SBCMayor

It looks great. I like the small forts in the middle.

That shot is one of my favorites too. The goal with this round is to give an idea of the size and scope of the display, and then really capture more shots like this one after the additional levels of detail are laid in. As for the recommendation for a background, I've considered poster board too. If I can find it in light blue. I think that would be an inexpensive way to give that illusion of sky. Like I said above, I really wish I could find a printout of that sky in the background of the original pirate sets. The light blue with the pink wispy clouds...that would make this display so much more awesome.

While I was taking some photos of the rotating display I am working on, I decided it was also time to share a few pics of the mods I've made to a few of my Renegade Runners. I now have 5 of these, with 2 maintaining their original form and serving in Captain Ironhook's fleet. I've modified one to sail in Captain Redbeard's fleet. The last two I've converted into Imperial Bluecoat ships, where they serve as escorts to the larger vessels in the fleet, pursue the smaller, faster pirate crafts, or conduct security patrols around the Bluecoat's base of operations when the fleet is at anchor or on an offensive operation. So I'm sharing some pics of the modifications I made: So there's the Bluecoat's ship. Obviously a smaller ship like this would have a less senior commanding officer. I think the most significant change is the increased deck space created by using some small plates to raise the main deck. Not only does this increase the deck space but it enabled me to replace the swivel gun with the classic wheels used in the BSB, CC, and IF. I also extended the poop deck. The changes I made to the pirate version are virtually identical, with the predominant color being red to match the Black Seas Barracuda. Looks like Redbeard is celebrating a nice bit of plunder here! One of the biggest differences between the Bluecoat and Pirate versions of this ship is this figurehead. Recreating the naked pirate lady was not expensive, but it turns out that solid yellow parrot on the Carribean Clipper is a super rare piece which would have made my otherwise inexpensive conversions a little too cost prohibitive. So Redbeard's ship benefits from this decorative element but you'll notice my Bluecoat ships do not have their corresponding element. I actually really love the way these modified ships turned out. I have another set of sails and some additional yellow elements so I can give Redbeard another ship for his fleet if I ever stumble upon another Renegade Runner that is incomplete and inexpensive. And in hindsight, for Redbeard's, I may further modify and replace some of the yellow reverse slopes with black and do the same with blue on the Bluecoats ships to mimic the color scheme on that part of the ship for their Black Seas Barracuda and Carribean Clipper counterparts. But overall I love the way I've been able to augment both factions' fleets with these smaller vessels. I definitely welcome your thoughts, and will be sharing some additional photos of other vintage ships I've modified.

It's so fun to do it! I am also thinking I might be able to do a more "fort/hideout" themed display by taking the ships off, which will give me room to squeeze the Imperial Trading Post into place. I'd include 1 Carribean Clipper, The Black Seas Barracuda, the Imperial Flagship, and the Renegade Runner, again, if I can fit them all in without overcrowding the display. And there's always the possibility of removing all the forts and hideouts and focussing on one epic sea battle too. So many possibilities!

