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Rufus

The Golden Hinde

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About a year ago, I mentioned to Captain Green Hair during a drunken conversation that I was thinking about building a replica of the Golden Hinde. With Brickworld coming up, Pandora and I needed to build a ship, so this seemed like the perfect opportunity... Admittedly, some things changed along the way: the original plan was to brick-build the hull, but with the release of the Black Pearl and its black hull pieces, it gave us somewhere to start. And here's the result!

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The Golden Hinde was the flagship of Sir Francis Drake's fleet, which circumnavigated the globe between 1577 and 1580. Originally called the Pelican, she set sail with the patronage of Queen Elizabeth I, with a mission to navigate the Strait of Magellan and cause trouble for the Spaniards. This she did: engaging and capturing the Spanish Galleon Nuestra Señora de la Concepción in 1579.

We've based this upon the Golden Hinde which is currently sitting in drydock on London's South Bank, itself a replica. It's doubtful whether the original would have sported this colour scheme.

The ship was built using the hull of the Black Pearl, which we had to extend by 4 studs, and add a custom brick-built stern. There are still some of the brown pieces from the original BP sitting hidden at the bottom! The sides are tilted using CGH's jumper plate and hinge technique, but we've used SNOT wedges and slopes to smooth the gradient at the bottom.

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The rigging is strung to mirror the original as much as possible. It's made from cotton, which has a degree of stretch, and it actually does help tension the masts. We've used technic half-bushes as pulleys to allow differential tension on each; it's incredibly difficult to get them the same length which is why they aren't lined up desperately well! Apologies to SlyOwl for borrowing his flag design - cheers mate!

Here's a shot from aft high:

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The sails are hand-made from unbleached calico, which is a dense cotton and (hopefully) resembles canvas. Its disadvantage is its tendency to crease, as you can see from the triangular mizzen sail. :blush: The thin black cotton threaded through the sails allows them to be furled. There's a lot of excess string currently: we need to dismantle this for her voyage across the Atlantic, and the string will be cut to its final length when she arrives! If we can remember how she's built. :laugh:

Here's a close-up of the hull, showing how we've contoured the sides:

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She's designed to resemble the Hinde, without being an exact replica, but retaining scale to minifigures. She'll get a crew later. The overall size is dictated by both the hull pieces and the arched windows; if we had included the correct number of windows, she'd be enormous!

Sadly, there's no interior detail, or gun deck. :sad:

Galleons always look dramatic from the stern!

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The plain blue rear now has a decal, which we'll see later.

She's a display model, so we've included as much detail as possible on the visible deck. Here's the main deck and fo'c'sle:

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The capstan raises the anchor (which is at the port bow). In reality, the anchor would be raised by a capstan inside the fo'c'sle, but hey.

The mizzen sail obscures the poop deck, unfortunately ...

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... but you can see the ship's wheel, which sits (true to life) in front of the captain's cabin. We could rig the wheel to move the rudder, but it would mean losing the hatch.

The two crow's nests proved a headache! Thank goodness for flex-tubes:

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You might notice we've used the 'old' mast platforms, which don't connect too well at the base, with round bricks and new-style mast pieces. A technic axle secures it in place.

The extra bow piece never arrived, so we had to improvise a little:

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Here you can see the brick-built Hinde figurehead.

Finally, we'll take a look at the rear balcony, and the aft panel with the decal in place (it's hard to colour-match medium blue :blush: ):

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We've taken considerable licence with the balcony design! But it looks smarter this way. Conscious of the effect the rigging and sails might have on the LEGO purists among you, the 'ER' logo is brick-built. Thank LEGO Friends for the very helpful rose piece! :wub:

Here's the real thing for reference:

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She's currently undergoing restoration for the Olympics, which is why the yards have been lowered.

And a closer view, showing the figurehead:

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Thanks for looking! We hope you like the ship. :sweet:

Pandora & Rufus

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I especially like your whales very much. Very nice idea, it gives just that extra touch to your very nice ship!

