SBCMayor

I've checked out that site, there are a lot of great options there.

I have wished so much that I could get a green coat faction in the original print style of the Bluecoats and Redcoats. Maybe with white epaulettes for the troops, and the yellow for the officers.

I did! It is awesome looking! It's more on the level as the new Eldorado, Barracuda Bay, and even the larger Imperial Flagship. I love the intricacy. With that said, I am keeping my display classic. Part of that is just pure affinity. As much as I love the newer sets and their details, the simplicity of the older sets still just has a draw for me. Of course when they first came out I didn't view them as simple, they were mind blowing. Now, all these years later, those same sets with the same designs really do seem so simple, but I love them even more for it. If I had room in my place to do a more detailed display featuring some of these new sets, including the Thieves of Tortuga I'd do it. As it stands, space is limited so I'll stick to the classic sets. Another consideration is my own skill level in creating the background and filler elements, such as the Town of Eldorado. I am not that great a builder, and don't really consider myself all that creative when it comes to design, details, etc. But I can build small structures that are similar to those in the classic sets, which actually gives an element of continuity to the overall design. On that note, a couple additional pics of some of the additional work I've put in. I wasn't going to get into the Islanders sub-theme, but when I build a small treasure cave it seemed natural the cave should be located near an Islanders settlement. So I got a couple mini figures and the catamaran set, and used a few spare pieces to throw together a little hut on top of the rock formation. This served a few purposes. It was a tribute to a cool and important sub-theme, and it gave the background a little depth to help transition into the wall behind it. The next thing I knew I had Enchanted Island arriving on my doorstep (wonder how that happened) and even though I can't fit it into this version of the display, it will definitely see it's time to shine in future versions! Anyway, here is what we started out with for the Islanders, using mainly just extra pieces we happened to have available. At first I just had a treasure chest in the cave, but my son added all the gold and silver. "If this is going to be a treasure cave let's make it a treasure cave!" Can't argue with that logic. Also he threw together that deity build, again out of what was available. He said he wanted to just have a placeholder and maybe we can Pick-a-brick our way to a more refined build at some point. We are not expert MOC builders but with the right pieces we can definitely make something that is closer to the original, so I'll be researching what pieces to buy for that. Right now it kind of looks like something you'd see in a Minecraft set! Islanders watch post: You can't leave a treasure cave unguarded! Treasure cave: I would love to make this deeper but there's very limited space. Plus I want the treasure to be visible without someone having to look too hard to see it. Catamaran: A great way to allow the Islanders to patrol the waters around their village! Future versions of this will incorporate the Enchanted Island, likely with a redcoat rotation of the display. We'll see. For now I hope you all enjoy these pics of these old classics combined with a few very basic "filler" elements!

I've been working on the display, building and rebuilding portions of it. I'm sharing this update not to show how complete it is, but to show the idea I'm developing and maybe get a few ideas from those of you who are more experienced builders. So here's what I'm featuring now. This is the waterfront of Eldorado, the Bluecoats' primary settlement. The display is meant to represent just a small section of the town, of course. I also need to populate it at some point with people aside from soldiers and sailors! But I'll get to that eventually. So here are the updates: One of a few Saber Island outposts guarding the inner harbor. Broadside's Brig to the left, partially obscured by the palm tree. The Eldorado Waterfront: I'm really trying to recreate a little of the original styling of the imperial buildings. And in some cases, I'm not even trying to recreate but straight up taking some of the designs and incorporating them into the settlement. For example, the second building from the left is literally the tavern from Lagoon Lockup. I recently won an incomplete set on Ebay (it was missing the minifigures and pirate boat) and bid on it for the pieces. Rather than try to reinvent something, I just assembled the original set and used this section of it as a part of the town. Inner Harbor Saber Island: Okay so some background on me, I am a retired U.S. military with several years in both the enlisted and officer ranks. So the military tactician in me can't let me just have a little fun with these Lego sets, I have to have "defense in depth" as I was trained and trained my own troops over 21 years in the service. This experience leads to other challenges with arranging these sets because the tactical experience in me also says the bigger cannons would be arranged in such a way as to have overlapping fields of fire as well as be mindful of geometry of fire (a military-nerd way of saying arranging fire positions in such a way as to not fire on your own people). With that said, it does seem like a savvy officer such as Governor Broadside would erect a last line of defense within the harbor in the event the event of a Redcoat or pirate invasion. Or it could just be that this was the only place I could fit this set. Eldorado Harbor: Bigger picture view of the harbor with a Bluecoat sloop getting under way! Eldorado Fortress with Eldorado Harbor in the background: Not much to say other than I am really trying to create the illusion of depth here, which is next to impossible without the sky and clouds background that @Mister Phes and I discussed earlier in this thread. But with what I have to work with for now, I love the direction I've been able to take it!