Here are some initial pics so you can all see what Captain Redbeard and his filthy bilge rats are up to! Rum Cay: This is just a work in progress and "proof of concept" for how I will fill in empty space along the back wall of the display. This version may not survive the final development, but some version of it will! Shipwreck Island 1: Probably a good thing the Bluecoats haven't mounted an offensive yet! Redbeard's Renegade Runner: If you look closely you'll see this is a modified version of set 6268 Renegade Runner. This is one of my favorite ships and I actually own 5 of them now. Two have been converted into Bluecoat ships, two have retained their original form and serve in Captain Ironhook's fleet, and this one belongs to Captain Redbeard. I will share additional pics and details on what I did to modify them on another thread! Rock Island Refuge: I found this set on Ebay and all it was missing was the raft build. I guess that significantly undercut the value, but since I didn't like that part of the set I didn't care. Got this for under $50 USD and can't believe how lucky I was! I'll get a few additional pics loaded later. Also notice Captain Jack Sparrow! Shipwreck Island 2: Now if the Bluecoats attack in this direction they won't get past these hardened buccaneers! Forbidden Island and Cutthroat Clipper: Forbidden Island is easily one of my favorite sets! My son appropriated the canon along with the cannon on Rock Island Refuge to give his Black Pearl a full compliment but I have replacements coming! In the lagoon behind Forbidden Island sits the Cutthroat Clipper, a modified Carribean Clipper I converted into a pirate ship by basically swapping out anything blue for red. I'll share additional pics on that soon. Cutthroat Clipper: One more of this awesome set! In addition to converting this into a pirate ship I made some small modifications to the cabin area, as I did with both of my Carribean Clippers. I'll share those mods on the review thread for the Carribean Clipper. Burried Treasure: Easily the most basic set from the 1989 introduction to the Pirate theme, but this small set will always hold a special place in my heart! Ironhook and Barnacle Bay: I consider Redbeard and Ironhook to be rival pirate captains who work together out of common interest. With two imperial forces in these waters, they need all the cooperation they can get! So if Ironhook makes an appearance at Redbeard's hideout that shouldn't be too big a surprise. Smuggler's Shanty, Tortuga/Nassau concept: Of all the pictures so far this is probably the least exciting. Obviously this entire display is a work in progress. But as I go I'm also tinkering with ways to help preserve the illusion of depth on the back end of the display. One way to do it is to put rocks and cliffs, and jungle. Another way is to but the facade of structures in, as if they are the first row of buildings in a small settlement. This is one I threw together out of leftover pieces and as you can see it's pretty spartan. But this is something I'll continue to develop as I finish out this display. With this version being on the pirate side, it suggests it's one of the known pirate havens such as Tortuga or Nassau. So that's my first round of pictures. I'll share updates as they develop! One of the challenges is the walls are not quite 90 degrees all the way around, so that requires a little finesse with the pieces, and absent a true background, some visual points of interest near the corners to draw attention away from the gap areas and toward the activity, structures, etc. Another consideration is how will some of these background structures fit when I swap out the pirate cove for the Redcoats? Or for that matter, how readily will the Redcoats replace the Bluecoats if I rotate them in on the Bluecoat side of the display. But that is part of what makes this so fun to me. I really am enjoying the possibilities I have here and the rotational aspect of it keeps it interesting to me. I'll share some updates once I've been able to fill in some of these gaps. Meanwhile if anyone has any suggestions I would love to hear them!

When I discovered this site last year I was blown away by how talented some of the members here are with their MOCs. I've seen plenty of mind blowing MOCs on YouTube as well. I am nowhere close to that level of clever so I have to settle for combining what's available. In a relatively short time I've been able to assemble a pretty respectable collection of vintage pirate legos, and as I've indicated in other conversations, I focus on the sets released from 1989-1993. I have always loved those old catalogue displays too, and have always wanted to create my own version of them. Thankfully my home has just the place for such a display, albeit not quite large enough to fit it all. Still, I have a countertop that is just shy of 2' by 11' and 5". So I am developing a setup that will have some permanent "background features" but the center is modular enough to remove all the sets and insert other sets. The idea is to maintain a rotation of Bluecoats vs Redbeard, Redcoats vs Ironhook (who has a pretty sizable fleet) and Bluecoats vs Redcoats (this last one dates back to my childhood when I always considered these two rival imperial forces. To start things off though I have to stick to the classic: Bluecoats vs Redbeard. And this version of my display is probably about 75-80% complete. I need to fill in some spaces with "sand" and "water" but I think sharing some in-progress pics now will give you an idea of where I am heading. I hope you enjoy! Eldorado Fortress/Lagoon Lockup: Sabre (not) Island: (Notice the modified Renegade Runner in the background! More on that later!) Sabre Island: Carribean Clipper: Something tells me this sailor was press-ganged. The Bluecoats Flagship: This is obviously a modified BSB, and I love the way it turned out! Carribean Clipper vs Black Seas Barracuda: Despite converting a BSB into a Bluecoat ship that could match the BSB, for the actual sea battle I have to stick to the classic showdown between these two! Some thoughts: I am taking these pics with an iPhone. I'm learning taking good pics of Lego sets is a lot harder than it sounds! Also, as stated already I am going to be filling in some of the counter top with some blue and yellow pieces I have on order. Speaking of yellow, I love the way the color pallet has expanded in recent years, but for this display I have decided to keep it true to form and stick with the classic yellow pieces to represent sand. The only exceptions are some pieces I ordered not knowing they were a lighter shade of yellow (colorblind). They still function well enough and I can cover them with sets, trees, etc. I also want to eventually put up a background that resembles the original sky of the box art from that initial wave that way the background isn't just white wall. That is a long term goal, and my girlfriend may have something to say about that. I'll follow up soon with some photos of the pirate side of the display, some additional thoughts on the counter space itself. As I finish out this version of the display, I'll add some additional action pieces. Maybe some pirates busting a mate out, or making off with some treasure. Maybe a bluecoat incursion into the pirate's bay. I welcome your thoughts and if you have any suggestions, I welcome them! Pirate side of the display coming soon! Also, I wanted to share a quick shoutout to a great YouTube channel, Bricks Planet. My son and I really enjoy his stop motion reviews, they are just so fun! The backgrounds on his sets have significantly influenced the direction I want to take the background on my own display, though I'll never be able to replicate the pure awesomeness on his set. Still wanted to share.

