SBCMayor

This is amazing. I really like this build, great work. This is a piece of art!

I'm sure it won't take long for someone to do a Youtube comparison of both this and the original 3in1 ship. Maybe we'll even get a comparison of the alternate builds for both sets too.

Thank you for sharing these images! I've been looking at ways to modify one of these narrow-hulled vintage ships and this is some good material for me to work with!

That is so awesome! Put that in a nice frame and hang it somewhere it can be appreciated. I'm sure a sketch like that will have some serious value, but the sentimental value and knowing he put it together for you is worth more than anything else.

Love it! I love the mix of the newer building technique with the vintage sails and mini figures!

I’ll definitely give this set a long look. I love the two small sloops and may get it so I can get the trading company I’ve been wanting to establish up and running. But that kraken looks pretty cool too.

The red dinghy with the red uniforms to me doesn't look right. The Bluecoats use a red dinghy and the contrast between the craft and their uniforms really works. In building out my Redcoats, be it on this ship or any of their land bases, I've used the blue dinghy in an attempt to replicate the contrast in reverse.

This was an outstanding video. The depth of thought here, connecting these vintage Legos to art…this is great work!

Thank you! I can’t help but feel the Barracuda is the perfect flagship for the Bluecoats, and the Schooner is its counterpart with the Redcoats. With this modification complete I have the basic bones of each of my main fleets: Bluecoats, Redcoats, Ironhook, and Redbeard. I'm still working on a couple minor pirate captains, privateers, and merchants, but overall these 4 main factions and their respective fleets represent the majority of the ships in my collection.

Yeah that’s one of the greatest paradoxes of these vintage sets. They are meant to be enjoyed and played with. They are also worth preserving. It’s hard to do both, especially when it’s a kid playing with them. And of course the preservation side is much smaller, hence the cost. I have some pretty nice copies in my collection. In fact I am blown away with how lucky I keep getting, especially on the copies of the Barracuda and Clippers I’ve purchased. As providence would have it, my copy of tue Barracuda I was most interested in altering was also the one that benefitted most from the influx of new common pieces (new white pieces replacing may of the old yellow ones). The copy I converted into a Bluecoat ship was in great shape, but the copy I kept original is even better. That copy is on display on a shelf in my living room when it is not being featured in the larger display I have in my Lego room. Nothing will last forever. I know I won’t. I am hopeful my kids will remember collecting these items with me and welcome them into their homes some day. They’ll still be in good shape, and maybe my grandkids will be able to enjoy them.

Check them out here!

A while ago I shared some simple modifications I made to my Skull's Eye Schooner. Later in that thread I mentioned I had a second copy of the set and was taking another crack at some modifications. Well, here they are! I've converted this one into an Imperial Guards ship. Now my Redcoats have a proper flagship that stylistically aligns with the other ships from the first and second waves. This was my biggest reason to taking this approach over trying to find a copy of the Imperial Flagship (10210). The fun of converting a pirate ship into an imperial ship was another big draw for me. I really enjoy these older sets because they lend themselves so well to being modified, customized, etc. As I've stated a few times, you aren't going to catch me doing any MOCs that get anyone's attention; this kind of thing here is the extend of my Lego creativity. I'll share a few pics, hope you enjoy, and welcome your thoughts. Overall view: Even with the changes, a quick glance and any fan of vintage pirates recognizes 6286. Like my other copy, on this one I removed a lot of red and white along the side of the cabin to settle the appearance a little. I still have a little color swapping to do but I think you get the idea here. Bow and Figurehead: A couple things might jump out at you here. First, the white parrot. It's a bit of a nod to the Carribean Clipper and I really like the way it looks. Secondly, I know I still need to clean or replace some of these white pieces. Lastly, if you look closely you'll see the original red-lined hull of the Skull's Eye Schooner has been swapped out in favor of the all brown hull piece found on the Carribean Clipper or Black Seas Barracuda. More on that in a moment. Stern Cabin and Broadside: Again, the cabin got the same treatment as my other copy of this set: Removed a lot of the red and white and replaced with black. Even without any further modifications to either copy, I consider this a must. The red and white really gave it too busy a look and the all black is stylistically similar to its counterparts. Also, again notice the hull swap and resulting color swaps. The red bow and stern pieces are gone, and the resulting red stripe on the middle hull pieces have been replaced with black. The grey elements have been replaced with white. This change really brings this modified version of the ship to appear more consistent with its smaller counterparts in the Imperial Guard fleet (6271). Crew: I actually really like the way Lego designed the crew of the Carribean Clipper so I've modified all my red coat sailors to match. It wouldn't make sense for sailors to walk around on a ship in shakos or carrying backpacks. Sailors generally look different from infantry soldiers, and I really like this small modification. Gun Deck: This one got the same basic modification as my other copy. I really tried to give the swivel cannons a try but they were just awful and I think this is exponentially better. The modification also allows for placement of some main deck space to pose members of the crew. The Stern: I still have a little color swapping to do back here, but I've removed a lot of red and replaced with white. I've also replaced the skull and cross bones panel and replaced with a window. I actually really like the way the sterns look on both of these ships. With the right color swapping they look like they were designed to be in a fleet together. Main sails: The actual mainsail itself is basically the same as what you'd find in 6271. For this mod I had to ask an Ebay seller to produce replacement sails for 6286 but in the color of 6271, specified that all remaining sails be left plain. I've noticed this seller now lists this as an option for others to buy so hopefully we see a few more of these conversions! The canvass color is a little lighter than the rest of my redcoat fleet, but I know I can live with that. Speaking of the rest of my fleet... My Redcoats are still not quite as powerful as their Bluecoat rivals but with this addition to their fleet they are pretty close. The smaller ships are light and fast enough to pursue smaller pirate vessels into shallow water while the larger ship provides a deterrent to the Bluecoats when they start getting ideas about territorial expansion. And of course, who can forget this heavy weight bout: In my little corner of the Legoland Seas, the Redcoats and Bluecoats are rivals with each other and they are both rivals with the pirates. I primarily pit the Redcoats against the black striped sails, led by Captain Ironhook. I know the original Skull's Eye Schooner belonged to Redbeard, but putting all the black stripes under Ironhook makes for a natural extension to my childhood when the only two ships I had were the Imperial Flagship and the Renegade runner. (Well, my little brother had the Renegade Runner but I might have commandeered it.) This pairing of factions by color scheme makes a lot of sense to me and is a big part of why I like finding older sets and semi-restroing/modifying them. So let me know what you think of this mod!

