A 15.5 gallon SS keg is
much cheaper than a 15 gallon SS Pot.
But it is essentially the same thing....a Stainless Steel vessel.
And as far as cosmetics, a SS pot is nice and shiny, but you can polish and buff the kegs just the same.
Bobby_M has a
nice thread on keg polishing.
I have to agree with talley on this one...
I currently have 5 kegs, and two more coming. I have picked them all up off of craigslist... and no, I don't want to get into any ethical arguments with people about this. The simple fact is, there are kegs out there that people are looking to get rid of, because they have NOT been able to return them for their deposit money, for one reason or another.
Anyway, my point is, of the seven that I will soon have, I paid $50 for one, $40 each for two of them, $30 for one of them, $25 each for two of them, and got one for free. So I have averaged $30 per keg. Compare that (62 quart SS pot for $30) to the
williamsbrewing 60 quart SS pot for $155.
I will agree, there is more work to do with the keg, cutting the top out, etc. Honestly though, if you have the tools (a grinder) already, then it is just the cost of the cut off wheels. If you don't, I only paid $35 for my angle grinder. I am going to go through and convert six of the seven kegs, keep three of them for myself, and sell off the other three. Now that angle grinder only cost me about $6 per keg, so the total cost, other than the cut off wheels for the grinder, is about $36 per keg.
I am going to have my LHBS do some welding work for me, so that I can add a ball valve, sight glass, and thermometer. The welding work will cost me $65 per keg, and would be less if I knew how to do the work myself. Now I am up to about $100 per kettle. Add in the actual hardware for that, and you are at about $185, compared to
$356 for a similarly decked out pot from MoreBeer. Two for the price of one... I like that.