Montaigne

On 3/26/2023 at 11:40 PM, iMustBeCrazy said:

Some may be wondering why I'm not working on my Bounty launch.

I was actually wondering about that the other day. Nice to see you’re busy with another fascinating build. Looking good!

Wow, just wow. Absolutely gorgeous build!

I had managed to miss this one, what a beautiful build. Hats off!

It's becoming a masterpiece, very impressive!

48 minutes ago, Waldemar said:

Probably from version 5 onwards, Rhino has an Edge Softening feature that can at least partially replace filleting for renders, without doing the actual filleting. I used it some time ago with very good results.

Oh, I’ve managed to miss that feature. Great tip, much appreciated! I haven’t done much rendering in Rhino. Most of the projects I worked on back in the day went straight to prototyping, and rendering for product display was usually done in Cinema 4D.

Thanks, Waldemar, that makes a lot of sense, filleting widely applied would be impractical in so many ways.

I've always thought filleting in Rhino is the main feature I wish they would improve, as it often becomes unmanageable. Some kind of non-destructive fillet modifier would have been great, so that the original object is always preserved. There are also scenarios where one would prefer different setups for filleting, such as for example "on" for renders and "off" for printing of small objects. I usually have layers with different versions of the same objects depending on the intended output, as well as backups before filleting.

The only pair of slippers I own are made of rubber and intended for visits to the swimming hall. I vehemently refuse to eat them.

15 minutes ago, Keith Black said:

 Ras, If it feeds directly to the carburetor I'm inclined to believe it's a reserve gas tank.  

I would think so too, also considering that it looks as if it has a valve. 

Are you filleting edges, in general, Waldemar? Just curious, considering that filleting edges on NURBs in Rhino is sometimes akin to rocket science, often forcing the rebuilding of multiple surfaces, and I would imagine filleting edges on a project of this size to be a nightmare.

Very humbled to see Fred Hocker join in!

This popped up in my Facebook feed today and I thought I should share it. A quite clever method of creating crown glass for windows.

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=191131440334607&id=100083132567073

Including a screenshot for continuity.

I’ve never had any interest in anything with cannons on it when it comes to ships, but watching these models take shape, as well as the Vanguard models, I’m just going to have to build some of them one day. The level of craftsmanship in the kit designs is just exceptional. 

But that’s actually a good thing: it will be the worlds fastest racing motorcycle in reverse!

Congratulations on finishing a truly remarkable model, hats off!

Coming along very nicely!

28 minutes ago, Waldemar said:

It's common to try first different, including unnecessarily over-complicated ideas to do a task, but after many attempts and hours of trying, it is usually possible to find the simplest ones that give just those great, desirable results.

A very good description of the creative process in Rhino. It can be a headache trying all approaches, but once that sweet simple solution - that was there all along - is found, it’s a treat. 
 

28 minutes ago, Waldemar said:

There are times when I'd happily swap with a blacksmith or carpenter, just to avoid 3D modelling some nasty element, which is at the same time so easy to shape in a traditional, physical way. 

Oh, definitely. I’m working on a Cutty Sark figurehead/bow project now in Blender, partly to learn Blender, but mostly to later use it as a study and drawing for carving it by hand in boxwood. I cannot wait to shut down my computer!

(Not that carving a figurehead by hand is in any way easy, or easier than 3D modeling, but it’s a hands on direct approach to shaping). 

4 hours ago, Waldemar said:

Went the easy way and simply PM sent you a Rhino 7 file with this block. The hook itself (its larger end with an elliptical cross-section) was connected to the iron strop of the block (with a rectangular cross-section) with the "Blend Surface" command (very useful in such situations). Basically a trivial thing in a technical sense, but there was a bit of trying on getting the right shape. Anyway, as you surely know, you can play with the shapes as you wish, provided, of course, it is about regular geometry, as opposed to broken, bent, heavily corroded or otherwise geometrically damaged items.

Thanks for the file and the methods, very much appreciated! I actually haven't used Blend Surface much, but realize I should, because this looks very tidy and straightforward.
Yeah, Rhino can be like that, for me at least: sometimes a lot of head scratching to get the shapes exactly right. There's a lot of depth to all the commands and their combinations.

It's fascinating: some guy or several built that old corroded block in the early 1600's, and here we are discussing how to design it with technology that to them would have appeared as nothing but magic.

