broomsticks vs. flying carpets (was: It's all Lucius Malfoy's fault....)

[Steve]

No: HPFGUIDX 55349

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Tom Wall" <thomasmwall at y...> wrote:
> Wow – so much going on with the Fudge discussions, but
> I just wanted to chime in here on this transportation
> topic.
> 
> Replies to Steve and Patricia are in this post.
> 
> 
> Steve wrote:
> <snip>
> In fact, unlike usable carpets, magic brooms are absolutely
> worthless for sweeping.
> 
> 
> I (Tom) reply:
> Well, on the first point, we don't know that. I mean,
> it's never stated in canon that a flying broom
> *couldn't* be used for sweeping. <Chuckles at idea of 
> Ron and Harry finding out that this is actually happening.> 
> 

bboy_mn:

The sweep of a flying broom is made out of twigs. I believe the
Firebolt has an Ash handle and Birch twig sweep. You might be able to
move around clods or chunks of dirt, but for anything as as fine as
dust or common household dirt, it truly would be worthless. It would
be more like a very very fine rake than anything anyone would consider
a functional broom. 

To a Muggle who has seen real world functional sweeping brooms, a
flying broom would certainly seem very broom like, but I just can't
see any Muggle looking at a sweep that coarse and seeing any function
beyond kindling.

As far as wizards, we don't have the exact price of a broom but the
Firebold cost hundreds of Galleons (G100=+$800); 'hundreds' would
safely imply $2,000 to $4,000 for a broom. Suprisingly cheap for
transportation, but way way way too expensive to ever consider using
as a real broom.


> Tom continues:
> 
> As for the carpet situation, let's see what canon says:
> ---
> "Ali Bashir's on the warpath. He wants a word with you
> about your embargo on flying carpets."
> 
> <snip Arthur's sigh>
> 
> "... Carpets are defined as a Muggle Artifact by the Registry of
> Proscribed Charmable Objects, but will he listen?"
> ...edited...

> ---
> 
> ...edited...
> 
> We don't have any evidence to suggest that flying
> carpets are all created by charming a regular muggle
> carpet – for instance, I wouldn't be surprised to
> discover that there were indeed companies/people that
> made carpets *expressly* for flying, along the same
> lines as the Nimbus/Firebolt. And what's to say that a
> flying carpet could even be used as a regular carpet?
> For all we know, after all, stepping on the thing
> could make it lift into the air, which would be most
> inconvenient for in-home usage, if you see what I
> mean. ;-)
> 
 
bboy_mn:
" For all we know, after all, stepping on the thing could make it lift
into the air... "

Precisely why they are banded as a charmable object, someone would
look at them and see a carpet, and step on it. But if someone mistood
a flying broom for a really crappy sweeping broom and tried to sweep
with it, there probably wouldn't be any ill effects. A flying broom
held in a sweeping position would not be likely to take off flying.

Carpet manufacturing - even if a wizard manufactures a carpet as a
flying carpet, he must indeed first make a carpet. Muggle made or
wizard made, it is still a carpet. 

A broom on the other hand, is constructed for balance, comfort, and
aerodynamics rather than functional sweeping ability. Any Muggle who
looked at a flying broom, would see a really crappy sweeping broom
worth nothing beyond the wood it was made from.



> Tom continues:
> 
> Steve wrote:
> <snip> I base this on the fact that portkey are very
> convinient, but they are not used that often. [My two stage process
theory]
> 
> I reply:
> I don't think that we have any evidence to suggest
> that creating a Portkey is a tedious process – after
> all, we know that Crouch!Moody was able to turn the
> Triwizard Cup into a Portkey during the trip from the
> Great Hall to the Quidditch Pitch prior to the Third
> Task. So, I don't think it could be *that* difficult.
> 
> 
> -Tom

bboy_mn:

There is a large legion of people who believe that the Tri-Wizard's
Cup was already a portkey which is why it was able to take Harry back
to Hogwarts without being reprogrammed. The theory goes that
fake!Moody only inserted a stop. 

Recently someone expanded the theory by saying that with a portkey the
last destination placed on it, is the first destination reached. Moody
put the Cemetery destination on top of the 'outside the maze'
destination. When Harry touched it, he used the Cemetery destination,
leaving the remaining 'outside the maze' destination active and ready
to use. Last on - first off.

There is also the possibility that, in anticipation of the third task,
Moody had much earlier started the process of making the cup ABLE to
accept a portkey function and destination, then on the day of third
task, added the destination as he carried it in.

Logically why would anyone choose Floo powder over a portkey? You have
to buy or make Floo powder, but you can take any old piece of junk and
make it into a portkey. Why even risk the danger of apparating when
any and all wizards could charm their shoes into portkeys and travel
anywhere they wanted to go? 

The fact that Portkeys aren't the primary means of travel in the
wizard world tells me that there has to be a reason why people don't
use them all the time. Based on all that reasoning, the only logical
thing I can come up with is that it is a lot more difficult than it
seems. 

Just a few thoughts.

bboy_mn