Rafts, Rafts, Rafts!

[zinnn]

...and other dinghies

 

Okay pirates, lets talk about rafts - one of the most popular floating structure in the Lego Pirates universe. Over the years we got a few classics:

Small rafts:

• 1733: Shipwrecked Pirate
• 6234: Renegade's Raft

Bigger rafts:

• 6257: Castaway's Raft
• 6261: Raft Raiders
• 6240: Kraken Attackin'

As well as parts of other builds:

• 1788: Treasure Chest
• 6248: Volcano Island
• 6273: Rock Island Refuge
• 6296: Shipwreck Island
• 70410: Soldiers Outpost

 

Which one is your fav? Which rafts from other Lego themes could work well with the Pirates?

Here's a few (average tbh) I found:

Spoiler

5902 River Raft

 

1182 Adventurers Raft

 

2537 - Extreme Team Raft

 

Also share photos of the best MOCs you've seen around!

 

Here's a few:

The one below from the forum's user Kalais (thread here).

 

Have you seen any good rafts that look like they're part of a crashed ship (instead of neatly made ones)?

Edited February 8, 2022 by zinnn

[PxChris]

I have to say, that the raft in the 1788 Treasure Chest set is just super awkward. In fact, that entire set is just plain odd in it's design and build. Feels like such a mish-mash. Buttt... I am glad to have it in my collection, the Islanders just wouldn't be complete without it!

My favorite raft overall is probably 6261 Raft Raiders, due in large part to the sail and the small rigging pieces. But the nostalgia of 6257 Castaway's Raft will always hit high.

[zinnn]

On 1/21/2022 at 3:26 PM, PxChris said:

My favorite raft overall is probably 6261 Raft Raiders, due in large part to the sail and the small rigging pieces. But the nostalgia of 6257 Castaway's Raft will always hit high. 

Same here! I actually had the Raft Raiders set as a kid, love every bit of it. So bummed I lost the sail.

The 6257 Castaway's Raft is probably the best as a classic-looking raft. I actually found this MOC on Rebrickable that pays homage to the classic - I'm editing it in Studio atm to make it more up my alley, will post the result here when I'm done.

 

 

Edit. Here's a few more MOCs:

From [MOC] Smuggler's Shanty and Castaway's Raft by Kozikyo86

 

 

This is from user A_Goodman (forum thread can be found here)

 

 

 

 

Edited February 8, 2022 by zinnn

[NOD]

@zinnn Thank you for the topic!  It's interesting to see so many different types of rafts.

[Merlo]

6261 feels like something I'd most like to play with, but on looks alone it has to be 6257. It's simple and elegant, without any unnecessary parts or colors that would made it feel blocky or awkward.

[Jiesdeo]

6257 was one of my first Pirates sets (can't remember if this or Sabre Island was the first) so it holds a special place in my heart.

[Captain_SoyBeard]

I had the 6261: Raft Raiders as a kid so naturally that's my favourite. It's big, it has a small sail and you can even climb the mast.

Also, this is a really cool minifig that is really nice to have:

Edited January 24, 2022 by Captain_SoyBeard

[zinnn]

1 hour ago, Captain_SoyBeard said:

I had the 6261: Raft Raiders as a kid so naturally that's my favourite. It's big, it's got a small sail and you could even climb the mast.

Also, this is a really cool minifig that is really nice to have:

I’d love for Lego to reissue this torso with a back print

[Mister Phes]

23 hours ago, zinnn said:

Also share photos of the best MOCs you've seen around!

Good work! I'm always looking for raft MOCs to post on Instagram.

Here's one posted a while back:

[zinnn]

Here's some more rafts for your viewing pleasure :)

 

 

From Shipwreck Survivor Diorama by ruudcreateslego

 

 

From Castaway Raft by PetiX

 

Edited February 8, 2022 by zinnn

[Mister Phes]

6 minutes ago, zinnn said:

Here's some more rafts for your viewing pleasure :)

Good work!

But do they need to be hidden?