Nice! Maybe when I’m ready I’ll share here! It’s a decent sized project, between the writing, editing, and quality control (consistency of the story line as it shifts from faction to faction) plus the accompanying photos… It might be a while but that will also give me time to check in with @TalonCard and see what others have done.

Such a great benefit to it. Sharing ideas is awesome. I feel really fortunate to have a solid vintage collection and love the way it looks when it's all combined. These old sets are amazing together. I love the simplicity of some of these older designs. Don't get me wrong, I love newer sets and the intricate detail they have. But these older vintage sets just really do it for me. I love having a place to share a few pics, ideas, etc and also see what others are up to with their collection. I've even written several pages of my own Lego Pirate lore, though I'm not sure this forum is an appropriate venue for that kind of story telling.

I thought about doing something very similar with a Saber Island tower: build a dock similar to the Imperial Trading Post and put a Saber Island Tower at the corner. I love the way yours looks. I took it in a simpler direction, just extending the lower dock to incorporate Lagoon Lockup into the build. Also I really like the way you incorporated Broadside’s Brig into the docks, I can’t believe I didn’t think of that!

Last year I bought a couple vintage sets from 1989, starting small with Burried Treasure, Sabre Island, and Shipwreck Island. The nostalgia it unlocked was way stronger than I could have expected. Before long I ordered a Carribean Clipper and a Renegade Runner and started scanning other models I was interested in as well. I went back and forth between the original and new Eldorado for a while before deciding on the original. I was still enamored with the detail of the new set even though my interest was primarily in the vintage sets. Another member here is a big fan of the original and his enthusiasm for it went a long way toward swaying me. Another factor was the print on the characters. I wanted all my bluecoats to match, and even though I appreciate the detail on the new sets, I love the simplicity of the old sets even more.

I really love this mod. It looks great and really adds a lot to the original set. The consistency with the original is really important to me and I really love the way you've implemented it here.

Love the mod! Since I don’t have the new Eldorado but the original I will be sure to check out the one you did for that too!

I love what you've done with the place! On a side note, we need to talk about that Jim Beam in the background. If I may recommend any of Blanton's, Eagle Rare, Breckenridge, or Legent I think your Bourbon experience will be much better!

The banner definitely looks cool. I really like the background. That sky is reminiscent of the early box art and is just so gorgeous!

Love that idea! Thank you for the link.