7 hours ago, Waldemar said:

Regarding the specific ways used in Rhino to design a particular details, you can of course ask and so far I always managed to answer. Apart from a few organic decorative objects, all elements of the model are created with NURBS graphics. This is not only because I haven't yet had time to learn how to use SubD effectively, but mainly because this way I have tight control over dimensions and tolerances, right down to the last digit after the decimal point (in my case the document tolerance is 0.001 feet). This ensures that all the pieces fit together within this tolerance, that is so desperately needed, for example, in Boolean operations, one could say – one of the main pillars of this project.

 

Admittedly, I've been short of time lately because the deadline is looming, but if needed I will certainly try to clarify at least any issues that can be explained relatively quickly.

Thanks for clarifying the methods used. I can imagine this project to be built on Booleans, and Rhino’s strengths in that regard being of great benefit. 

Yeah, SubDs are great for achieving organic shapes and anything that is just too challenging with nurbs, but definitely not suitable for anything that requires control over measurements and tolerances. Even when converting a nurbs surface or polysurface to SubD the approximations instantly become a problem. 

The one thing that got me curious is how you made the really nice hooks for the blocks (those in the renders of all the blocks); if they’re two objects joined; hook and block holder, or some other solution? But you don’t have to put time into explaining, just the basic method and I can figure it out. 

13 hours ago, Waldemar said:

Thank you, Montaigne, especially as these words come from Sweden, where so much valuable source material comes from (especially Vasa 1628, but also much, much more). I must admit that the mental experience of this project is both wonderful (the effect achieved) and terrible (the effort required). I'm probably doing it more for my own satisfaction, as this model/reconstruction goes far beyond the contract and needs of the investor (museum), intending and already building just POB model according to this project. Huge 1:15 scale beast, in large extent inspired by the outstanding Vasa 1:10 scale model in Stockholm.

Cheers, I've actually not yet been to the Vasa museum, but plan to go there this summer, finally. I didn't even know they have a 1:10 scale model of it there, looking forward to seeing it!

I can imagine the effort required for this massive project to be a struggle at times. I used to work as a designer and Rhino was one of my daily used tools for creating prototypes, so I’m familiar with how challenging certain designs can be with Rhino. Following your build is fascinating also from that perspective, like: “I wonder how he did that one, did he use a network surface or maybe a SubD then converting to nurbs?” and so forth. I’m also familiar with the rabbit hole of 3D design, where there really is no end to how deep you can go to achieve levels of accuracy. But your build here is a masterpiece in both Rhino and model ship design, and I can imagine once it's done will feel like a great achievement. Thankfully we tend to forget all the steep climbs on the way once we reach the top of the mountain.

9 minutes ago, ccoyle said:

Watching the video gives one a renewed appreciation of what people were able to accomplish using only wind, ingenuity, and manpower.

Indeed, that’s a very good summation. 

Looking good, and I should add that I’m impressed by how fast it’s coming along. Not that speed matters when enjoying creative work, only that I wouldn’t have been able to keep up lol

Outstanding work, it’s a treat to follow this build. Hats off!

1 hour ago, OllieS said:

WhenI went round Victory last Summer is was actually quite stuffy in the hold and orlop so the air ducts being a modernish improvement for the benefit of the public makes sense to me. No windows this far down for some unfathomable reason  

Ah ok, thanks for clarifying. 

1 hour ago, allanyed said:

Montaigne,  While it obviously took a lot of work to make this video and it really does look nice and something most of us could not produce, it does give out some misinformation.  In addition to showing air ducts which I am pretty sure never existed in the 18th and 19th century ships of the line, some other examples are the flat deck beams, stating that lines are coated in black tar, and incorrect rigging of the breech ropes.  This may have been changed on the modern day version but looking at a contemporary plan of Victory, the video has the galley stove in backwards. 

Thanks, the air ducts got me thinking too, like, wouldn’t they just get air from all the gun ports? It’s gotta be the draftiest place imaginable, even with the gun ports closed, I would imagine. 
 

In their defense though, they do say the following in the beginning:

“We’ve based our model on the HMS Victory, however our goal is to present a high quality teaching model, with period correct generalizations, as opposed to a  history lesson on the Victory herself.”

I stumbled upon this too the other day searching for something else on Youtube, and it’s a great watch! Especially for me who know pretty much nothing about ships of the line (my main interest have always been historic research ships and boats in general). 

I have to repeat myself: absolutely stunning build!