General MOC-Discussion, WIP-Help, and Teaser Thread

[Marooned Marin]

1 hour ago, Vesperas said:

and it's impossible to do sails

Impossible? Not quite true. Study this for a moment.

CLICK HERE

By the way, welcome to the most dangerous forum

[Vesperas]

1 hour ago, Marooned Marin said:

Impossible? Not quite true. Study this for a moment.

Wow... That's impressive.

I'm not sure if the overall time investment between producing good looking photos and complete renders (with your sail tutorial) would be comparable for me, since my knowledge level is novice in either case, but this is something I'd eventually like to spend time learning and experimenting with. I've always done instructions for every MOC I've built, whether initially done with actual LEGO and reverse engineered/ported to Studio later, or done in Studio from the beginning, and it has always bothered me how many of them are missing their sails, cloth flags, and (usually) strings.

In any rate, I stand corrected. I guess it's not impossible.

Thanks for doing that and providing a link to it.

[evancelt]

22 hours ago, Vesperas said:

Hello!

I've been lurking around here for a few years on and off but only semi-recently joined because "my project" is finally in a place where I'm becoming comfortable with the idea of showing it to the world. That said, I wanted to ask a few questions first. 🙂

One, does anyone have any suggestions for capturing photos of their creations? I recall seeing a thread somewhere that had some good ideas/suggestions but I can't seem to locate the specific posts. I'd be starting at one step up from the most basic entry level. Basically, I'm looking for suggestions for something better than my phone camera, that's decent for capturing photos of MOC's with small, dark, nooks and crannies, but doesn't cost that much. I guess I'm just asking for some advice from people with some experience with it.

I highly recommend my current setup: a cheap $35 24" lightbox tent for bright diffuse light, posterboard for "infinity" backgrounds, and two $8 amazon lamps. The only part I splurged on was some nicer "daylight" LED bulbs for the lamps because I end up taking all of my photos at night once kids are in bed and there isn't a chance for natural light.

I just use my iPhone 12 mini camera - seems to work well enough!

Then recolored the background in photoshop:

[Vesperas]

On 5/9/2022 at 12:45 PM, evancelt said:

I highly recommend my current setup: a cheap $35 24" lightbox tent for bright diffuse light, posterboard for "infinity" backgrounds, and two $8 amazon lamps. The only part I splurged on was some nicer "daylight" LED bulbs for the lamps because I end up taking all of my photos at night once kids are in bed and there isn't a chance for natural light.

I just use my iPhone 12 mini camera - seems to work well enough!

That does seem to work well. I like how you were able to maintain the shadows. Looks good! 👍

If you don't mind me asking, where did you pick up those custom torso sticker prints? They look great.

I'm always looking for more options, especially for plain, civilian/peasant looking stuff. There aren't many options for classic yellow minifigures unless you cross over into castle stuff.

Edited May 14, 2022 by Vesperas

[evancelt]

10 hours ago, Vesperas said:

That does seem to work well. I like how you were able to maintain the shadows. Looks good! 👍

If you don't mind me asking, where did you pick up those custom torso sticker prints? They look great.

I'm always looking for more options, especially for plain, civilian/peasant looking stuff. There aren't many options for classic yellow minifigures unless you cross over into castle stuff.

These torsos were pad-printed by https://brickguild.ca @quiriacus

[Vesperas]

On 5/14/2022 at 9:13 AM, evancelt said:

These torsos were pad-printed by https://brickguild.ca @quiriacus

Thank you. I've reached out to him. I'll have to see what he says.

---

The other main question I had for everyone is regarding water. There are obviously quite a number of different ways people handle water. Personally, I've settled on covering the entire base plate with 1x1 and 1x2 translucent tiles, despite how tedious and expensive it is. That said, I was wondering if anyone knew of any good examples of how to do shores or shaols?

I have a hard time determining if I like something in Studio when I experiment with laying plates underneath, as it usually ends up looking quite different when I physically build it.

Additionally, I was also wondering if anyone knew of a reliable way of preventing the base plate from bowing while (ideally) only using some combination of plates and translucent tiles? I've tried a number of different things but the only reliable way I've found is to use a combination of plates and bricks running across them, which isn't always feasible.

I'm inclined to think it's just something I'll have to live with but figured I'd ask.

[evancelt]

46 minutes ago, Vesperas said:

Thank you. I've reached out to him. I'll have to see what he says.

---

The other main question I had for everyone is regarding water. There are obviously quite a number of different ways people handle water. Personally, I've settled on covering the entire base plate with 1x1 and 1x2 translucent tiles, despite how tedious and expensive it is. That said, I was wondering if anyone knew of any good examples of how to do shores or shaols?

I have a hard time determining if I like something in Studio when I experiment with laying plates underneath, as it usually ends up looking quite different when I physically build it.

