Middle Earth Ranger Forum

Now THIS is a piece I've been looking forward to bringing to light for ages.

I ran into Jeffrey Hildebrant of Royal Oak Armory some time ago on etsy, and just fell in love with his work. He's got an incredible eye and brilliant hand at his craft. While he mostly does arms and armor, he had a fantastic portfolio of cauldrons. He'd done a previous larger cauldron for me (pics of that sometime later) - but I still wanted a small little kettle such as a Ranger might carry on the go.

Even knowing the Romans had sheet copper cookpots and utensils, even knowing about Frodo's copper cans at Crickhollow... the things just always read "18th century" to my eye. My mental image of a 12th c.-ish Middle-earth wanted iron. Practically, I also wanted something that wouldn't fall apart at the seams if I ever managed to get careless about letting water boil out. So that's where we started:
You'll notice it's hanging from a hinged potholder - those are an old hearth cooking trick for moving things about on the fire. Plus they work as nice ember tongs in a pinch for tossing bits into a tinderbox. All the accoutrements are kept in a simple linen toolroll inspired by Greg's:
I chose to leave off the oilcloth backing though, knowing that no matter how careful I am I'm going to get grease and soot all over it, and wanted to be able to easily and thoroughly give it a deep cleaning, which I didn't think I could do if it was on a waterproof backing. You'll also see another skewer and one of Odigan's lovely sylvan spoons in there.

The toolroll then fits in a little carrybag to keep everything orderly.

And finally, here's the real neat trick - you see that other long metal handle in there? It slides into the pot lid to make an improvised skillet.


I'm overjoyed with this piece of Jeffrey's - I think he's managed a just incredibly useful little treasure.

Holy crap! That has got to be the best piece of kit I’ve seen on here. Ever. What’s the stats on that beauty?

That is a beautifully thought out and executed piece. Congrats

Amazing, the detail on the brass (is it brass?) just makes it.

Elleth wrote:here's the real neat trick - you see that other long metal handle in there? It slides into the pot lid to make an improvised skillet.

Clever

Thank you all!

What’s the stats on that beauty?

It's quite small - about 3.75" in diameter and about the same in height. Being iron, it's fairly stout at 11 3/4 oz, and holds just about exactly 2 cups when full. It's just big enough for a hearty serving of stew or large cup of morning tea - but I won't be serving a troop of hobbits out of it.

Here it next to a Westminster Forge corn boiler for size comparison:
Master Hildebrant also sent me some lovely "I'm done" photos if you'd like to see it minus the soot and ook -

the detail on the brass (is it brass?) just makes it.

I'm quite partial to it - the floral pattern was a riff off the professor's own flowers I did some time back. Were I to commission the project over again, I might pass on the trim: as much as I like the look of it, it does expand more than the iron in a hot fire, so a gap opens up. I don't expect any problems, but it's something I'm keeping my eye on.

An inspired bit of cookware. I'm sure like many others, I'm envious.

He really did knock that one out of the park. Well thought-out...I'm sure it'll serve you well!

EDIT: I was pretty skeptical at the early drawings and concept of this, but after studying it a bit, I'm starting to come around. It follows a personal goal of mine: to divorce my "look" from non- Middle-earth-y appearances...to keep things firmly rooted in our chosen 'period'. It definitely does that, the iron specifically. I have no need to follow suit, but there may be a day that I sit back, take another look and say "ya know, it's time." A great archetypal addition to your kit...your design nailed it.

Hoo boy, that's a SWEET piece. Excellent inspiration and execution! Can't wait to see it in conjunction with the rest of your kit.
Now I just need to pick my jaw up off the floor : P

That is an outstanding piece.

A true work of art.

That's absolutely gorgeous! One of these days when I'm less engrossed in schoolwork I'll start assembling a kit and I must remember to keep things like this in the front of my mind.

OH. OH DEAR. OOOOOH MY OH MY THAT IS JUST... WOW. This is on a whole new level, Elleth. Simply stunning. I think this may be the best example of a fully fleshed out, believable 3rd-Age Dunedain artifact I have EVER SEEN. It just... FITS perfectly. The brass band at the top may be giving you some worry, but I think that's really the thing that brings the design all together. It makes it look REAL, in the context of Middle Earth. And of course, the lid/skillet idea is nothing short of inspired.

This post is like a Ranger moment of zen for me. This is when I see this hobby start to feel REAL. Very, VERY nicely done.

So did you intend for this to echo to the Westland style caldrons?

Not those specifically, but I looked at so many pots in the early research phase I'd not be surprised if there was some unconscious influence.


The kettle is based largely on Dark Ages riveted cauldrons of course, but the basic form and dimensions fell out of the requirement to fit in a slim cylindrical snapsack: a little smaller at top than bottom to leave room for the ears, a slightly dished bottom to nestle in coals, etc. Our Dunedain arc aesthetic informed the shape as well, I'm sure.