[LT] No-steel-pocalypse! Lifespan of iron & steel equipment?

[Nereidalbel]

Originally Posted by WingedKagouti

I'm not saying that it isn't possible, I'm saying that it's unlikely that the shipyards still have the knowledge to make decent ships without iron nails. Or are willing to experiment with "inferior" materials for long distance sailing. It's quite possible that some enterprising soul manages to make a push for non-iron nails, but it will meet resistance while iron nails are still available. Even if no new ones are made, there'll still be people clinging to the iron ways for several decades. "We know they're going to make some new iron soon, just give them a bit of time" and "We're about to close a deal for some iron, just hang in there" will likely be common.

Even if shipyards run by the military and their contractors don't have knowledge to make ships without iron, it will always be cheaper for civilians to make do without metals. After all, rope and wood is all you need to make a sea-faring vessel! Of course, some sort of sail makes things much easier, but, doesn't require metals.