Another older thread I am reviving to add my own thoughts and a couple pics. I will be doing so on many of the other pirate sets from 1989-1994, and am not following any logical progression. So today I'll review the iconic Black Seas Barracuda (set 6285) and next week it might be Buried Treasure (set 6235). I have no logical method to my madness, it's entirely driven by what kind of mood I'm in! First, let me say the OP for this thread did an amazing job and as of when he posted this thread, was sporting an amazing collection! Also, the initial review is very good! I cannot really expand on that as far as reviews go, so I'll hit the basics, share some pics just in case anyone has forgotten what the best Lego set of all time looks like, a few of my own thoughts about the set, and then share a few pics of some minor modifications I've made to some of my BSB copies that have really been a lot of fun for me and my son. But first let's review... Anyone who is familiar with Lego Pirates knows the Black Seas Barracuda was first released in 1989. This set, and the ensuing Pirates theme overall, ushered in a new era for TLG. And for me, it elevated Lego from just another toy I had to my favorite toy of all time. Some vital stats: 909 pieces 8 minifigures 1 monkey, 1 parrot 2 chests full of pure gold coins (those old chrome coin pieces may as well be made of pure gold, they might be cheaper on secondary markets if they were!) 1 ship's boat 5 sails $110 USD (approximately $284 USD in 2025) Countless hours of entertainment Here are a few pics, taking into account several have already been shared! Overall ship: Original crew: The set came with some amazing minifigures! Thankfully TLG didn't make Redbeard exclusive to this set, and as a result, this must-have is actually pretty accessible! Decorated Stern: I love the lattice windows, cone pieces in between, and those old flower pieces all combining for a really nice design. It's pretty simple but really effective. I keep the boat on the platform rather than tie it to the hook. Captain's Cabin: I thought I had kept this copy completely original but it looks like my son added a small desk in here. No biggie... Figurehead: Since Lego people used to use yellow as their skin color it can be inferred she is naked. Rather than give us some torso print Lego has probably wisely left it to our imagination. After all, this is a kid's toy! Ok with some of the original pics shared, I want to share a few more of a couple modifications I've done. None of these are overly complicated, and because I was converting multiple ships at the same time it helped keep some of the cost down. I have 3 BSBs, one of which has been converted into an imperial Bluecoat flagship, another is still a pirate ship inspired by the Skull's Eye Schooner (set 6286), and of course, the original already pictured. Here they are together: Imperial Bluecoat ship: I've made only minor modifications, basically just swapping out anything red from the original to blue. One exception: The siding here remains black on the original and I didn't necessarily need to change it on this edition but I did so it would maintain some continuity with the Carribean Clipper (set 6274) since the side of the cabin is blue on that one. It gives it a more deliberate "fleet" look. Figurehead: That yellow parrot is such an awesome piece and I think it really helps give this modification additional continuity with the rest of the fleet. I sourced this piece from a Carribean Clipper I converted into a pirate ship. And of course, the pirate woman figurehead from this one made its way over to the Clipper. Forecastle: Aside from color and faction changes, this is basically the original BSB, just in blue. One difference is I've added this plate to the front to give more usable deck space. The hold area below this is still accessible by removing the plate if I need to put something down there. But this minor modification really increases the space I can use for posing crew members, action scenes, etc. Also, in some of these close up pictures you can see the difference between the new and old pieces. I think that is a topic worth its own thread: integrating new pieces with old sets. Hold and gun deck: Down here the only difference from the original is the color of the shutters. Imperial Bluecoat Fleet: The BSB makes a fantastic flagship for a larger fleet. Here's my bluecoat fleet, consisting of 5 ships and a total of 34 sailors! (I've reinforced the crews of the 3 larger ships.) These bluecoats are going to need everything they have too, because Captain Redbeard and his Black Seas Barracuda are not the only pirate captain in these waters! I give you, the Skull's Eye Barracuda! Okay, so that's super corny and I am aware of it. I fully expect to have to walk the plank for that. This is the same basic modification as the last one, sticking largely to the original and swapping out sails and other colors where needed. Unlike my