This is such an interesting idea. One of my boys is an early teen, loves Lego, and has really taken to the older vintage pirates. With very few exceptions, he agrees with me the series is as good as it gets from 1989-1993, with a nod toward the Islanders in 1994. Now he also really is into the POTC series, but I think that's natural. Anyway, he and I were recently discussing how the theme really seemed to peak early and never recapture the magic it created in those first few years. I think that makes sense though. There are only so many forts and ships you can make. So we discussed what would we have wished Lego had done differently? And we agreed a small village, complete with merchant ships, a dock, taverns, etc could have been a fantastic complement to the original theme. Now TLG did come close to this concept with the Islanders: a group of people just trying to live life and suddenly having to deal with the pirates and imperial forces alike! But I think a series of sets based on colonists would have been legit. It could have included everything from a governor's mansion to a dock (ITP sort of already has docks I guess), a larger merchant ship (based on the larger hull pieces), maybe a tavern, blacksmith shop, inn, etc. The pirates could have used a Tortuga-like shanty town to go with Rock Island Refuge and Forbidden Island. A community of those living outside the law, protected by the pirates. I think these would have been epic and a great way to keep the theme engaging. By 1996 I was just...not interested anymore. Part of that could have been the driver's license, the first car, girls, etc. But the designs on these later sets just were not as good as the earlier waves.

Love those pics! Makes me wish I was artistic!

I give the RR a 4/5. Despite popular culture and the mythology surrounding pirates placing them in large, fearsome, intimidating ships, more often than not pirates operated small maneuverable sloops. The Renegade Runner is a great depiction of this. If I have unlimited space for my display (and unlimited funding of course) I'd have 10+ of these easily. As it stands I have 4, with two of them in their original form, and two others fun little projects for customizing. One of these I've converted for use with the Imperial Guards, but it may get a deeper redesign along with the 4th one to mimic the color scheme of the CC and BSB. As for the original design, I actually love the black and white striped sails with the skull/crossbones. I think it makes for a fantastic "fleet" design along with the SES (which I don't own). I love the idea of a large pirate flagship (some notable pirates such as Blackbeard, Sam Bellamy, and Henry Avery had them) with a couple sloops as escorts, scouting vessels, or as the tip of the spear when attacking a plunder. I'm really glad Lego created this model to enable that reality-based play scenario. The lack of a cabin doesn't actually bother me on this model. Even the largest sloops were not really big ships and would have had flush deck lines, so the captain's cabin would likely have been below the main deck. Given this model's budget conscious design, it's hard to capture that and keep piece count under control. Since all Lego ships are designed "from the water line, up" one already has to imagine the existence of a hold and bilge, even on larger models like the CC, BSB, and SES. So I just imagine the RR has a small hold and below it a bilge/ballast area. Sometimes with Lego you just have to use your imagination to fill in the blanks. The lack of rigging actually bothers me way more than the lack of a cabin. As for missing a wheel, the ship's wheel didn't actually begin appearing until the early 1700s or so, but even after its implementation in ship design, small sloops such as the RR would likely be steered with a till until the late 1700s. I don't like the swivel gun, and not liking the swivel gun is a big part of why I can't get myself excited about spending the $$$ on a SES. With that said, given the hull design and pieces they were working with, I see why they went swivel gun instead of the wheels you would have expected to see on a ship's guns. I am actually working on a few small changes that will raise the lower deck and enable the removal of the swivel in favor of those awesome wheel carriages like on other pirate ships. I'll upload some pics once I've completed. Overall I love the RR. When I decided to get back into the vintage Pirate series Legos the Renegade Runner was one of the first bigger sets I took a chance on. I also think it is a significantly better looking set than the comical looking CBC. And of the five ships offered in the first and second wave, I actually would place this one 4th: Below the BSB, CC, IF, and above the SES.

Good start. I've always placed the Lego Pirate Theme in the Golden Age of Piracy, so somewhere between 1675-1725. But base on many of the characteristics of the imperial uniforms (blue and red) the Napoleonic Wars and War of 1812 are also viable eras.