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Very nice, the black looks special on a galleon I think, the decks look great, nice stern as well, that crows nest looks very good, I love the telescope mounted on it.

...

This she did: engaging and capturing the Spanish Galleon Nuestra Señora de la Concepción in 1579.

...

No offense but this wouldn't be true for the lego versions of these ships, I saw the Nuestra Señora de la Concepción in real a while ago, one of the best ships I've ever seen and heavely armed as well :pir-classic:

Btw, how come your ship doesn't have cannons ?

Edited by Sebeus Iniwum

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This is a beauty! The resemblance with the original ship is amazing, altough the deer head is well done I think it's a bit to big. And about those whales: :pir-wub: Great design and poses! :thumbup:

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Awesome. I often pass the 'real thing' (which is also a replica I believe) and this is an amazing job.

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Perfect :pir-wub:

although I am not really a fan of the decal at the back this is a really great replica.

=Legonardo=

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:pir-oh: I'm impressed! This is extremely realistic and you clearly spend a lot of time on even the smallest details :thumbup:

The sails are beautiful with those ropes on the edges, the crow's nests are very smart and realistic, and the shape, colourscheme and especially the stern are great as well.

Even the black beams are visible next to the side windows :pir-wub:

I also have a small nitpicking point though.

Compared to another image from the Golden Hind, somehow the bow on your ship looks a bit too stump.

If it were made this way it could have looked a bit smoother.

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But as I said that's just a very small point and this is one of the best ships ever that I've seen around here! Well done!

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About a year ago, I mentioned to Captain Green Hair during a drunken conversation that I was thinking about building a replica of the Golden Hinde.

Those really are the best conversations at times, look what it brought! :pir_laugh2:

I must admit you've made a really wonderful model. Even if you wouldn't say it is the Golden Hinde, I would recognize it.

The colour scheme is really not that impossible, ships were often very colourful in that age, though the black would be unpainted wood. But you can't tell all that from a wreck I guess.

The only improvement I would suggest is to change the steering wheel for a whipstick.

Steering wheels were invented in the late 17th century. :pir-wink:

I bet you'll get lots of good comments at BW, have fun over there!

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How is it even possible that no one has tagged this for blogging yet?

[bloggedcp][/bloggedcp]

Even if you wouldn't say it is the Golden Hinde, I would recognize it.

Plus there is that whole Golden Hinde right on the backside there!

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Well, if it isn't the Dragon's old Flagship. The ship that won the Battle of the Spanish Armada. Great job! She is a real beauty. Now then, maybe the Dragon could come and see it soon.

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The only improvement I would suggest is to change the steering wheel for a whipstick.

Steering wheels were invented in the late 17th century. :pir-wink:

If you look on the replica picture (one with the figurehead) there is a steering wheel so that probably is the reason they put it there. :pir-tongue:

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Great work guys!, it's really good to see you two building together and the result is nothing less then amazing. Top notch stuff!

What's next on your list of things to build?

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WOW...

:pir-wub: :pir-wub: :pir-wub:

I came here looking for a little pirate ship inspiration and am blown away. Bonus points for making a real ship!

wowza! It's so realistic and true to form! Really great build!

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WOW...

:pir-wub: :pir-wub: :pir-wub:

I came here looking for a little pirate ship inspiration and was blown away.

Oh, so we can expect a pirate ship MOC from you then? :pir-look::pir_laugh2:

Edited by Captainmorgan

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I'm no expert on ships, but - benchmarking it against the reference pictures - I have to say you did a brilliant job. :sweet: I really like the colour scheme, the red and yellow contrasts nicely with the black, and I like the hull shape you managed to achieve. The crows nests are great and those whales are just too cute. :wub:

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I'm no expert on ships either, far from it, but I love it! Excellent job. :thumbup: Ships like this don't always need brick built hulls, and yours is proof of that. I especially like the colour scheme, the splashes of gold are nice highlights. The rigging and the sails are awesome, man, I wouldn't even know how to begin with it! The details on the deck are very nice. The dark tan combined with dark brown really stands out. Looking from the stern, it's even more a beautiful ship. I like the splash of blue and the decal looks very nice, despite of the different shade of blue. Oh, and those whales make the scene perfect! I love them. It would be nice to see a crew on the ship. Again, great job.

