- Joined
- Jul 23, 2021
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"It's not just a keel and a hull and a deck and sails, that's what a ship needs. But what a ship is - what the Black Pearl really is - is freedom" Captain Jack Sparrow.
And I'd like to add it is also a lot of fun! I fell in love with that ship ever since I saw it on the big screen for the first time. Over the years I have enjoyed the movies, built Lego & cardboard versions of the Pearl, sailed her on PC and so I think it is time for a "proper" version that will sail the living room.
Why choose the ZHL All-Sealed version over the All-Scenario version, if I'm going to spend so many hours building? I just really like the smooth aesthetics of hulls, simple as that.
I already read in other build logs that ZHL's quality is supposed to be quite good. I have no comparison, but I am some kind of a perfectionist when it comes to models and I was very pleased with all the parts that greeted me. Order process was super easy, customer service very good (despite the language barrier) and shipment fast.
So without further ado, I invite everyone to join me on the journey of building the Black Pearl! And of course, any input is welcome
Image 1: Very pleased with the (3D printed?) figures and ornaments. Not exactly Citadel Finecast quality, but we're building a ship here, after all.
From what I can tell the parts list is complete, time to start!
Image 2: Adding the first bulkheads already gives a good idea about the size. As always, no imagination (assisted by a ruler) beforehand compares to the real thing I would really soon ditch the "instant" wood glue for some fast drying wood glue - the smell was just aweful.
Image 3: Getting the lasercut parts out proved to work quite well with a scalpel so far. Not much sanding needed afterwards. Using the smaller of the two lower deck parts ensured that the frames would be in 90 degree to the middle part of the ship.
What are the decks called on the Pearl? Main deck and lower gun deck? Spar deck and gun deck? I'll stick with main deck and lower deck (as there is only one in this kit) until I know more about it. Speaking of lower decks ...
Image 4: The first test fit of the two-parted lower deck made me sweat quite a lot, as there was so much tension I constantly feared sth. would break. I think this was due to (non existant) tolerances in the parts and not because i worked sloppy. Anyway, nothing that some sanding can't fix. Now, I know, I didn't choose the all-scenario version. But I'd still like to be able to open all the cargo hatches (no idea what the nautical term is) right down to the lowest deck. After all, how else could the crew heave up all the rum barrels to blow up the kraken? Unfortunately, there is no "lowest deck" in this kit, but a solid frame.
Image 5: Only one way around this: insert a pseudo deck. Yes, it is way to small regarding height. And yes, it barely reaches to to ends of the cargo opening. But it will do the job just fine, when you look down from two decks above. Is it worth the effort, if you can barely see it? It is there, I can open up the cargo openings and look down, it makes me happy. So yes, worth it
Image 6: Designing the pseudo deck any deeper would have had serious impact on the structural integrity, wider would have interfered with the support beams carrying the main deck.
Image 7: Time to attach the "real" lower deck. No onions on the chopping board today, but the skeleton of a ship in the making. And to be honest, I feel much more comfortable with that.
Image 8: Another view of the pseudo deck. I am pleased with how it turned out
Image 9: Having already put some effort into a little black box at the bottom of the ship, that will likely never really be seen, it is only logical to add some more extras you'll also hardly ever notice once the Pearl is finished: Planks on the lower deck. But, knowing myself, I will enjoy a peek through the gunports or the cargo opening to see a decent deck. Or to be more honest: it would annoy me beyond reasoning to not see planks on that deck ^^
Image 10: As I never finished an H.M.S. Bounty kit many years ago, I have a lot of spare parts to use. The wood color is just beautiful and it makes me almost sad to paint everything black, eventually. But alas, it's the Black Pearl not the Teak Pearl. The dark wood in the ZHL kit is walnut I believe, and its color is way more suited for the black paint. It has more of a grey tone when sanded, unlike the red planks here on the lower deck. After all the goal is not to just spray paint everything tar black, but keep a little of the original wood shimmering through. Anyway, the lower deck won't be lit much.
Apart from the fact that the Black Pearl is a purely fictional ship with some features seen only on much later ships, it originally sailed as the "Wicked Wench" for the East India Company roughly around 1720. So it was probably built in British ship yard. Therefore I decided to use a pattern of four alternating planks (seen in Image 9 on the cargo opening) as this was commonly used during that time. I made a minor mistake along the way, so I'm glad I could "train" on the lower deck before planking the main deck later on.
Image 11: The black color on the deck came out way better then expected, the photos don't really do it justice. Sanding the areas where sailors would walk frequently gives it a nice used look, that I aim to achieve on the whole ship. Watching POTC you'll notice the Black Pearl actually isn't that black everywhere on closer inspection. For paint I used acrylic black with a little white (so it's technically a very dark grey, not sure if Batman would approve) and I thinned the color substantially with water. The deck was too wet, so in many instances the smooth sanded planks curled up at the edges a little bit. Nothing major, but something to keep in mind for the main deck. Painting wood glue with thinned down acrylic is nearly impossible. Technically, I knew that beforehand, but decided not to pay too much attention during glueing anyway. Won't do that mistake again ^^
Next up I have to decide on a lighting solution. The control unit in the kit reacts to clapping and lights up the stern lanterns, the captain's cabin and two small lanterns outside the doors. I'm not a big fan of the clapping idea (I'd much rather have radio controlled lights) and as I'm doing changes anyway, I'd like to light up the lower deck as well. Additionally having the batteries separate in either the captain's cabin or the little pseudo deck in the bottom would allow for easy maintenance in the years to come.
