[WIP] Flying Dutchman

[GeoBrick]

That's a sizable width you made for this deck.
Are those old grey legs (5th picture) on the ship's sides?

[Sebeus I]

13 hours ago, GeoBrick said:

That's a sizable width you made for this deck.
Are those old grey legs (5th picture) on the ship's sides?

The upper cannon deck is around 18 suds at the widest. It's remarkable how easily it gets cramped though. Grates, staircases and belaying pin racks quickly fill up the space. I've fixed the broadside cannons in their outrun position to optimize space.

Those are minifigure legs yes. I had used those on my previous model as well, they're a great help to finish those difficult tumblehome angles.

Edited June 14 by Sebeus I

[Jack Sassy]

Good progress on her! 

On 6/13/2026 at 8:53 PM, Sebeus I said:

I've used HP wands for the purpose before, on the Spectre and back then I wasn't too fond of it really.

The rack looks lovely, somehow I had never though fo such a simple solution. Recently I have been experimenting with multiple designs. One part I have found to be more accurate is the new wand piece released two years ago:

However currently it be available in just two colours - reddish brown and medium nougat one pictured above.  Would ye ever attemp another design for the belaying pin rack, one that has them going accurately through the rack?

[Sebeus I]

9 hours ago, Jack Sassy said:

Good progress on her! 

The rack looks lovely, somehow I had never though fo such a simple solution. Recently I have been experimenting with multiple designs. One part I have found to be more accurate is the new wand piece released two years ago:

However currently it be available in just two colours - reddish brown and medium nougat one pictured above.  Would ye ever attemp another design for the belaying pin rack, one that has them going accurately through the rack?

I suppose medium nougat could work on the FD, as the weather deck is already coloured as such 🤔.

I had been thinking about different solutions, I would have loved ro get some of these on the inner sides of the ship:

However, once the belaying pins are in, it becomes difficult to attach the plate in an elegant manner.

On the Spectre, I had tried to fix them in brackets with round plates in them:

A rather fragile solution though. I suppose the easiest thing to do, would be to just use a series of 1x2 round plates , where one side is used for attaching to side/pin rack and the other for the belaying pin.

[Long_John_Silva]

I used a rather simple solution in one of my projects... instead of having the belaying pin "table" and then come up with a way of attaching it to the side "wall" of the ship, i just used some 1x1 or 1x2 brick with clip (60475b or 30237b) or even some 1x1 plate with clip (4085), depending on the circumstances and used a 78258 2L Bar for the pin.

Not that the wand is not a good ideia and closer to shape of the pin, but i think it's a little bit longer in terms of scale and perhaps more fragile. This solution i used is a far more sturdier one to tie all the necessary rigging considering that the Bar connects to an element that's part of the side wall, and therefore, part of the structure. The fact that there are 4 different colors that can be used in this particular ship is just a bonus 

 

Edited June 15 by Long_John_Silva

[Jack Sassy]

15 hours ago, Sebeus I said:

I would have loved ro get some of these on the inner sides of the ship:

Indeed, these parts seem worthy to experiment with.

3 hours ago, Long_John_Silva said:

The fact that there are 4 different colors that can be used in this particular ship is just a bonus 

That aspect can be extended to other details on the Flying Dutchman. The amount of detail this project affords and also demands is incredible!

[Sebeus I]

I'm going to tear down the old ship, I took some final comparison pictures. 

They are the same width though due they might not look it. It's remarkable how much the updated relative proportions have changed how its size is perceived. At least from my perspective.

I had already taken down most of the starboard side anyway.

Crossing bowsprits...

I think I might work on the bowsprit next, really need to get that grim reaper on there .

 

On 6/15/2026 at 7:42 PM, Long_John_Silva said:

I used a rather simple solution in one of my projects... instead of having the belaying pin "table" and then come up with a way of attaching it to the side "wall" of the ship, i just used some 1x1 or 1x2 brick with clip (60475b or 30237b) or even some 1x1 plate with clip (4085), depending on the circumstances and used a 78258 2L Bar for the pin.

Oh yes, I've used 2L bars before on other ships, they are indeed less fragile .

 

 

Edited June 17 by Sebeus I

[Sebeus I]

Update time!

Lots of developments since last time:

Starting off with the ships' idol!

I'll keep it like that for now, I may do some enhancements later but I've got other priorities now, the ships needs to be presentable by September.

With the bowsprit somewhat finished, I now have a final number on the total length of the ship; 1,11 meter!

After long consideration, I concluded I didn't like the transparent pink on the stern window that much. I replaced it by transparent brown.

I've been working on the rear part of the upper gun deck, which was quite the tricky affair, not that much space in there. A proper Liar's Dice scene in this area doesn't seem viable.