bluecoat ship where I converted a BSB and CC simultaneously and used both ships as donors for the other, this I did on its own. I bought an incomplete copy of the BSB for a starter. I deliberately looked for an incomplete and inexpensive set. This one was still in very good condition, but as I suspected, upon delivery, was the most suitable candidate of my 3 BSBs to receive this makeover. In other words, it has benefitted most from the influx of new pieces and replacement sails. Shall we take a closer look? Forecastle: This one gets the same treatment as my Bluecoat BSB. Also, notice the modified 1x1 for the string is the original yellow. Incredibly, that piece is not available in white on Pick-a-brick. Also, you can see I forgot to order an "L" shaped plate here, but I'll get around to fixing this. Figurehead: Love the way this turned out. It's definitely a more intimidating look than the original. Speaking of... Stern: The original flower pieces that make for decoration in the back are really hard to find in white. I'm so glad they were because I came up with this instead. I love the way it turned out! Also, notice the brick and plate built 1x4x2 in the center rather than the single piece. This piece was available on a few different markets but way more expensive than I was willing to pay. Since I needed 3 of them for this conversion, I just ordered the pieces I need to make my own. One last note here: The window frames and lattice should be swapped, but the white frame with yellow lattice is another one that is hard to find and expensive. So that can wait, but it is an update I'd like to make eventually. Cabin window: Here's another look at one of those special pieces I had to more or less make myself. And another window to eventually swap. Oh, and it looks like some of our skallywags on the poop deck are starting early today! Green for red: I chose green shutters and port covers to keep consistent with the Skull's Eye Schooner. That was actually kind of convenient because I had several green shutters just sitting around waiting for a set to be built into. A close look and you'll see I have a mix of original flintlocks and new. As for the green port covers, these are not genuine lego pieces. It turns out this piece in green is really hard to find and expensive. I would have had to pay so much to get the 9 of these needed for this conversion it would have actually cost me more than the sails! So I found replacement pieces on Amazon. 50 of them to be exact, for a whopping $4 USD. While I am not a fan of off-brand lego sets, I do have several specific off-brand pieces I've found useful. Since the whole goal on this was to rebuild/modify a BSB on the cheap, I felt this was an acceptable compromise. Replacement sails: The green gun port covers are not the only non-original Lego piece used. I ordered a set of replacement sails for the Skull's Eye Schooner to use in this. Aside from the ship itself, this was the most expensive component. I've pictured only this larger main sail since the rest are the exact pattern and dimensions as the original BSB. This larger main sail with skull is just epic and is a big part of why the Skull's Eye Schooner appears larger than the Black Seas Barraduda, even though the hull is the same 5 pieces and total piece count is 912 vs 909. And the modification is simple: just move the yard higher and you're set! The Captain: Why not give Ironhook a true flagship? It makes for a great story: Redbeard and Ironhook. Two rival pirates who reluctantly work together to fight off the Imperial factions. Ironhook primarily faces off against the Imperial Guards while Redbeard's primary foe is the Imperial Soldiers. Maybe the Imperial factions even pay the pirates to do a little of their dirty work against their rival imperials. There's a lot of possibilities there. Final thoughts: The Black Seas Barracuda is in my mind the best set Lego has ever rolled out. Outside of Lego, it is the best pirate ship toy ever offered to the public. With so many reviews and great content shared already on this site alone, it's hard to say something that hasn't already been said, which is why I focussed on the versatility of this set. It's a very easy set to modify and not as pricey as one would think. In fact, one of the reasons I chose to modify a BSB into an SES-inspired ship instead of just order an SES was cost. I could have modified two like this for what a nice copy of the SES would have cost me. And although I love the idea of having the SES just to have all five of the original ships from 1989-1993, it's the idea I like more than the ship itself. As for the Bluecoat mod, it was so easy even I was able to do it. It was a lot of fun and I love the way it looks. But nothing will ever beat the original. The Black Seas Barracuda is just that good. Lego has released some amazing ships since then, but none of them capture my imagination and invoke such a powerful nostalgia as this one.

