[MOC] The Black Pearl - 20th Anniversary - FINISHED 2-page

[Elephant Knight]

9 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

Thank yee very much! I consider HMS Midway  to be the best of your ships, but for others who are not familiar with your awesome shipbuilding record so far, here is yours Black Pearl.

I like the left version better. Can you tell me which one ended as the final? Left one, right?

Thanks! The Midway is one of my most recent ships, so my building skills were at their best, I guess. 

The left Black Pearl is my first version, built right before the PotC line came out, I believe, so 2010, 2011. Second version was built 2015. The original one used the small hulls, so definitely had some stability issues. Other than that, I think I still like my newer one slightly more, but the old one definitely has things I liked about it, and tried to replicate with version 2. Perhaps it is time for a version 3. Version 2 at the least could use a good cleaning. That thing is dusty. But the dust kinda adds to the MOC...

EKnight

[-DoNe-]

It looks absolutely lovely! 

[Marooned Marin]

She is spotted sailing in... soon (sooner than you think)

[F1stzz]

7 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

(sooner than you think) 

Gotta wait a bit for Tia Dalma's crabs to drag her in  Excited beyond the moon, m8  

[CaptainDarkNStormy]

10 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

She is spotted sailing in... soon (sooner than you think)

Ooooh that thing is lookin sexy 😍

[Marooned Marin]

7 hours ago, CaptainDarkNStormy said:

Ooooh that thing is lookin sexy 😍

Yes, many people find Johnny Depp sexy

[CaptainDarkNStormy]

8 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

Yes, many people find Johnny Depp sexy

😘🔥💅😂

[Marooned Marin]

And so... I give you another Black Pearl MOC, this time made out of the real bricks.

The design was heavily based on the real Black Pearl from the Pirates of the Caribbean movie series, which premiered in the theatres back in 2003 and thus making the release of this MOC (in 2023) a 20th year anniversary celebration of the highly successful and worldwide beloved franchise.

Thank you @NOD for pointing me where to get minifigures.

Thanks @F1stzz for your critique on the stern - I've tried several ideas and finally settled for this below, let me know what you think.

Thank you @PxChris and @CaptainDarkNStormy for the encouragement during this project, I hope you like the final result.

@BrickGirl and @Pirate_King_1982 the instructions are as of today available on ReBrickable. For the Classic-Pirates fans there is discount of 25%, code: CP25

For those interested in getting their hands on the whole ship, design is licenced to a third-party manufacturer (yes, non-LEGO... gasp) for sale, and it will be soon available on their websites: LetBricks / MedievalBricks / LesDiy. Much of the bricks used for testing the design are theirs. The quality is impressive.

As for the MOC, it was first designed in Stud.io and later built and, as said above, tested using the 100% legal build techniques and real bricks. The finished model is sturdy, it can be carried around and played with, but it is not indestructible, i.e. it will not survive an unplanned drop test from the table.

The model does not float, so you don’t need the Kraken to sink it, it will go under on its own if put on the open water.

Now to the images!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comparison images

 

 

Available on:

[PxChris]

Wow @Marooned Marin, truly impressive! 

The ship is properly imposing and fear-worthy! You seemed to capture the essence and proportions very well.

[CaptainDarkNStormy]

OMG 😍

[F1stzz]

2 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

Thanks @F1stzz for your critique on the stern - I've tried several ideas and finally settled for this below, let me know what you think.

A-A-AH, m8, she's finally made it to our harbour — and what a fine model she is  I really appreciate what you've done with the stern to smooth out the transitions — looks more harmonious  

I just love the idea of this model taking the original 21322 BSB design and expanding pretty much endlessly on it in order to make the Black Pearl a great play & display set, couldn't thank you enough for choosing to follow this approach  

As I've said previously, the captain's cabin appearance both outside & inside is just wonderful, this is exactly how I imagined TLG executing it back in 2011, but oh well — took more than a decade for someone to finally make this one properly, so we could enjoy the looks of the cabin and play with it as well  

The design of the lanterns is lovely, I find it fitting not only for BP, but also for QAR MOCs, especially if used for recreating the bow lights QAR has 👌🏻

The way you've constructed the masts is what honestly makes me the happiest kid on the block, lol, cuz not only do they perfectly resemble the ones of the real BP, not only the whole thing uses moulded parts for the rope ladders (which I'm a huge fan of) — but the mast design itself represents the perfect blend between 21322 BSB & 4184, and if I see it correctly, with removing some of the top deck cannons it's possible to put a 21322 type of capstan either on the main mast or the front one 