Any input regarding this is welcome, I have never dealt with electrics before
And I'd like to add it is also a lot of fun! I fell in love with that ship ever since I saw it on the big screen for the first time. Over the years I have enjoyed the movies, built Lego & cardboard versions of the Pearl, sailed her on PC and so I think it is time for a "proper" version that will sail the living room.
Why choose the ZHL All-Sealed version over the All-Scenario version, if I'm going to spend so many hours building? I just really like the smooth aesthetics of hulls, simple as that.
I already read in other build logs that ZHL's quality is supposed to be quite good. I have no comparison, but I am some kind of a perfectionist when it comes to models and I was very pleased with all the parts that greeted me. Order process was super easy, customer service very good (despite the language barrier) and shipment fast.
So without further ado, I invite everyone to join me on the journey of building the Black Pearl! And of course, any input is welcome
Image 1: Very pleased with the (3D printed?) figures and ornaments. Not exactly Citadel Finecast quality, but we're building a ship here, after all.
From what I can tell the parts list is complete, time to start!
Image 2: Adding the first bulkheads already gives a good idea about the size. As always, no imagination (assisted by a ruler) beforehand compares to the real thing I would really soon ditch the "instant" wood glue for some fast drying wood glue - the smell was just aweful.
Image 3: Getting the lasercut parts out proved to work quite well with a scalpel so far. Not much sanding needed afterwards. Using the smaller of the two lower deck parts ensured that the frames would be in 90 degree to the middle part of the ship.
What are the decks called on the Pearl? Main deck and lower gun deck? Spar deck and gun deck? I'll stick with main deck and lower deck (as there is only one in this kit) until I know more about it. Speaking of lower decks ...
Image 4: The first test fit of the two-parted lower deck made me sweat quite a lot, as there was so much tension I constantly feared sth. would break. I think this was due to (non existant) tolerances in the parts and not because i worked sloppy. Anyway, nothing that some sanding can't fix. Now, I know, I didn't choose the all-scenario version. But I'd still like to be able to open all the cargo hatches (no idea what the nautical term is) right down to the lowest deck. After all, how else could the crew heave up all the rum barrels to blow up the kraken? Unfortunately, there is no "lowest deck" in this kit, but a solid frame.
Image 5: Only one way around this: insert a pseudo deck. Yes, it is way to small regarding height. And yes, it barely reaches to to ends of the cargo opening. But it will do the job just fine, when you look down from two decks above. Is it worth the effort, if you can barely see it? It is there, I can open up the cargo openings and look down, it makes me happy. So yes, worth it
Image 6: Designing the pseudo deck any deeper would have had serious impact on the structural integrity, wider would have interfered with the support beams carrying the main deck.
Image 7: Time to attach the "real" lower deck. No onions on the chopping board today, but the skeleton of a ship in the making. And to be honest, I feel much more comfortable with that.
Image 8: Another view of the pseudo deck. I am pleased with how it turned out
Image 9: Having already put some effort into a little black box at the bottom of the ship, that will likely never really be seen, it is only logical to add some more extras you'll also hardly ever notice once the Pearl is finished: Planks on the lower deck. But, knowing myself, I will enjoy a peek through the gunports or the cargo opening to see a decent deck. Or to be more honest: it would annoy me beyond reasoning to not see planks on that deck ^^
Image 10: As I never finished an H.M.S. Bounty kit many years ago, I have a lot of spare parts to use. The wood color is just beautiful and it makes me almost sad to paint everything black, eventually. But alas, it's the Black Pearl not the Teak Pearl. The dark wood in the ZHL kit is walnut I believe, and its color is way more suited for the black paint. It has more of a grey tone when sanded, unlike the red planks here on the lower deck. After all the goal is not to just spray paint everything tar black, but keep a little of the original wood shimmering through. Anyway, the lower deck won't be lit much.
Apart from the fact that the Black Pearl is a purely fictional ship with some features seen only on much later ships, it originally sailed as the "Wicked Wench" for the East India Company roughly around 1720. So it was probably built in British ship yard. Therefore I decided to use a pattern of four alternating planks (seen in Image 9 on the cargo opening) as this was commonly used during that time. I made a minor mistake along the way, so I'm glad I could "train" on the lower deck before planking the main deck later on.
Image 11: The black color on the deck came out way better then expected, the photos don't really do it justice. Sanding the areas where sailors would walk frequently gives it a nice used look, that I aim to achieve on the whole ship. Watching POTC you'll notice the Black Pearl actually isn't that black everywhere on closer inspection. For paint I used acrylic black with a little white (so it's technically a very dark grey, not sure if Batman would approve) and I thinned the color substantially with water. The deck was too wet, so in many instances the smooth sanded planks curled up at the edges a little bit. Nothing major, but something to keep in mind for the main deck. Painting wood glue with thinned down acrylic is nearly impossible. Technically, I knew that beforehand, but decided not to pay too much attention during glueing anyway. Won't do that mistake again ^^
Next up I have to decide on a lighting solution. The control unit in the kit reacts to clapping and lights up the stern lanterns, the captain's cabin and two small lanterns outside the doors. I'm not a big fan of the clapping idea (I'd much rather have radio controlled lights) and as I'm doing changes anyway, I'd like to light up the lower deck as well. Additionally having the batteries separate in either the captain's cabin or the little pseudo deck in the bottom would allow for easy maintenance in the years to come.
Any input regarding this is welcome, I have never dealt with electrics before
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