Lego 6278, Enchanted Island is an amazing set! Initially I was not going to venture into this sub-theme, but as I developed my rotating display I built a few elements that were perfect for the islanders. So I bought a couple mini figures on Ebay, and it just felt they needed more. I got an insane deal for this one (I say that because of the condition it is in) and the instructions are immaculate. When my son and I were putting it together it didn't take him very long to say, "This is better than Rock Island Refuge." I do agree, because it's the more original of the two sets, with Rock Island Refuge being a supercharged Forbidden Island. This is a great way to kick off the Islanders Sub-theme and great way to expand the rotating display I am working on. Pics of this set and a full review coming soon!

Okay, at first I saw a cross-eyed pirate (which, if he is the navigator, might explain why we're always off course) but when you said locomotive I cannot un-see it! @jennalchemy despite my initial reaction of seeing a cross-eyed pirate, I think it looks awesome. I've seen a few different cloth sail modifications for this set, but they're all pretty basic. This takes it to a new level and I love that. Also, I am not talented in this respect, so I hope that puts my initial impression in context. I wish I had the skill to do what you are doing!

Thank you! I love the way they all look when arranged together like this!

Here's another one I wanted to revive. (I'm going to be doing this with a lot of the 1989-1993 sets!) Sabre Island is one of the best value sets Lego ever made. As the OP notes, this set is just 96 pieces, but look what you get! You've got the small outpost, the awesome printed baseplate, the rowboat, the cannons, etc. But at $15.50 USD (roughly $40 USD today) it wasn't exactly an entry-level set for someone trying to expand upon their pirate collection. Also to give you an idea of what 96 pieces gets you (and costs you) take a look at some of these sets available today: Police Car Electric Car (The price on this one surprises me because I got it for under $8. Jungle Explorer ATV ATV and Otter Habitat I have each of these examples except the Jungle Explorer. They're all cool little sets. The designs and models at the entry level end of any Lego series is so much more elaborate than today. I mean, that police car is way cooler than the one I grew up on! But left alone I think one would grow board quickly. They really need other sets to complement them. I think that's what makes a 96 piece set like Sabre Island so unique. For 96 pieces you really do get a lot, and with 3 mini figures the playability far surpasses some of these newer sets with a similar piece count. So I'll share a couple pics and an amusing story from my childhood involving Sabre Island... Some basic pics: Because Sabre Island is a relatively small set I've have space for a few of them in my display. A couple are on their original baseplate but this one I removed and placed on a sand bar to guard the lagoon behind Eldorado Fortress and Lagoon Lockup! As much as I love it in its original form, I also really love how adaptable it is for uses like this. It really helps fill in the sandy area behind some of the bigger elements of my display. Sabre Island Also makes a great Redcoat outpost: Some of the copies I've purchased on Bricklink or Ebay have been incomplete and I've been able to get them at a great price. I did go ahead and invest in a couple complete sets as well, and have a few copies of the instructions. No box. Some of the elements I've been willing to do without are the row boat since I have several and if the structure is in good shape and the price is right, I'd be willing to consider one without the mini figures, as well as the printed baseplate since I have a few extras of those and am fine with placing the structure on other elements. I have a total of 5, with 2 of them being Redcoat outposts. The color scheme matches nicely with the Imperial Trading post so