Additionally, I was also wondering if anyone knew of a reliable way of preventing the base plate from bowing while (ideally) only using some combination of plates and translucent tiles? I've tried a number of different things but the only reliable way I've found is to use a combination of plates and bricks running across them, which isn't always feasible.

I'm inclined to think it's just something I'll have to live with but figured I'd ask.

Here are various examples from some of my past builds. Fun to use clear tiles and put different colors under them, or use different color trans tiles and put different colors under them

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[MontyMatte]

@evancelt Thanks for sharing that. I was searching how to take photos in a way I could do too for a long time. :)

-----
Sincerly, Tobi aka MM

Monty Matte on Insta - FB 
Willow project on Eurobricks - LEGOIdeas

 

[SerenityInFire]

Hey everyone, I've been working on a number of designs for MOCs, and this is my first time doing a custom boat design.  I'm trying to go for something made by the humans to fight the ship from "Skeleton Ship Attack" from '07, but without using the prefab hull pieces as those are kind of expensive.

With that out of the way, this is what I have so far.  I'm going for a boat from the middle ages (pre-gunpowder), so that's why there are no gun ports.  I want it to be comparable to the aforementioned skeleton boat, but I find my hull to be rather lacking, and maybe a bit too tall.  I do have a brig and a storage room on the lower deck with the upper deck removable. 

Any advice about improvements and what-not that can be done to make this MOC a bit better are greatly appreciated.

 

Edited June 25, 2022 by SerenityInFire

[Marooned Marin]

28 minutes ago, SerenityInFire said:

Any advice

Try to study this tutorial here by Dunkleosteus, and then read the whole topic here as there are valuable tips from other members here and there. 

[SerenityInFire]

That seems to be exactly what I was looking for.  Thanks!

[Jack Sassy]

Question about upper decks: which one do ye all prefer, dark brown or brown? I can't make up me mind as to which colour I should use to have a darker effect on a vessel. 

[Marooned Marin]

43 minutes ago, Jack Sassy said:

which one do ye all prefer, dark brown or brown?

Can you use both, to achieve more realistic feel of the wood?

And are all those parts available on BrickLink? I find dark brown and brown very rare for most of the less popular parts.

 

[Jack Sassy]

27 minutes ago, Marooned Marin said:

And are all those parts available on BrickLink? I find dark brown and brown very rare for most of the less popular parts.

There is a 6x14 plate available in brown, which is perfect size for my deck. Surely, there are some specific pieces that aren't available in such colours but for those I have in mind few containers to cover up unwanted colours.

31 minutes ago, Marooned Marin said:

Can you use both, to achieve more realistic feel of the wood?

Sadly, nay, vessel that I am building has a dark, yet clean look that I want to replicate. I have seen people use dark tan and reddish brown but such colours are too bright. Black blends it all too much and dark bluish grey makes no sense (since the deck isn't made of concrete ). Brown and dark brown are two colours I have come down to but am yet to decide which to pick.

[Marooned Marin]

8 minutes ago, Jack Sassy said:

Brown and dark brown are two colours I have come down to but am yet to decide which to pick.

Well... it's hard to help since we haven't seen the whole build, so giving advantage to one colour over the other will not help you.

But!

Visit this thread and study in depth the various use of colours. The Poop-deck has even bluish-gray and I find it good looking.

If you study this MOC deeply you'll see that the builder used everything from black - dark brown - brown - reddish brown - to dark red!

Hope this helps

[Jack Sassy]

21 minutes ago, Marooned Marin said:

Visit this thread and study in depth the various use of colours. The Poop-deck has even bluish-gray and I find it good looking.

If you study this MOC deeply you'll see that the builder used everything from black - dark brown - brown - reddish brown - to dark red!

Thank ye for sharing! Jackdaw is a different situation, due to it actually having a lot of different colours and materials. Vessel that I am making is in one colour, therefore I am trying to achieve a darker look. I will experiment with colour change on poop deck, forecastle and main deck. 

 

I found a picture which has (more or less) deck that I am trying to achieve:

[Marooned Marin]

17 minutes ago, Jack Sassy said:

I will experiment with colour change on poop deck, forecastle and main deck.

This is not a render, but a real build picture which could help you.

See the tiles just left of the door, from reddish-brown to brown and dark-brown.

For your purposes my first try would be to go with dark-brown

 

[Jack Sassy]

2 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

See the tiles just left of the door, from reddish-brown to brown and dark-brown.

For your purposes my first try would be to go with dark-brown

Aye, thank ye for the example, it does look good, perhaps buying few plates from either colour would help determine it in the end.