I have 2 BSBs, one of which is in its original design and the other I've converted into an imperial blue ship while simultaneously converting a Caribbean Clipper into a red-sail pirate ship. I've had my eye on the SES for a while now even though of the original five ships from 1989, 1992, and 1993 I like it the least. I think I like the idea of having all 5 more than the actual ship itself. I think from a distance it is easily one of the most epic looking sets Lego has ever released. But every time I get myself mentally amped up to spend the money on one, as I start looking closely at the deck area, cabin, sliding cannons, and color scheme of the hull and interior of the ship I just can't get myself excited for it. So my son and I were discussing an alternative. Why not purchase a third BSB and modify it with SES sails? I can make other minor modifications to give it the overall appearance of the SES but it would retain everything I love about the BSB too. Pricewise I can do this for less than what a SESs would cost me. The downside: It would lack the authenticity of the actual SES, and undermine my goal of having each of the initial 5 ships. The upside: I'd probably like the final result more than the SES. Cost is another benefit to this approach. I'm not clever enough to do a MOC. Love what some of you all are doing with those. I am content to take what's available and customize to my liking. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

@TalonCard that was a great read! Thank you, I really feel like I read a real piece of history and I suppose I did. I love being able to tie the them to real world events and powers and certainly it's fair to say Lego could not have created such a theme without historical inspiration to begin with. Most of the reading I've done on the subject has been from the perspective of the pirates, groups who as you've noted, sometimes found themselves out of work when uneasy peace treaties ended their commissions as privateers. There's also an even darker aspect to it, that being life was so unjust on the merchant and Royal Navy ships of the era that joining a pirate crew was actually an upgrade. Better pay, better treatment, better promise of fortune, ill-gotten or not. Captains and officers abused their crews. A great pirate figure to read about is Henry Avery, who became a bit of a folk hero, sort of a sea-faring Robin Hood in the very early 1700s. While there's probably a lot of embellished myth and lore surrounding him, and the man likely died penniless (he was built up to be literally be a "pirate king" on the Island of Madagascar) his story sheds a lot of light on the motive behind so many turning to piracy. And I will fully acknowledge, I likely would have never bothered to learn about him or other pirates had it not been for the Lego Pirate Theme sparking my interests!

I always cast the Imperial Soldiers as Spanish given the name Eldorado Fortress sounds very Spanish. When the theme came out I lived in the U.S. State of Colorado, an area Spanish Conquistadors explored in the 1500s. Hundreds years later their lore remains: that state name the Conquistadors gave the area literally translates into "Colored Red" because of the color of the mountains when the sunrise hits them as well as many of the rock formations in the region. A lot of legends surrounding Conquistador expeditions are tied to the area, as well as Northern New Mexico. So even though Eldorado Fortress was period-designed to be more 1700s than 1500s it made perfect sense to me that it was a base of operations for Spanish expeditions from the Carribean onto the mainland and points beyond. Of course, naming their ship the Carribean Clipper further cemented to me these were Spanish imperials in the Carribean since the ship was named after the Carribean and the Spanish were the prevailing power in that area. (Not sure why I couldn't apply this ship name logic to the Black Seas Barracuda.) Only when I started researching vintage sets again, watching video reviews, etc did I realize the Imperial Soldiers were always considered French! No worries, they also had a presence in the Carribean in the 1700s. But for me they will always be Spanish! This is just gorgeous and makes me wish I was artistic or skilled in photoshop.

Another older thread I'm reviving! In my Thoughts on the Second Wave thread I actually ranked the Skull's Eye Schooner 4th among the "big 4" sets in the second wave, being the Renegade Runner, Imperial Trading Post, and the Imperial Flagship. So naturally I don't think it will come as a surprise to anyone that in a head to head against the Black Seas Barracuda my vote is for the BSB. I just think there is no topping those 1989 originals. When the SES came out I was definitely interested in it, but buy 1993 I was a little older (4 years older than in 1989 to be specific) and I wasn't quite as awestruck by it as I was by the BSB years before. Perhaps my vote is a product of those early impressions. Fast forward to this year when I decided to start collecting vintage pirate sets. I researched both carefully but quickly decided I'd be sticking with the BSB both for sentimental and practical reasons. With SES prices on secondary markets such as Ebay and Bricklink far exceeding the prices for a BSB, I've been able to actually get 2 BSBs for only slightly more than what it would have cost me to get 1 SES. The second BSB I've converted into an Imperial Ship. Perhaps in a few months I'll look again and add a SES to my collection, though I don't consider it a must have like the BSB. It's a nice sequel: what it lacks in original thought it makes up for in being bigger and more menacing. But it'll never be better than the original.