incorporating into that set is almost as perfect as incorporating into Eldorado Fortress. Also notice how they're mirror images? Another small and simple modification that makes this set so awesome. Sabre Island was released in 1989. At the time I had a few Lego sets but Lego was competing with baseball, hot wheels, GI Joe and the like for my affections. I did notice the sets on the toy isle but when I really took the time to reconstruct the timeline for when I really took notice it would have been late summer of 1990 when my cousin was visiting and he had this set. I loved it and started to really take interest in this new Pirates theme. As I said on my review of the Carribean Clipper, my mom indicated that set was probably not going to have my name on it under our Christmas tree. So I asked for Sabre Island, since it seemed like a nice balance: still a lot of playability and it gets me one of the mid-size sets in the line. That Christmas, I was surprised to find instead of Sabre Island, a big bucket of off brand legos designed in a military theme. I was familiar with this because it was on the same toy isle as the actual Legos. My mom paid more for it than she would have for Sabre Island, but it had way more pieces. I was extremely disappointed but I wasn't a horrible kid either so I thanked my parents and later that day started tinkering with the army pieces. One thing I notices right away was the plate pieces were 1/2 the size of the brick pieces, whereas it was 1/3 for Lego plates. It also came with a baseplate that was as wide as a 16 stud plate, but it wasn't 16x16 like Sabre Island's plate. Maybe 16x12? It's been a long time. Anyway the tank or cannon or whatever was insanely difficult to build and the design was not great, so it fell apart easily. So, being the industrious lad that I was, I fashioned a very crude "Sabre Island" out of it, using the long cylinder intended to be the main gun on a tank as the trunk of the palm tree. I couldn't make a boat. I made the tower and fit it onto the awkwardly sized plate and set it all aside. Later my mom saw it and asked what it was, and why I didn't make the models the set was designed for. I said I tried and they kept breaking so I just tried to make the set I really wanted. She asked what set and I showed her from my catalogue. She explained she thought I would like this better since it was military and had more pieces. I said it was a nice thought (again, I wasn't a horrible kid) but I was really hoping for Sabre Island. It was not long after that my parents bought me and my siblings each "Buried Treasure" and I had my first entry into Lego Pirates. And shortly after that our situation improved. In 1991 I got Lagoon Lockup for Christmas, and in 1992 the Imperial Flagship. So I did have an appreciable amount of these sets as a kid. It wasn't until early 1992 I got Sabre Island, a solid year and a half after first seeing it. I instantly paired it next to my Lagoon Lockup to make what was to me a nice Imperial Outpost. By then I also had the Harbor Sentry and for the Pirates, had Redbeard and Will from Lagoon Lockup, Buried Treasure, and the Castaway's raft. So a decent number of both pirates and soldiers. Today Sabre Island still ranks among my favorites for its simplicity and comprehensive design. When I started collecting vintage sets in this theme, Buried Treasure was my first purchase and Sabre Island followed soon after. I know some of the critiques include the interior space is too small to do anything with, no ladders to the upper levels (they didn't exist as pieces yet in 1989) and lack of interior detail. I am okay with the sparse details, I love it for what it is. It wasn't my first set in the theme, and when I really piece together the timeline, it took me longer than I initially thought/remembered to get this set. But I still credit this one for being the set that spurred my interest in the series, and the series for being what catapulted Lego from just another toy to my absolute favorite.