I can honestly talk all day about everything that's worth an admiration in this build: the creativity behind the figurehead design, those cool railings, all the simple yet elegant staircases, THE SAILS, man, what are those even made of — they're drop dead gorgeous!  The bottom line is, I personally consider this very model being THE best multi-purpose BP design to date, which achieves both displayability & playability in combination with truly recognisable aesthetics of the real ship (apart from it being "all black", lol ). Once I finally get to creating my own reimagining of 4184, I'll be 100% grabbing the instructions at the very least, possibly — the licensed copy of this model, and start from there. This is indeed the closest to what I was waiting for being a fan of LEGO playsets, lad, so all the cheers are yours 

 

P.S: what about the dimensions tho? What's the size of the whole thing? I can already suspect it being a one or couple hulls longer than 21322 BSB — but what about the height? 🤔

[Elephant Knight]

Wow! it looked great virtually, but it looks STUNNING in the brick! Well done!

EKnight

[Jack Sassy]

A fine representation of this fine vessel, @Marooned Marin! 

 

I can never get tired of a good Black Pearl MOC and this one certainly captures the look of the dreaded vessel excellently. Especially love yer solution for the figurehead. An astounding job!   

[Marooned Marin]

Thank yee @PxChris @CaptainDarkNStormy @Elephant Knight @Jack Sassy and @F1stzz for your feedback. I'm glad you find the final result pleasant for the eye.

@F1stzz your review is... well, till this day this is the highest praise I ever received from anyone, anywhere. You have fantastic eye for details and quite extensive knowledge of other ships and your every praise or suggestion is spot-on. I agree with everything you wrote. With some text here and there, your whole review could be turned into a nice blog-post (hmm... maybe I'll do just that).

Now to the details.

The capstan

I omitted the capstan on the main mast (which can be found on the original Black Pearl) for the simple reason, because it would completely ruin the space at the bottom of the 'elegant' stairs and entrance to the cabin. So... I killed the idea right at the start. As always, it was a sort of trade-off which, in my opinion, paid visually.

The sails

I spent quite some time experimenting with 'patched' sails but got nowhere and then decided to go all black. The crucial part here was finding some 'less black' material. I did this on purpose. The whole ship is very black, and set of pitch black sails would not do. So I got a hold on some old piece of cloth, found on attic, which worked wonderfully. The use of brown rope, instead of black, was also on purpose to kill-off some of the black and give texture.

The process of making sails is really simple and straightforward. I made all the sails in CAD first and after some testing with printed paper sails went on to the real thing. First thing you do is make the cloth material stiff with some good old mix of starch water. Once they are dried you iron them and using the template from printed paper sails, you cut out the sails from black cloth, make the wholes and ta-da!

Size and comparison to POBB

• Parts: 3049 parts (without minifigures, ropes and sails)
• Dimensions: W: 25.9cm L: 71.2cm H: 55cm
• Weight: 2216 grams

In comparison to POBB, it is one hull section longer and a bit taller and wider, but still reasonably 'small' so one can engage in some light play. Here, the image is allegedly worth a thousands words.

 

In comparison to Triton, they are almost exact in all dimensions, although the Pearl has good 500 more pieces and looks quite formidable.

[F1stzz]

5 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

...well, till this day this is the highest praise I ever received from anyone, anywhere.

That one is highly deserved, mate, u can be sure about it  Astounding work indeed

5 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

With some text here and there, your whole review could be turned into a nice blog-post (hmm... maybe I'll do just that). 

That's a rly nice compliment to hear in return, for which I'm grateful, m8, TY  

5 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

I omitted the capstan on the main mast (which can be found on the original Black Pearl) for the simple reason, because it would completely ruin the space at the bottom of the 'elegant' stairs and entrance to the cabin. So... I killed the idea right at the start.

Oh, I can totally see why you've chosen to follow this route, no problem there, as you've compensated big time with all the natural roping & still left the option open to implement the capstan without any crucial sacrifices or rebuilding needed to be made — that's an indication of a great design overall👌🏻

6 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

The sails

Yeah, man, THE SAILS  Enjoyed everything about your description of the making process, as well as their appearance in a finished product  Truly one of THE best looking sets of sails for BP I've seen in a while — you've really nailed it, buddy, those do look miles better than what TLG have provided us with  back in the day 

6 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

In comparison to POBB, it is one hull section longer and a bit taller and wider, but still reasonably 'small' so one can engage in some light play

Uh-huh, so it's basically 6 hulls long — aight, cuz my own BSB is exactly that as well! I have a MOC Your Bricks type of build, although I've upgraded mine to have a third, main, mast and I'm planning to replace the stern with the original 21322 design (already have some FINE instructions by Thrul which would help me achieve that: just imagine this build becoming a three-masted High Seas juggernaut ). Given all that I think I have a great understanding of the model's dimensions & how I could possibly work with it to push things even further in some ways 

6 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

In comparison to Triton, they are almost exact in all dimensions, although the Pearl has good 500 more pieces and looks quite formidable.

