Custom sails

[turk187]

Im working on a MOC/MOD lego ship and I'm thinking about making my own sails. I was hoping for some advice from the community about this. Anyone make there own sails? Any pointers?

[kurigan]

What sort of sails?

Classic Lego style, realistic or some where in between?

Perhaps a picture of the project in question would be in order?

Have you checked out the sail library on the master index?

[turk187]

What sort of sails?

Classic Lego style, realistic or some where in between?

Perhaps a picture of the project in question would be in order?

Have you checked out the sail library on the master index?

Im thinking plain white realistic sails. What I most want to know is can you just buy cloth at a craft store and cut them out? Has anyone done that? I could just trace sails I've got onto some cheap fabric and cut them out. But, I wan't some advice from anyone who has done that sort of thing, rather than just jumping in. I'm working on a hybrid steam/sail ship based on the Sea Cow, but heavily modified.

[kurigan]

Well then you and I are on a similar journey at the same time good sir. It will be interesting to see what we come up with.

I suggest starting here:

http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=54245

I've used, to decent effect before, paper, tee-shirt cotton and broad cloth (bed sheets). This time around I'll be trying painter's canvas myself. I'm worried it's too thick and won't translate well but seems worth the adventure for the price.

If your courious about my previous experiments here's some links but I think the good admiral's tutorial is honestly the best place to start where cloth is concerned.

http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=78187

http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=85771

http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=104211

Now, do not let my enthusiasm stop any one else from contributing. There have been a number of builders with impressive sails her in past and it'd warm my heart to to see them chime in on this worthy topic.

[Capn Frank]

Custom sails have been made in the past, and some of them are posted in the Library of Sails. There are CAD remakes of classic-pirate sails, completely custom sails, and scans of the sails.

[Captain Dee]

Cloth is nice but for experimentation I prefer paper just because it's cheap and easy. If you're building something for permanent display then cloth would definitely look better. Good luck!

[Capn Frank]

I have tried paper and cloth sails. I would suggest trying artist canvas. The material is a form of painted cloth that is stronger than paper, holds its shape, and printing sail designs is possible. It's what I plan on using for my next permanently built ship.

[blackdeathgr]

I use (linen colored) cloth myself. It is the kind of cloth used for wooden miniature ships and in greece it is called "caboto". You can ask it from any relevant shop. It isn't that firm, but its the real thing and you can always put it in a bowl with water and a bit wood glue to acquire stiffness (the more glue, the firmer it becomes). You can also make these darker by letting them in a bowl of tea for some hours. On the other hand there are firmer, more expensive cloths and you can experiment on that. Check my flickr for some ideas on white and black sails too. In any case, experimenting and a bit of work nets you nice results imo. Only thing i havent tried yet, is sail printing as i dont have the means to do so.

[wllolao]

There are CAD remakes of classic-pirate sails, completely custom sails, and scans of the sails.

Edited January 21, 2016 by wllolao