While I am continuing to develop my Rotating Display I want to also revive a few of these old individual set review threads. This one in particular is great. The OP does a great job with descriptions and photos of the original Carribean Clipper, set 6274. I cannot hope to top that but I would like to still revive the thread to since it has been years since anyone has! I have 3 of these now, with two continuing their service in the Imperial Bluecoat Navy and a third having been captured by Captain Redbeard and sails in his fleet! I have made some very minor modifications to each of them. Overall view: The crew: With these waters completely infested with pirates, the Bluecoats determined they needed to reinforce the crews on these ships! As you can see I have the original 4 that would have been standard with this set, but I've added an officer and 2 additional sailors. The cabin: This is where I've made some changes to give the ship a more complete look. I've made these minor changes to all 3 of my models. On a side note, the crew has implored their leader to not drink while plotting out their next course. He does it anyway so there's no telling where this next voyage is going to take us... I know black for the floor inside the cabin would have been more true to the set, but when I experimented with it it was too dark to be able to see inside and appreciate it. I'll eventually replace the black and dark grey pieces that mount that ladder to match the cabin deck. This is a very simple and basic modification but I think it really adds a lot to the ship, making it look more complete than the original. The Cutthroat Clipper: As stated, Captain Redbeard captured one of the Carribean Clippers, and painted it to match his fleet's scheme. I think the basic set makes for a great pirate ship! Incidentally, of the three versions of this set I have this one was in the worst condition. It's not bad, especially for what I paid, but the other two are just cleaner copies. This one seems to have benefitted from the influx of new pieces needed to make it a full conversion into a pirate ship, so I am pleased to have extended its playable life! Same cabin modifications as the Bluecoat versions. Notice the red replacing the blue at the front of the ship: I've done a similar modification of a Black Seas Barracuda into a Bluecoat ship, which I will share when I update the review thread for that set. I did both conversations side by side because a lot of the pieces such as sails were interchangeable. The figurehead from the BSB made its way over to this one, and the yellow parrot onto that one, which you'll see soon enough! The ship without question has more value in original form. This isn't about value to me, it's about fun. Building small fleets for each faction, extended bases and hideouts. Being able to stage multiple engagements at sea, and so on. So here we have the Cutthroat Clipper squaring off with its original counterpart, the Carribean Clipper. One of many engagements these adversaries will fight! Some overall thoughts on the Carribean Clipper, set 6271. The original pirate sets from 1989 and 1991 are without question my favorite Lego sets of all time. They are followed by the Imperial Guards and pirate sets of 1992 and 1993. I actually didn't take notice of the line until 1990 when my cousin was visiting and had brought his new Sabre Island set with him. I'll review that set separately. After that all I wanted were pirate Lego sets, small and large. My parents were not rich, and I knew at $55 USD (approximately $150 USD in today's money) the Carribean Clipper was a long shot even for a birthday or Christmas present. I did ask and even said even if that is the only thing I get, I'd choose that over every other possible combination of Christmas presents. My mom was very frank and said it was unlikely, so I asked for Sabre Island (and I'll tell that story on that review thread). Even mowing lawns, shoveling snow, etc was a daunting task for a boy that age. Still, I think the design and marketing was brilliant. This set gets a lot of criticism for being "incomplete" especially compared to the Black Seas Barracuda. What I love is that Lego tried to keep piece count and price down so that the top end sets in this epic line were more accessible to more kids who might be interested. It didn't work out for me when I was a kid, but as an adult I'm at a place now where I have the resources and just as importantly, the space to collect and display these in a meaningful way. I can only imagine the excitement I would have experienced if I had received this beauty back in 1990. As excited as I was I don't know that a 10 year old can truly appreciate it though. But assembling this for the first time as a grown adult, I was filled with nostalgia and a desire to take to the high seas and make up for lost time. I rate this a 5 out of 5. It is one of the best sets Lego has ever released. I do not have plans to add another one to my fleet, but if I stumbled upon a clean copy at a reasonable price it would be hard to resist. On a fun side note, one of my copies came in the original box. I sometimes get the box out and just stare at it, just like I used to do on the toy isle so many years ago. My youngest son has also taken a liking to these older sets, but he is also so much more influenced by the new sets too. For his most recent birthday he asked for the POTC Black Pearl. I was able to find a complete set and when I wrapped it, I carefully packaged it into the original Carribean Clipper box. Different ship inside the box, but seeing his reaction as he unwrapped the package, saw those blue and white striped sails, that epic background art, and those imperial sailors climbing the rigging and manning the rails...I think I got to live vicariously through him for a moment.