Very interesting post. Before I joined this site I once found a sealed, new in box set offered at $19k! As much as I think the purist element is cool, I’m just not there. Last year I went to see the Beach Boys in concert. Now when I say “the Beach Boys” I mean today’s version of the band: a couple of the originals surrounded by a very capable stage lineup (one of whom is the son of one of the originals). Purists will say “this isn’t the real band. It’s a cover band.” And if one was around back in the 1960s to see these guys in their prime, I guess I can probably understand the critique. Thing is, I wasn’t around when they were in their prime (born 1980) and I’d rather see this epic band in any form than not at all. The live show was fun (fun fun). Why share this on a conversation about vintage Lego? Because my take is essentially the same toward these old sets. As much as it might be cool to preserve the complete item in period-correct form all the way to the style of studs used, etc is something that is out of my reach. Getting a sealed-in-box copy is also out of my reach. I have a somewhat expansive collection of mostly clean copies, but they are not perfect. By accepting that I’m not getting anything collector grade, I’ve still enabled myself to enjoy a lot of these older sets. I’ve enjoyed making small modifications to some of mine. I enjoy combining the land based sets to create a larger network of forts. I enjoy color swapping pieces on the ships to make an imperial ship out of the Barracuda or Skull’s Eye Schooner and Pirate Ships out of the Caribbean Clipper and Imperial Flagship. I’ve built a nice little fleet. Like @SpacePolice89 mentioned, people can still find very nice copies of the Barracuda in the 3-400 range. For someone like me, who wanted this as a kid and just didn’t get it, it’s better to experience some version of it than none at all. And in fact, I think I appreciate my 35+ year old copies more now that I truly would have appreciated a brand new one back in 1989-1990.

@Captain Pirate Man I really enjoyed the video and story telling. It makes me wish I was good at video production because I think the use of these Lego sets to tell a story is nothing short of brilliant. I've got the imagination for it, the space in my home, the sets, and I'm actually a pretty decent writer. I just lack the video production skills. Enjoyed this story and I'm definitely looking forward to seeing how this plays out!

I really like the modifications you made, even though I really loathe the color scheme of the CBC. With some color swaps this would be an epic set! I wonder what you'd be capable of with the Redbeard Runner? That is a similarly sized pirate sloop that I've enjoyed modifying but someone with your talent could take to the next level for sure!