I think one of the things I didn't care for about it was the awkward dimensions of the plate it came on. It makes it hard to integrate with other sets. I think the solid green color was something else I didn't really care for. It seemed too basic and not "Pirate Theme" enough for me. I would have rather it been on a yellow sand colored plate than the one-sided green plate. It could have been a larger, Imperial complement to Smuggler's Shanty that way. I liked the little prickly bush accessory, (Cannon Cove was my introduction to this piece) but felt it should have had a palm tree. Regarding the difference between Eldorado and Imperial Trading Post, I do agree the addition of a second blue plate complete with docks and buildings really made ITP an ambitious set. I recently won Eldorado in an Ebay auction and shortly thereafter purchased ITP outright. Both have a little wear and tear but for their ages have a lot of life left in them, especially for what I paid! The docks on ITP have actually inspired me to experiment with something similar for Eldorado, especially given it already has a small dock along the front of the structure. I love the idea of using Sabre Island as a structure on the dock side of the extension, simply pulling it off the printed plate and setting in on a wider, corner portion of the dock. I think it would look awesome. And of course, integrating them together is always an option, though I always view the Imperial Guards and Soldiers as rivals not allies.

Thank you for sharing! I as able to find a set of replacement sails but they turned out to be one-sided, so maybe eventually I'll upgrade. Also, one change to the ship pictured above is it still has the original red shutters down in the hold. I've ordered some blue shutters but they haven't arrived yet.

I went ahead and did this. I was able to get a second BSB relatively inexpensive and converted it over to an Imperial ship. This brings my Imperial blue fleet to 1 BSB and 2 CCs. They’re still outgunned by my pirate fleet so they’d be smart to form and alliance with the Imperial Guards, but I don’t see either blue or red willing to do that. Politics is complicated, I guess. Also, in order to have donor parts for this ship I actually ordered a third CC received all the BSB components I could transfer over. I have to brick link a few additional pieces (replacing all the blue on the CC with red) and I’ll share a pic of the “Cutthroat Clipper” once she’s ready!

I found my plain sails! I also found a donor ship for the conversion. It couldn't have been better, appears to be in very good shape, but missing sails, minifigures, features a couple replacement pieces (black lanterns instead of blue). Consequently this was inexpensive comparatively. I'll get some pirate flags and a crew and this ship will be well on its way to pillaging and plundering!

Love this review. Even though these are toys designed primarily for their potential to generate sales based on their play potential, I love the actual knowledge of sail configurations applied to these models. I also really love the tan sails for the IF. One thing I wish I could find, and I might be able to eventually, is plain tan sails. I'd love to convert an IF to a pirate vessel but the imperial insignia on the sails sort of ruins that potential. I think the IF would make a great pirate ship conversion and if I ever find a place to order plain tan replacement sails I'm ordering them and getting back on Ebay/Bricklink to start looking for my conversion set! Thanks again, this was a great review and a lot of fun to read!

That was very thoughtful of you, thank you. I also checked out the group on Flickr. There are some awesome works of art there! I am not anywhere near that level, I'm just combining what's available. I love seeing the MOCs on this site and others. Some of the creativity is mind blowing!

Thank you, and something like this is the other option I was going to explore. I definitely appreciate the lead!

It also turns out my size limit for photos is very small. I'd have to really reformat some of the pics (I'll play around with that at some point) or reduce their size to the point they wouldn't be worth sharing. I'm guessing with a little more time in the forum media capacity increases? I'm not a great photographer but I do have a few pics of the early stages of my set up design I'd like to share.

I like a lot of the Creator series sets. They have several beach cabins and surf shops and since I am into that sort of thing I really enjoy these sets. I live in a coast city in the U.S. and my sons and I have built a nice town modeled after our home, including a "surf district" comprised mostly of creator sets and a tiki bar we built ourselves. The Creator Pirate ship is awesome. Of all the 3 in 1 sets we have, this one is the one we want to get 3 of the most so we can build all 3 builds! I also really think the Viking ship looks awesome, but my interest in pirates far surpasses my interest in Vikings.

I agree with you on the "junior-ized" sentiments. When I started my research I did look at some of the sets from the mid-90s and feel they just don't hit the mark the way the first and second waves do. In fact, after the second wave, I really don't think any of the sets in the pirate series are must-haves, with some noteworthy exceptions: Imperial Flagship (this one, not the one from 1992). Pirates of Barracuda Bay Creator 3&1 Pirate Ship (more a pirate flavored creator set, but it's a really good ship nonetheless). Icons Eldorado Fortress (as cool as this is, I am glad I went with the original).

They do fit better with the second wave because the presence of Imperial Guards is consistent with that wave. But they're outliers, they're still not truly second wave sets. My younger brother had a few of the Islander sets but by the time the Imperial Armada series arrived I had (for the time) outgrown collecting Legos. I've put a lot of research into what to focus on and I've decided to focus on the sets from 1989-1993.