Something like that could be good for sharing photos on the forum though. Obviously since that's how you use it. If I wanted to experiment with ways to make the photos look more complete I can do something similar for sharing purposes. My point is that I can probably find someone to replicate the basic look. I would even be ok with a field that was a fraction of what I needed and sort of keep reusing it. It wouldn't be the first element like this in the display, since all the little islands are identical! I am guessing you are right about the cost too. It wouldn't be cheap. Maybe the right answer is to get some poster board and water colors and see what I can come up with on my own! The background is still a few steps away though. I have some infill on the display surface to tackle first, and while I have the pieces on order to cover the actual surface area, I am also in the process of developing ideas for the back ends of the display, where they transition into the walls behind them. That's why some of these pictures have included small buildings, like the one I threw together from leftover pieces or experimenting with some of the structures from other sets. Other ideas are going to be rock formations, sand dunes, all brick built. Even though this remaining space is small relative to the overall size of the display, it's a lot of ground to cover with Lego pieces, so this is actually going to take me a long time to fully build out.

I'm guessing it doesn't exist, I'd need to essentially recreate it in the dimensions needed for my display. I think it can be done. I have a tattoo artist who I show a picture and a few days later it's artwork on my shoulder. So if I showed a sample of the background art I know someone out there can design a background. Then I'd need to find a place to print it. And that wouldn't be cheap. So it's likely going to be a blue sheet or a poster board background. But man...that original artwork would be money!

I haven't ruled it out!

Here are a few pics of what the display will look like when I rotate the pirates out and the Redcoats in. So this version is Bluecoats vs Redcoats. Overall view of what the Redcoat side of the display looks like: Carribean Clipper vs Imperial Flagship: Despite his crew being engaged in battle, our fearless leader has other priorities. It seems rum and gold rank higher than dealing with an enemy warship... I love the blue rowboats for the Redcoats. The red flag looks great on the blue boat, similar to how the Bluecoats blue flag looks great on their red boats! Cannon Cove: I wasn't a fan of this set until I decided I didn't have to keep it on the original baseplate it came on. I like it as an outpost on this sand bar. I've also used it on the larger printed island baseplate, where my son and I incorporated it into a run down, abandoned fort that pre-dates the Imperial Trading Post. In our lore the Redcoats rebuilt a portion of the original fort into what we recognize as Cannon Cove before establishing the trading post on the rock formation behind it. Of course that was before I rearranged it all and put it on the sand bar here. Stand off at the Twin Palm Islands: This picture also involves my son and how we play with these sets together. There's a level of comic absurdity and this scenario is one of them. The "Twin Palm Islands" are otherwise insignificant and useless sand bars on a vast sea. But both the Bluecoats and the Redcoats consider them key terrain, likely out of sheer ego of their respective leaders. So the entire war between these factions is centered on these two islands. They could just agree that one belongs to one side and the other to the other side. Or they could split them both down the middle. But these aren't good enough, both sides want both islands! As absurd as it is, I suppose it's not all that far-fetched from real world scenarios that have led to wars... So there's that update. I'll be rotating the pirates back in soon. After that I will rotate the Bluecoats out and the Redcoats onto that side of the display, so I'll have Redcoats vs Pirates too. The next big step is going to be filling in the surface and surface level background elements along the display. That is likely going to take me a few months to complete, because there will no doubt be some trial and error. But I'm a grown man playing with Legos, so I suppose that's fine.

Some updates and additional experimenting with how to transition the display into the background. This one is another very basic proof of concept. I've taken the tavern side of my Redcoats' Lagoon Lockup and one of the structures from the Imperial Trading Post. I think the more visual focal points along the background the better. @Mister Phes, to your point about a sheet or something similar to give the illusion of sky, these white structures really underscore the need for that. But again, this is a somewhat long term goal for the display. Just playing around with picture angles, etc. Sabre Island is one of my favorite sets, so I wanted to make sure I feature it prominently in the display. This spot has always been one of my favorite places to pose a character. This one is another pic where I tried to really use the other sets as a functional background. Again, a "blue sky" would be nice, but I like the way this turned out. Having a lot of fun with this and with the initial pattern of what goes where laid in, I am going to work on rotating out the pirates and rotating in the Redcoats. I'll share a few pics once I do!

I’ve seen that set before and actually recently saw a you tube review on it. So I recognize it, and if I ever have the extra pieces I may build it and find a spot for it. Sabre Island is a great set. I have a few of them because it’s a fantastic outpost to put outside Eldorado. I’ve also used it with my Redcoats setup.