Haha, you are being way too nice to me. I can’t actually MOC my own, I’m nowhere close to being that skilled! But I also enjoy the simplicity and innocence of these early pirate sets, so I’m okay with not being able to do my own MOC. When I first started exploring expanding my Lego collecting, my first choice was pirates, but I was leaning toward the new Eldorado fortress and maybe picking up Barracuda Bay and leaving it at that. But the more I looked the more I found I love the older sets more. They’re are amazing designs without being overly detailed. They are clearly toys that make for cool displays rather than displays first. Thank you for your kind words though. I do think the ship looks better with a main deck rather than being hollowed out. I may make a few additional mods eventually, such as adding a few of the brick built cannons to the main deck. I also want to remove some of the red from the stern. That red just does t look natural on a pirate ship unless it’s the red striped sails of the Barracuda! I couldn’t agree more on the discolored parts, I just haven’t gotten around to ordering replacements. Fortunately for me most of the pieces that need an upgrade the most are easy replacements. I’ve done this with a few other vintage sets. As for the main decks, it was more about playability than design, which made a lot of sense. I think Lego as a higher end display piece for adults is a much more recent thing than these original pirate sets! I’m not too concerned with color swapping and value here. First, my copy isn’t anything close to mint condition. I actually now have 2 of the SES (more on the other one coming soon) and only one of them came with instructions. I don’t have the box for either. So if I am ever looking to move one of mine I’m already low on value because I won’t sell the only set of instructions I have. Plus I can always color swap back to the original if I were to do that. I’d also likely provide updated replacement parts for old, discolored pieces. the hanging sails bothers me too, but I have a couple ideas on how I want to address it. I’ve seen a few structural suggestions, but I haven’t gotten around to anything yet. As for the swivel guns, that is the one thing about the SES I truly dislike. I get why Lego did this because actually equipping this set with 8 cannons would have driven up the price even more than its initial MSRP. And while I appreciate these old models for their playability more than accuracy, on a wider hull model this one really bothers me. No ship in the age of sail would have been able to shift all guns to one side for a full broadside without creating significant weight imbalances. I do understand why narrow hull models don’t have guns on both sides, but the SES I just can’t overlook this. I have some changes to the base SES coming! I have a second copy of this ship and I am making a few similar changes to the gun deck and color scheme, but taking it a little further this time around! More to come!

Not related to the discussion on where sets were sold, this is just a pure nostalgia comment. I didnt' have a lot of Castle sets but this was one of them. I'd all but forgotten about it until seeing these pics!

Man I really love the small, simple display. It gives me ideas for how to use more of what I have even if I can’t use it all in a single large display.

Your restored ship looks great and I love the display you’ve put together here! Ironhook should have his crew turn that cannon toward the shore and give those imperials something to think about!

I can sort of relate though it's less to do with the color of the sails and more about overall color scheme for me. On another recent thread I shared a few pics a couple modified Renegade Runners I have in my collection. While I did order custom sails from a very talented vendor on EBAY, one of the other major changes is swapping out the original Renegade Runner's grey, red, and blue for black and yellow to make them consistent with 1989's Caribean Clipper and Black Seas Barracuda. I figure an imperial force like the Imperial Soldiers would have a few smaller escort/patrol ships while a reputable pirate captain such as Captain Redbeard would have a couple small, light, shallow draft sloops in his fleet. But changing the sails wasn't enough for me, I also wanted the ships to appear more consistent with their 1989 counterparts. Obviously this isn't how a purist would do it, but I'm not a purist! The same rationale can also explain why the background elements in my display are as basic as they are. I've seen some very elaborate displays and tutorials, but I'm actually trying to keep what I'm doing stylistically similar to the sets from 1989-1994. I do acknowledge from 1989 to 1992/93 the theme took a significant leap forward with its designs. I love the innocent simplicity of the red and blue striped sails. But the Imperial Flagship does look like a more serious (albeit smaller than its bluecoat counterpart) vessel. And I love the way the Skull's Eye Schooner and Renegade Runner combine for consistently styled "fleet" potential. And of course, while tactically unsound, the skull on the sails with the black stripes makes for a more intimidating appearance! And I definitely agree, I think the Barracuda is amazing!

Thank you! The one thing I wish I could do was get that yellow bird to put on the front. That piece is extremely rare and consequently it’s a bit pricy. But overall this modification is still a cool concept.

Here are a couple pics of the Renegade Runners I've modified: This first one I used to match the red striped sails of the Black Seas Barracuda. I also replaced a lot of the grey and red on the hull and bow for yellow, again to be reminiscent of the BSB. The Renegade Runner also makes a nice imperial ship: It's basically the same modification as the last, just using blue striped sails. I did have to ask a vendor on Ebay specifically for the sails in these dimensions in these colors and I can share said vendor if anyone is interested to know. And as much as I love being able to make my own little modifications, I really do love the Renegade Runner in its original form. I really do think it's a must-have for anyone interested in collecting these vintage pirate sets.

I'm glad you're doing it. I think the Renegade Runner is a very underrated set. I love it. I have 6 of them, 2 of which are in their original form and the other 4 are customized. It's such a great fleet builder of a set and even though I don't need another one, I sometimes have to really resist the urge to do it.

I love displays like this!

I already have! I call it the Cutthroat Clipper! Basically anything blue I swapped out for red.