Welcome to my blog, the story of my continuing journey into the World of Zombie Wargames.

Monday 6 February 2017

Shipshape

Rear, back blunt end ,Stern view of the three ships.
So this week has seen a sudden burst of enthusiasm for conversions of my pirate ships, probably brought on by lighter evenings and better health. I now have three ships, all of which I wanted to be distinctly different to one another. With this in mind I decided to leave the first model in its original state (more or less); the second ship I'd convert to some sort of single masted sloop thing whilst the third would be converted into a larger three masted vessel (utilising the spare mast). This latter idea was quickly abandoned  when I realised that once more I would have too large a vessel than I wanted .

The larger ship conversion was cut in two flush with the rear stairs, if I was converting another I'd go instead for a central cut.
In the top photograph you can see the piece of plastic I used as a keel joining the the two parts of the extended hull.
Two of the ships would have extended work done on their rear deck, namely cutting away the hideous pedestal.(One attempt was slightly more successful than the other)
Not such a successful cut-job.
Two masts successfully removed!
Cutting the two masts off, to leave their bases flush with the deck  was a bit tricky , due to the sides of the ship getting in the way, however I did manage to utilise the open rear cabin door  to slide my hack-saw in and slowly cut through each base of the two masts..
The key (hole) to cutting the masts flush with the deck.
Before....
The crows next as is, isn't really usable at all; the raised mounting in the middle is for a small pole with pennant on , that doesn't really leave enough space for a figure.
My solution to still to use these crow's nests was to cut the interior flat and cut the whole crow's nest from the mast to be mounted in an alternative position against the mast, rather than atop it. Cutting away a couple of pieces of guard-rail enable me to get access to cut the base flush (scalpel and file).
...and after.
Hull piece
The hull extension was a piece of soft card (back of a notepad) roughly shaped, Two piece of plastic glued just beneath the rear and forward decks gave the foundation for the piece of card I used as a deck, scribed with 'planks' to reinforce the sides and to give a comparable thickness to the sides of the ship two further pieces of card were glued in place.






Extended vessel.
Obligatory blurry photo
 The rear decks would also be all slightly different, one I've covered in paper; a second I've used filler on, whilst the third will probably end up having a coffee-stirrer deck!
In case you're wondering about all the white filler stuff on the masts, the rear of the masts each have  slot along their entire height that I wanted filling (it can be seen on a couple of the photos).
There's still a lot to do on these models, but I'm very happy with the progress made so far and knowing that I do have an end product in mind. 

In other news, with the departure of my daughter and her family I should have a lot more space for hobby-related projects rather than just my cutting board on my lap!.

That's it for this week, as always your comments are both welcomed and appreciated

26 comments:

  1. Well, to be honest, I looked at the first photo and thought they looked nowt flash. By the time I'd read and viewed the images to the end I had changed my opinion, and I think they're all coming along nicely. Definitely will be interesting to see what they turn out like come completion.

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    1. Thanks Roy, I always bear in mind that these are cheap toys that I'm working on, at best I'll be able to make them into usable wargame pieces, but they're certainly not exhibition quality.

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  2. Wow, you've really gone at them, keep going Joe this is going to be an awesome build.

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    1. Thanks Micael, I needed to get some success under my scatch-building ego-belt following the 'cursed build' (now suspended.)

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  3. Arrr! Cap'n Joe, me likes what ye be doin' on these ships. Should be fine sailin' vessels once ye finish ;-)

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    1. Thanks Major, but isn't talk like a pirate day sometime in September ?

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    2. Aye me bucko, September 19th it tis, but why wait? ;-)

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  4. WiP are always gonna be a bit scrappy, but the potential can be seen Joe, keep going buddy!

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    1. Thanks dGG, I always appreciate the encouragement and without the wips posts I'd have nothing to post about ! ('cept for ranting and who wants more of that?)

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  5. Wow!! You sure do appear enthused presently, Joe. Which is excellent, and your WIPs look excellent already. Keep up the splendid work my friend, as these are going to look stunning when finished.

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    1. Thanks Blaxx, but I thik 'sdunning' is a bit overenthusiastic - you've seen my painting haven't you?

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  6. Excellent work at now! Waiting for the next steps :)

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    1. Thanks Michal, next steps are already underway.

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  7. Every model gets to what I call the "Nasty stage". Where it does not yet start to look good and your vibrate enthusiasm fades. BUT when you push through everything changes. This is the Chrysalis from which the butterfly emerges!

    Keep going mate it will look great when finished and I will start to call it "Crazy Joe's Armada!"

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    1. Thanks clint., my enthusiasm knows no bounds atm and I'm hoping to have a lot more done this week, despite my workspace being whatever I can fit on my lap!
      ps I'm not crazy!

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  8. I think I agree with Roy: the stuff in the initial picture looked a bit ho hum, but as you took us through the various stages (with more detailed images), I could visualise the improvements you are making. I await the final result with renewed interest!

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    1. Thannks C6, I know a lot of folk don't care much for wips, but I got to have something to post about right ?
      Until some paint is applied (albeit as badly as, my skills allow), I think things like these (toys) will always look a bit naff, no matter how far 'on' they are,.

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  9. Looking damn good so far to me Joe!

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    1. Thanks AL, I think they look OK too, but then again, I have eye problems.

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  10. The fruit of your labor so far, Zab, looks mighty sweet to me.

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    1. Thanks Jay, I will persist with these until I get more than the just the support of the folk with spectacles though - just to be safe.

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  11. Promising start to the conversions :)

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    1. Thanks Brummie,, it does look like a may have a 'winner'

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  12. Creative and very very nice job sir!

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    1. Thanks Phil, they'e beginning to look usable

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