[zinnn]

2 minutes ago, Mister Phes said:

But do they need to be hidden? 

They don't but I thought having them in spoilers will speed up loading / viewing the page? If I'm wrong, please remove the spoilers :)

Btw I do recommend following on IG lego_fan_uy - his designs and tutorials are brilliant - some of them easily fit the pirates theme

Edited February 7, 2022 by zinnn

[Mister Phes]

9 hours ago, zinnn said:

They don't but I thought having them in spoilers will speed up loading / viewing the page? If I'm wrong, please remove the spoilers :)

While this is true, people are more likely to pay attention to a topic if they see it filled with pictures.

[zinnn]

9 hours ago, Mister Phes said:

While this is true, people are more likely to pay attention to a topic if they see it filled with pictures. 

Updated :)

 

A few more rafts:

Castaway Raft by daGOAT

 

Raft from Island of the Imperial Soldiers By Brick_Wolf

 

Raft from The Bowmen Guild and Thy Flying Chicken By Thealux

Raft from Pirate Lighthouse By tfij

 

Castaway Raft by CaptainDarkNStormy

[Mister Phes]

1 hour ago, zinnn said:

Updated :)

Nicely done!

This topic will be a valuable resource for when a raft post is needed on Instagram.

[zinnn]

A new raft I came across the other day:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CjQn8MQoi1f/

 

Edited October 23, 2022 by zinnn

[zinnn]

 

https://rebrickable.com/mocs/MOC-118148/Brickjester/port-sauvage-the-raft/#details

Edited November 9, 2022 by zinnn

[Mister Phes]

10 hours ago, zinnn said:

https://rebrickable.com/mocs/MOC-118148/Brickjester/port-sauvage-the-raft/#details

Excellent finds, Zinn!

But it would be fantastic if the builders included minifigs in their creations - it gives the MOCs so much more depth!

[Yperio_Bricks]

Some very nice rafts in this thread! The topic reminds me of the famous painting by Géricault "The Raft of the Medusa". Check it out

[Krol Zmija Sebastian]

So, rafts are for silence? I can imagine escape rafts from an island, and it'd go way out into the ocean whereever imagination takes it, but with so many rafts shown I think they're for silent missions now. Thanks. 

[Murdoch17]

On 11/14/2022 at 5:31 PM, Viper Knight said:

So, rafts are for silence? I can imagine escape rafts from an island, and it'd go way out into the ocean whereever imagination takes it, but with so many rafts shown I think they're for silent missions now. Thanks. 

That... doesn't make any sense. You okay?

[zinnn]

On 11/15/2022 at 11:44 PM, Murdoch17 said:

That... doesn't make any sense. You okay?

I think he means that some of the rafts here look solid and well-made, aka pre-planned for pirate stealthy missions VS wonky rafts hastily put together to survive after your ship crashed.

 

Speaking of, this raft I saw today may be my fav one so far, I love everything about it, the only wish I have for it to have cloth sails:

https://ideas.lego.com/challenges/66832bc8-3c92-4b55-8904-9a9034437e34/application/2a253674-3309-4a86-9f3a-387b8a17e348

https://www.instagram.com/p/CjMiXH-vicq/

[PxChris]

I love how colorful the "sails" on that one is! Really gives the impression of a tattered and patched together bunch of cloth pieces.

[Mister Phes]

On 11/19/2022 at 9:38 AM, zinnn said:

Speaking of, this raft I saw today may be my fav one so far, I love everything about it, the only wish I have for it to have cloth sails:

Yeah, that's a good one!

Posted that on the Classic Pirates Instagam a few weeks back.

On 11/19/2022 at 9:38 AM, zinnn said:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CjMiXH-vicq/

Which I later noticed you linked to in your post!

[Bregir]

Interesting thread and great inspiration. Always found rafts rather hard to make look nice.

I have made a few myself.

Not sure if this exactly counts as a raft.

And here a more traditional raft:

https://flic.kr/p/21fDZos