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You decide to meet with Garrett, Raul, Gunderson and Lewis away from the Lucky 38 as you’re beginning to feel suffocated in its walls. Instead, this is a good opportunity to tour a new workshop in Freeside which makes clothing from Heck Gunderson’s cattle. The shop itself is a joint venture between him and some new NCR investors.
It’s set on the outskirts of Freeside, along a relatively intact road that leads north to one of Heck’s many ranches. When you sent a Securitron asking for a tour, the foreman was all too excited to show The Director around. The workshop is built out from an old office with most of the cubicles and other rubbish thrown out to open up the production floor.
On one end, a partially destroyed wall has been opened up even more where fresh hides are brought in and processed by tanners. Once the animal skin is stripped of hair through a lime soak, they are strapped to the inside of a drum and rolled with salt taken from the salt flats around the Mojave.
The foreman explains that the original pre-war process had a special chemical involved but it’s not processed anymore. Instead, this still results in usable leather within just four months. And because of the Mojave dry heat, the leather is as good as anywhere in the wasteland. Heck mentions that his father has brought up the possibility of grazing across the river and has already planned on taking heads across the dam. The land isn’t much better but there’s little for them to eat anyway.
The five of you are taken to the production side of the workshop where larger, manually-spun sewing machines are set up. The foreman tells you they came from the NCR and weren’t cheap to get out here but increases productivity tenfold and results in sturdier clothing. The foreman even shares his plans to bring cobblers into the building to create shoes as well. Before you and your council depart, he informs you that he can produce the exact same leather armor for cheaper, as long as you buy in bulk.
You tell him you’ll keep it in mind and pull your council outside and under some shade.
Garrett: That’s a pretty impressive setup, I remember when that shipment of sewing machines came through.
Ted downs half of his canteen and wipes his face of sweat. He hands the warm water to Lewis.
Gunderson: Is it cheaper to produce it out here than back in the NCR? Clothing can’t weigh that much.
