When should I wait for enchanted metal?

[ChaseFV]

I'm finally getting started on my run to 1450 (at 49, 1750 is still a few seasons and a lot of hunting out of reach), and I'm working on my Jewelcrafting to be able to cap off my pottery without pestering the guild enchanters too much. How far should I go before I start asking the enchanters to enchant me some metal to off-set my costs? They've expressed a willingness to help, but I'd certainly hate to abuse it. I burned through silver and up to electrum + opal on cash alone, but it's starting to get a bit more pricy now. Should I have them enchant gold now, or should I wait until I triv gold + malachite (since once I get to that point, my failures should be reduced, as I'll be closer in skill to the trivial of what I'm working on)? Or should I just keep burning cash until I get to gold + opal, and only have them enchant for me once I start working on the painfully expensive stuff (just the last couple of skill points prior to 200)?

Thanx,

[Dulsin]

Enchanting the bars will give you about 4% extra back on the sell back price. When 4% is significant to you the bars should be enchanted.

Electrum malachite will only give you a couple extra silver but gold sapphire will be over 6p each.

[Velurian]

Enchanting the bars will give you about 4% extra back on the sell back price. When 4% is significant to you the bars should be enchanted.

And further, you only get the extra 4% on successes (or you get all the time, but an extra 4% of 0 is still 0...). So at best, you're talking about 95% of 4%, and in the electrum range, it's more like 75-80% of 4%.

On electrum/opal, you're at about 20pp per combine, so that's 8gp savings or less per attempt, or about 16pp per stack. You'll be spending a lot of time at electrum/opal, bridging the gap to gold, so if your guild enchanters are really friendly and this is a lot of money for you, you might want to get a few stacks of electrum enchanted. (You'll have to decide whether the goodwill of your guild enchanters is worth 16pp a stack -- it's really boring work.)

At gold/opal, you'll be looking at about 28pp per combine, or 1p1g2s or less savings per attempt, 22p8g per stack. If the above isn't worth it to you, this probably won't be either.

On the other hand, you may definitely want to consider asking for help with the last 10 points:

fire opal (63p per attempt, about 2p5g savings per attempt, 50p per stack)
star ruby (78.75p per attempt, over 3p savings per attempts, about 65p per stack)
fire emerald (99.75p per attempt, almost 4p savings per attempt, almost 80p per stack)

Considering this is also the range that will take the most combines per point, this can get into real money. I'd wait until this range until asking your guild enchanters, but that may be because I am an enchanter, and I know how much I'd hate enchanting stack after stack of electrum and gold. They may have offered their help, but in the long run, it pays to be gracious.

[ChaseFV]

Thanks guys!

Clearly, I have voiced my question to the right people! My thanks (and assuredly, that of any enchanters of my acquaintance) to you both!

[Lyinar]

I didn't start enchanting the bars until I got into gold and the more expensive gems. It was just too much trouble for too little profit before that.

But definitely use enchanted bars on the gold and expensive metals and all plat. You'll sink a lot of money if you don't, but if you do, you can potentially turn out ahead.

[Dulsin]

Opps I forgot something.

That 4% is a profit over the vender prices you baught at. When you use unenchanted bars you take a loss on the sell back. So maybe a better number to use is 8-10%.

Now 10% on gold sapphire is a pretty big chunk of change.