[kurigan]

It's something of a modern misconception that ships decks, of the period, where of a dark, rich, brown color. Sealing a large deck area wasn't, really, a practical solution before the late 19th-early 20th c. When the industrial production of the needed chemicals made them more affordable. Even then, it was a expensive proposition to chemically seal the deck of a larger vessels, particularly as they would regularly need refreshing, even during transit. Also, many of the available sealants change consistency under the heat of the sun, leaving the deck sticky or slick, on top of the inconvenience if having to work the ship around areas of the deck, which are undergoing maintenance. It may have looked great on the pleasure yachts of the earlier part of the last century and, with even better coatings, on replicas and preserved vessels in the 21st c. but, during the age of sail the go-to method for deck preservation was to simply resurface it. That's what swabbing a holy-stoning are. Rub the entire deck down with abrasive blocks, stem to stern then mop away the debris. After beating it dry with rags you get a bright, clean and smooth surface again; which is handy as sailors preferred to climb the rigging bare foot and deck splinters can be a real bother.

Great, but what's that mean for Lego? Well it means our best color for something more realistic is tan (Which is actually beige, dark tan is tan. That drives me nuts, but I digress). On my own builds I've used several different colors for different effects, though. Going way back on my Green Schooner, Nonesuch, I used a mottling "50 shades of gray" effect for a neglected, worn and patched look. On my proper men of war, like Reckless, Scorpion and Snake, I use tan for that freshly holy-stoned look on a well disciplined ship. On my latest build, which I have yet to reveal, but plant to soon, Chaser, I used up a whole bunch of damaged, discolored and off-brand plates, in white, which were not suitable for sale in my store. I again got a mottled effect, but with a less weathered look, suggesting a dutiful crew but an older ship.

Now that's just what I'm about. You do you. This is just what was, what the wisdom of ages suggests. If brown 'looks' better to you, by all means. 

 

Cheers! 

 

Edited July 19, 2022 by kurigan

[Jack Sassy]

2 hours ago, kurigan said:

Now that's just what I'm about. You do you. This is just what was, what the wisdom of ages suggests. If brown 'looks' better to you, by all means. 

Do not blame me, source material suggests such colour, as it is something taken out of historically inaccurate fantasy . Indeed, tan colours are far more accurate for vessel decks (I am using dark tan plates for lower deck) but I do believe in order to stay true to source material, I must build the deck with darker colours. Brighter colours would just look off, but thank ye for the explanation. 

 

P.S.

I do like that little illustration at the beginning. 

[kurigan]

On 7/19/2022 at 5:17 PM, Jack Sassy said:

Do not blame me, source material suggests such colour, as it is something taken out of historically inaccurate fantasy . Indeed, tan colours are far more accurate for vessel decks (I am using dark tan plates for lower deck) but I do believe in order to stay true to source material, I must build the deck with darker colours. Brighter colours would just look off, but thank ye for the explanation. 

 

P.S.

I do like that little illustration at the beginning. 

Well I do like to keep comments like this generalized so they're useful to the boarder audience as well, but there is advice in there for you, even if I did glaze over it a bit. Go for a mottled effect of different browns (like I did with gray on Nonesuch) and then you get both the run-down look and can match whatever parts in what ever brown is most handy.

Thanks, it gives me a chuckle too 

[Jack Sassy]

18 hours ago, kurigan said:

Go for a mottled effect of different browns (like I did with gray on Nonesuch) and then you get both the run-down look and can match whatever parts in what ever brown is most handy.

I do have to experiment with that. Like I said, it is a nice clean look, however, perhaps multiple colours will look better. So I shall compare one colour and multiple colours. 

[Anders T]

Just giving a heads-up that the LDD file for my HMS Ontario model is available at bricksafe.

https://bricksafe.com/pages/AndersT/hms-ontario

I am giving the heads-up it here to avoid bumping the somewhat aged topic.

Edited September 14, 2022 by Anders T

[Pirate_King_1982]

Hi all, how has your week been. I’ve been struck by an idea for a MOC/MOD of the 3in1 Creator ship. I’m wanting to use the parts from the 3in1 ship along with a couple of VIP add on packs I’m going to purchase from eBay and the pre-fab hull pieces from the OG ‘93 Imperial Flagship/HMS Sea Lion to create a small pirate galleon. I know that the hull pieces are a little narrower than the 3in1 ship so it’ll take a little fiddling around to get it right, but I’m up for the challenge. My main concern and the reason I making this post is to see if anybody knows how different in colour the pre-fab hull pieces are from the reddish brown that the 3in1 ship are. It shouldn’t matter too much I suppose though. Also does anybody have any general advice going forward? Has anybody done anything similar to what I have planned?

Edited September 18, 2022 by Pirate_King_1982

[TomSkippy]

Working on an updated Islanders Forbidden Cove (6264). I'm struggling to figure out what to put in the little cave. What goes in there? I need some good ideas. The walls should be pretty open for stuff and the floor is clear. Here's the footprint/area. Side note, the 1x10 brick is the viewing area. I think it's also 5-6 bricks high to look in. Can't build over the tiles with pins.

treasure room by tomskippy40, on Flickr

Edited July 29, 2023 by TomSkippy