Edited by Matn

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This ship is lovely, I like the details you can see on a second look.

It is really amazing to take a close look on your ship and all the details.

Thank you also for the picture of your inspiration. I look forward to see whats coming next.

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Do I get to see this in person at Brickworld?!

I think it's a spot on creation, you really replicated the details well.

It looks so menacing and large from the back. TLG needs to pay attention.

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Thanks everyone for the lovely comments! :pir-wub:

No offense but this wouldn't be true for the lego versions of these ships, I saw the Nuestra Señora de la Concepción in real a while ago, one of the best ships I've ever seen and heavely armed as well :pir-classic:

Btw, how come your ship doesn't have cannons ?

Well, there's no competing with the shipbuilding masters! As for the lack of cannons, we intend to display this as an exploration vessel, so getting the hull, masts and rigging right was a higher priority. But a MOC is never really finished, and we might go back later and add them in.

although I am not really a fan of the decal at the back this is a really great replica.

You try making this out of LEGO! :pir-grin:

I also have a small nitpicking point though.

Compared to another image from the Golden Hind, somehow the bow on your ship looks a bit too stump.

If it were made this way it could have looked a bit smoother.

Thanks, AC! You're right, it did turn out a little stumpy. The solution would be to move the fo'c'sle forward by a couple of studs, and extend the bowsprit and headrails to match. We weren't trying to get it exactly right during the build. :pir-blush:

The only improvement I would suggest is to change the steering wheel for a whipstick.

Steering wheels were invented in the late 17th century. :pir-wink:

I bet you'll get lots of good comments at BW, have fun over there!

Yay, the man himself! :pir-wub: You're right about the wheel. Originally it would have had a tiller, but we had no idea what one looked like, so we went for the wheel. :pir_laugh2:

How is it even possible that no one has tagged this for blogging yet?

Thanks for blogging! But I don't see it on the blog? :sad:

Great work guys!, it's really good to see you two building together and the result is nothing less then amazing. Top notch stuff!

What's next on your list of things to build?

That would be telling. :pir-wink:

I'm no expert on ships, but - benchmarking it against the reference pictures - I have to say you did a brilliant job. :sweet: I really like the colour scheme, the red and yellow contrasts nicely with the black, and I like the hull shape you managed to achieve. The crows nests are great and those whales are just too cute. :wub:

Thank you Rick! :wub:

I'm no expert on ships either, far from it, but I love it! Excellent job. :thumbup: Ships like this don't always need brick built hulls, and yours is proof of that. I especially like the colour scheme, the splashes of gold are nice highlights. The rigging and the sails are awesome, man, I wouldn't even know how to begin with it! The details on the deck are very nice. The dark tan combined with dark brown really stands out. Looking from the stern, it's even more a beautiful ship. I like the splash of blue and the decal looks very nice, despite of the different shade of blue. Oh, and those whales make the scene perfect! I love them. It would be nice to see a crew on the ship. Again, great job.

I'm glad you like the colours. Making the sails was an education - it's been a long time since I did any sewing! :pir-laugh:

Do I get to see this in person at Brickworld?!

I think it's a spot on creation, you really replicated the details well.

It looks so menacing and large from the back. TLG needs to pay attention.

Cheers, Cammo! Yes, you get to see it... if the rigging survives the journey! :pir-sweet:

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Wow, very nice. Those sails are fantastic, and I love the cabin in the back. It looks both majestic and a bit menacing at the same time.

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Wow :pir-oh: Magnificent job Rufus and Pandora, this is a stunning ship rendered in LEGO; and probably one of the better ones I've seen here. :thumbup:

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