's still $92 per Low-Tech and LTC3. Clarification is requested.
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Bill Stoddard I don't think we're in Oz any more. |
01-20-2021, 02:07 PM | #2 | |
Join Date: Aug 2007
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Re: cauldrons
Quote:
$60 and 52 cents for this one though it's probably the cheapest that Google could find when looking for "2 gallon cast iron pot". Still it's a principle of the Universal Gurps $ and Average wealth changing by TL that the price of items doesn't change while the wealth of shoppers does.
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Fred Brackin |
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01-20-2021, 02:24 PM | #3 |
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Lawrence, KS
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Re: cauldrons
Checking the CPI inflation calculator, I find that $60 as of the December just past equates to $42.66 in 2004, which I believe is the reference for the GURPS $.
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Bill Stoddard I don't think we're in Oz any more. |
01-20-2021, 03:14 PM | #4 |
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Ireland
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Re: cauldrons
I think the difference is build quality and expected lifetime. I would expect basic camping gear or a mess kit lifetime to be measured in months. I would expect cauldron lifetimes to be measured in decades.
Think https://www.walmart.com/browse/home/...623679_8140341 ($40 for a set) VS https://www.lecreuset.ie/en_IE/en_IE...size=28cm-l6-7 ($400 for a 1.6 gallon pot) (I'm using this example because I've been using a pan by this brand for ~20 years) |
01-20-2021, 03:20 PM | #5 | |
Join Date: Apr 2019
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Re: cauldrons
Quote:
I think your first issue is your comparisons. a Mess kit for 4 people that costs $15 is maybe a gallon and made much lighter and out of aluminum or stamped steel. That doesnt compare to a 2 gallon cast iron pot. Second LTC3 says 80% of the weight not the cost. Finally If you take the LowTech description is for a 1gallon metal BOX 367 so we double the size and triple the price. "Casting a large Iron pot is not easy or the same as building a metal box", and thats probably still not a legit price, but we need something. I also doubt very seriously this would be a TL1 price/tech, but lets go with it. RAW Each TL halves the price. 367x3 = 1101 make it $1100 TL1 TL2 $550 TL3 $275 TL4 $138 TL5 $69 TL6 $34.5 TL7 $17 TL8 $8.5 I did 3 quick min of searching and found Amazon had a cast iron one on sale for $30, and a 2 Gallon aluminum pot for $19 with a lid. So those prices aren't crazy off base when you allow for materials shift with the higher TLs. But your guys wants a Cast Iron pot so you need to figure it out for your TL. I have already done the bulk of the work for you if you except the x3 premise I offered. If he wants a "Cauldron" which is a particular shape in my mind, but I dont know if it really matters for you. I picture that as a round(ish) vessel with a thick rim and bottom. If he really wants that (cause looking like a witch out of Shakespeare is important), like the shape has some effect then Id say it may well cost you several hundred today cause thats a specialty item. |
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01-20-2021, 07:53 PM | #6 |
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Upper Peninsula of Michigan
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Re: cauldrons
What do they want to use it for? Is cast iron required? This is a guess, but I would imagine a large ceramic vessel would in most historical periods be much easier to create and cheaper than a similarly sized cast iron one. Big cauldrons strike me as usually used for the sort of thing you use a crock-pot for anyway -- long slow cooking. Here is a 2-gallon ceramic crock for $36.99, although this does not come with a lid.
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01-20-2021, 08:30 PM | #7 |
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Wellington, NZ
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Re: cauldrons
It's not going to be cast iron until the industrial revolution. Prior to that it'll be hand-forged from wrought iron, making it expensive (lots of skilled labour) and lighter (because the metal will be thinner than a cast version).
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Rupert Boleyn "A pessimist is an optimist with a sense of history." |
01-20-2021, 08:35 PM | #8 |
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Lawrence, KS
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Re: cauldrons
It's actually copper, that being the commonly available metal, and less costly than bronze.
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Bill Stoddard I don't think we're in Oz any more. |
01-20-2021, 08:37 PM | #9 |
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Lawrence, KS
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Re: cauldrons
I don't see any indication that the group basics in the Basic Set are at a TL where aluminum, or probably even stamped steel, is available.
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Bill Stoddard I don't think we're in Oz any more. |
01-20-2021, 09:00 PM | #10 |
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Kentucky, USA
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Re: cauldrons
A quick browse on the internet turned up antique 2 gallon copper buckets, weight around 4.5 pounds. So the price should be the price of 4.5 pounds of copper plus labor. Labor is usually 1 to 4 times material costs (LTC3 p.23) and a cauldron is pretty simple, so likely the low end there.
So using the LTC3 range for copper prices of $4.30 to $18, that 2 gallon cauldron should be between $38.70 to $162, depending on the price of copper.
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GURPS Fanzine The Path of Cunning is worth a read. |
Tags |
cauldron prices, food preparation |
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