papierschnitzel

First build of the rig

I have completed all the major parts and texturing for the sailing rig, so here is a first look at the first build. The sloop is looking like a ship now!

I am very happy how the mast extensions turned out. I found that I can skip the toothpicks and it still works great (so they - the toothpicks - are just needed when you want to add more friction to the extension connectors).

Here is a vie...

Extending the main mast

For this and all the larger ships that may come, I need a working mast extension. The ship builders of old seemed to have a similar problem that I have and that is that the resources we use have a limited length! So due to page and tree size limits I need a way to recreate the method of making the mast longer by connecting shorter elements.

And one added challenge for the paper model is that I w...

The Sloop continues ...

I have managed to adapt the main gaf sail to the new dimensions for the sloop. It's bigger, it's better and it's on the page size limit :-)

Next I will work on the mast extensions as they are crucial for this ship and all the other large vessels in coming up. As the fore sails will be attached within the overlapping part, I need the construction to be detachable, so you can take the extension se...

Sloop colors

Today I want to show you the color options that will be available for the sloop. Above you see the color map of the different sections you will be able to select for alternative colors.

• blue - main fill
• yellow - top detail
• orange - middle detail
• red - bottom detail

Each of these (for lvl3 upwards that is) you can choose to be white, black, blue, green...

Weathering the sloop

While we are waiting for the first release I will share the details of the weathering process.

Above you see the comparison of the pristine and the weathered version. On the weathered one I also choose a lighter and bleached look.

I have added dirt in the corners and edges, scratch marks and old wood patterns to get the look of a used and old vessel. I have also fine tuned and added some m...

November 2018 Content Announcement

This month the reward set will include the first half for the Sloop Pirate Ship containing    

• the hull & deck parts
• deck cabin
• cannons
• as usual all the color modifiers for lots of variations

As already mentioned in the last post, this set has turned out - for the first time - to be too big for the one...

Knitting the ratlines

Since the last post I have been spending a lot of time getting the hull in release shape. I have added the dirt and old wood layers for weathering and the general color modifiers. I yet have to add the detail color variations and I would like make the "inverse" option once again, where you have dark and light wood inveresed as this adds a new look to the options.

But I have also been making a li...

Sloop Sailing Rig mock-up

After collecting all the details on the rig for this ship I was able to make this very rough test of mast and sails for the Sloop. This will help me find the final dimensions of all the parts required. The main sail is at the limit of the page size so I think that will be pretty much it. The stay and jib sail at the bow will get some minor changes, so the lines to the bulwark will lead to better p...

How to insert the main mast

Now that the hull is finished I need to start thinking about how I am going to connect the mast to the hull.

For the gunboat I had no hull volume to insert the mast, so I had to keep it in position with the sails and stay lines. But this time I have some space below deck to make a hole and insert the mast.

I have come up with two approaches and today I will show you the first one. The way ...

Next weekend treasure

Remember the barrels I was working on a couple of weekends ago? I have been asked about a large barrel. Large enough to hide a person maybe.

So this weekend as a little in between project I decided to make one. Always nice to take a break from the main project and do something quick just for fun.

2018-11-18 07:10:16 +0000 UTC View Post

Deck is done ...

These are the deck structures that will come with the sloop. Now that they are textured the ships looks like it's almost ready to sail ... except the mast and sails are missing :-) Coming up next.

For gaming with lots of minis I would get rid of some of the pieces though. More like this maybe.

Texturing the sloop

I have been working the last days on giving the hull some color and here is a first pic to show you in which direction i am going. The details on the deck floor are all optional. So you can adjust what you want to see there. The metal rings are for holding cannons in place and will make more sense once the cannons are there :-) If I have time I will add another layer with ropes, that will go from ...

Completing the Sloop hull prototype

I have now fixed all the little issues and made all the deck structures, including the binnacle compass box and the cabin. This is the next build.

The cannons fit now :-) and I have changed the unfold layout so the different layers overlap nicely at texture seams, so the seams will be covered up by the plank patterns.

2018-11-10 06:26:20 +0000 UTC View Post

Sloop: deck structures and gun ports

I don't want to spam you daily with little updates, but at this stage I am so excited about each step, I just had to show you the progress :-)

I have completed the geometry for the structures I want to add on deck. In the bow there will be a little more to hold the front jib sail beam in place, but I'll work on that when I focus on sails and mast/beam.

Behind these comes the windlass, whic...

The Sloop is going to be BIG!

I have started working on the full size model of the sloop and ... man, I love it already :-) After I completed the first build at this scale I noticed that I was smiling. I was so excited to see it on my cutting mat. 

The LEGO minis will give a good indication of the deck space we have to work with here. Even without the stern cabin it looks great, no?