Dude, these pics are giving me HUGE "BP vs Interceptor" vibes, lol, I love it 

 

One thing, tho — can I ask you to upload all the pics on Insta too? Wanna add 'em to my "Black Pearl ideas" library  Thanks again for bringing such an awesome MOC to the table 👏🏻

[Yperio_Bricks]

Wonderful ship

[_R_R_]

She's a beauty!

I really like how it seems you have incorporated elements from the official set, the video game design and some famous MOCs and also how it matches in size with PoBB Barracuda, makes it feel like it could be an actual set instead of the huge MOCs out there.

Earlier this year I finally managed to get the official Pearl for a decent price, I'm happy I have it but we all know it's a product of it's time and very small ship with lots of inaccuracies, I was kind of dreaming that with the 20th anniversary of the first PoTC this year TLG could remake the Pearl to celebrate but it's really more wishful thinking than anything at this point since nothing indicates it will happen, your beautiful build at least fills that void.

[Jack Sassy]

14 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

First thing you do is make the cloth material stiff with some good old mix of starch water. Once they are dried you iron them and using the template from printed paper sails, you cut out the sails from black cloth, make the wholes and ta-da!

One could say that detachable collars work as sails too. 

[Marooned Marin]

16 hours ago, F1stzz said:

these pics are giving me HUGE "BP vs Interceptor" vibes

Now when you mentioned it, I can see it too, I must have done it unconsciously 

As for the Instagram, don't worry, I will share them there in the coming week, I just need to edit bunch of them to fit in 1080x1080 format (which is always a challenge with ship models).

Don't tell anyone, but I'm also building BSB in 'My Way'. This is not for the ongoing pirate-contest, I started it earlier this year and if all goes to plan it will seaworthy for Christmas.

12 hours ago, _R_R_ said:

I was kind of dreaming that with the 20th anniversary of the first PoTC this year TLG could remake the Pearl to celebrate

Even if they did this there is a great chance it would not live up to our 'fan standard'. That being said, with the POTC-6 in development stage, anything is possible... but I digress and now speculate, so let's return to the design at hand.

You are correct, before I started this project (back in September last year) I studied every Black Pearl out there from movies, video game, MOCs and Wicked Wench, trying to emulate everything I liked and improving on details that I didn't like, all the while keeping the size of the darn thing inside the playable category.

As you are huge fan of the POTC series, I'm happy to hear your approval and praise. Thank ye kindly!

16 hours ago, Yperio_Bricks said:

Wonderful ship

"Wherever we want to go, we go. That's what a ship is, you know. It's not just a keel and a hull and a deck and sails. That's what a ship needs. But what a ship is...what the Black Pearl really is...is freedom." – Capt Jack Sparrow

9 hours ago, Jack Sassy said:

One could say that detachable collars work as sails too

That's not such a bad idea Jack, it could work well for smaller set of sails.

 

[F1stzz]

6 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

I studied every Black Pearl out there from movies, video game, MOCs and Wicked Wench, trying to emulate everything I liked and improving on details that I didn't like, all the while keeping the size of the darn thing inside the playable category.

It clearly shows, man, and I'd say you've succeeded

6 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

As for the Instagram, don't worry, I will share them there in the coming week, I just need to edit bunch of them to fit in 1080x1080 format (which is always a challenge with ship models).

Awesome, can't wait for it 

6 hours ago, Marooned Marin said:

Don't tell anyone, but I'm also building BSB in 'My Way'. This is not for the ongoing pirate-contest, I started it earlier this year and if all goes to plan it will seaworthy for Christmas. 

Actually excited for that one, m8, completely share your enthusiasm 

[Barbatos]

Let me say that in this MOC you have outdone yourself!
Really beautiful, well structured and with several interesting construction solutions! Congratulations!

[Marooned Marin]

On 7/6/2023 at 2:50 PM, Barbatos said:

Let me say that in this MOC you have outdone yourself!

Thank you Capitano!

As you have built the best Flying Dutchman (ever) I'm looking forward to your new-old project and I can't wait to hear more details about it.

It will be great to put my Pearl against it side by side