Much of this area won't be accessible anyway.

Now, the door in the back of the upper gun deck is the unofficial entrance to the Captain's Quarters.

The first section of the Captain's Quarters is kind of a vestibule.

It's very cramped in there, even more so when I put on the rest of the quarter deck.

I'm going have to start on the galleries pretty soon.

Not sure what I'll work on next. When I'm in peak mode, I'll tackle the challenging stern of the ship, otherwise I'll be finishing the, easier, forecastle and quarter deck .

[Jack Sassy]

30 minutes ago, Sebeus I said:

Starting off with the ships' idol!

He seems very life like, good job! 

30 minutes ago, Sebeus I said:

A proper Liar's Dice scene in this area doesn't seem viable.

I think ye can use that barrel by the cannon as a small reference to it, not a complete scene. I do appreciate all of the details, especially the usage of that 1x1 coral (?) piece around the deck and the chest reminds me of some of the details seen in the PotC LEGO game. Looking at those brackets, I dread to think about how difficult it will be to build the galleries. On ships like this one they certainly are a struggle! Good work and I hope ye make it till September. 

[Sebeus I]

On 7/23/2026 at 11:28 PM, Jack Sassy said:

Looking at those brackets, I dread to think about how difficult it will be to build the galleries. On ships like this one they certainly are a struggle! Good work and I hope ye make it till September. 

I keep postponing the galleries . These certainly will be one of the more challenging bits of the ship.

[Sebeus I]

Lots of progress.

The forecastle is pretty much finished, I only need to add the anchors still. The rest are just details.

I am very pleased with how the catheads turned out. Not the most complex construction, simplicity works best often.

I loved how, on the original set of the movies, the catheads actually had a cat skull in them. Cat's on the catheads as it were...

In between the catheads, there are a number of smaller beams sticking out of the forecastle. To be honest I don't quite understand what these could have been for. I suspect they might have supported a walking bridge towards the sprit mast, back in the time the Flying Dutchman still had a sprit mast. It is nowhere officially explained how the original bowsprit broke. I imagine when the movie set was designed, they stumbled upon a conflict with the triple cannons. A sprit mast wouldn't make sense since the triple cannons would simply fire into the sprit sail. Anyway, enough about that.

 

The top view curves of the ship are a major improvement compared to the old model.

It was a bit of a challenge to get the channels fixated under an angle (while still providing enough structural rigidity to support the shrouds later) but I must say it was quite worth the effort.

Just look at that beautiful silhouette .

With the Forecastle being well underway, I directed my attention towards the Quarter deck. The main features on this deck are the notorious Kraken Hammer and the "official" entrance doors to the captain's quarters.

The Kraken Hammer above is very similar to the one on my old model. But I tried a couple of other designs as well.

That one was a bit too clean to my liking, I tried my hand at capstans with 8 leverage beams instead of 6 as well.

8 leverage beams are more faithful to the movie though that one is a less elegant design I think (there's still a 3x3 dish missing on that one though).

I actually have a working Kraken Hammer as well but with a drum of 4 studs diameter, I deemed it too large for this ship. I do intend to create a separate MOC to show off its functionality later though.

It's funny since I had the same struggle with capstan designs on the previous model as well. Fortunately, the Kraken Hammer is a superficial detail and can easily be changed when the ship is completed.

With the forecastle and quarter deck taking shape, there's really no more postponing it, I need to start on the galleries.

There's a number of ways I could go about it. I'm in drafting phase now.

I am quite set on using the curved arch bricks, as they don't compromise the visible interior as much.

Really need to get going with this area. After the galleries, I'll have to be looking into the stern which should be the most detailed part of the ship. Though I might begin on the poop deck before I get to the stern.

 

Edited August 1 by Sebeus I
Typo

[Long_John_Silva]

The catheads looks good, but i don't know if i wouldn't add just a small horn/beak to the "arm" piece

Like the video game version:

 

As to the Kraken Hammer, i think a 3 studs dish would be better to hide the conections to the capstan... you'll get a more clean design  

Edited August 3 by Long_John_Silva

[Sebeus I]

On 8/3/2026 at 3:37 PM, Long_John_Silva said:

The catheads looks good, but i don't know if i wouldn't add just a small horn/beak to the "arm" piece

Like the video game version:

 

As to the Kraken Hammer, i think a 3 studs dish would be better to hide the conections to the capstan... you'll get a more clean design  

Hmmm, adding a beak would be contradictory to what I want to achieve, namely the cat skulls as in the movie. The video game version is a very nice MOC for sure. But it's not particularly movie-accurate .