2018-11-07 04:25:51 +0000 UTC View Post

Next Sloop Prototype

I worked all the changes I wanted to do into the next layout and did a new build. The biggest visual change is that the stern cabin section is longer. The previous felt too squeezed and short.

Here is a comparison of both versions. The aesthetics of the sloop now look much better. The only new problem is that the raised platform looks too short! ... so I have to adjust that too. Luckily this is ...

Back to the Pirate Fleet: Sloop for November

As much as I had fun making the Wako Pirate Ship I am even more excited to start seriously working on the Sloop!

With 12" length it will be 4" longer than the gunboat and what I love even more ... it is large enough to have gun ports! So finally I can put my paper model cannons I made some time ago to use.

2018-11-03 06:29:44 +0000 UTC View Post

Wako fight!

A couple of days ago I set up a little battle at sea with the older Samurai Fleet set and the new Wako ship.

I have already shown it over on Facebook, so while I am waiting for the end-of-month processing I thought I also show it here, in case anybody hasn't seen it.

The Wako ship runs into an Samurai Fleet patrol and needs to fight!

2018-11-01 07:48:26 +0000 UTC View Post

October 2018 Content Announcement

This month the reward set will include the Japanese Wako Pirate ship containing   

• the hull
• modular structures
• mast and sail
• as usual all the color modifiers for lots of variations

I will make the "charge patrons post" tomorrow. 

Happy building,

Chris

Adding color to the Wako ship

While I am cleaning up the files and creating the instructions, I have not only added my usual color modifiers (bleached, lighter, darker, warmer & cooler) but also some color variations for the towers. In the Osprey sketch you see the Wako ship with red details. To add a little more variety I have also put yellow, blue and green in to choose from.

2018-10-29 16:52:42 +0000 UTC View Post

Wako pirate ship - final build!

I have added the mast and sail to the build. While converting the parts from the Samurai sekibune I added dark sail - fitting for gritty pirates :-) - and matched the wood tone to this model.

Here is a view from the stern. 

As I like the space on the deck for gaming action I dug out my o...

Weathered wako ship

A quick update: Here is where I am with the final build. Everything except mast and sail is built and aged and I really love this ship now. I will start with converting the mast and sail from the Samurai Fleet builder set to this model and hope to have it all done in the next day.

Then it's time to package it all up and get it ready for release!

Happy building,

Chris

Crazy wako cutting II

I usually cut most of my models by hand. My eyes and hand give me a precision that no machine can match. And for cutting out a couple of parts for one assembly step, I am fine with the speed I am working.

But for these railings I had to get the auto-cutter out of the box and let it shine. I knew this would take a rather long time compared the fast build of the other parts. So many little rectang...

Crazy wako cutting I

The weathered build of the wako pirate ship is coming along nicely. I have added most of the dirt layers to the files and I started the new build. This time I will go for the advanced version.

I have the hull and deck done so far and I have cut out the spaces between the bars on the deck extensions manually this time. It obviously takes more time than the easy build but doesn't it look great? 2018-10-19 06:17:15 +0000 UTC View Post

Gunboat cutfiles updated

I got feedback from David, that he spotted some bugs in the cut files. So I fixed them right away and updated them on the dropbox. Please re-download them!

I will continue to weather the wako ship :-)

Happy building,

Chris

Weekend treasures

With the Wako ship at a good stage, this weekend I looked at my collection of sketches and ideas and found some smaller projects I wanted to work on. Sometime in the future I will need crates, barrels and treasure chests for scenes with pirates, harbors and villages. I have worked on crates and barrels som...

Wako pirate ship test build

Just in time for the weekend I finished the structures and put it all together for a first test build of the wako ship. The only thing missing now is the mast and sail, which I will reuse from the Samurai Fleet boats.

This ship turned out much better than I hoped for. Lots of deck space and the structures make it a very interesting gaming terrain piece. Should be a lot of fun both on high seas o...

Attaching the deck railings

Here I have tried both versions of attaching the railings to the deck. The back one is glued on and worked as expected.

The front version is the removable one. I have insert slots on the extended part that go under the deck and then I have tabs tab hold the sides of the railing in position. It does what it should and if you plan on making a small fleet of these ships and want to store them safel...

Dealing with a huge Wako deck

I have assembled a first deck prototype in scale for 28-30mm figures. As you can see, there is enough space for structures and battles! The structures will also be removable, so you could add variety in your Wako fleet by adding different configurations of the towers and house to each boat.

This version is the easy build where one does not cut out the spaces between the extruding bars on the sid...

Wako hull construction

I have finished the development of the main hull for the wako pirate ship. It is built using the time tested two layer approach and it goes together very simple. I like the shape of the hull sides now much better than the first prototype.

In order for the hull to be able to hold loads of even heavy metal minis, I have added the inner keel and ribs structure. Most important part if this build sta...