3D Hull Tutorial / Community Build: Plan Selection

[Malachi]

Here´s the first step of my 3D Hull modelling tutorial, the plan selection. In this thread, participants of the community build can choose the ship we´re going to use for the tutorial.

 

Why a community/group build?

Well, I wanted to do a hull modelling tutorial for a long time but I just don´t like the concept of a 'one-way' tutorial, I want to learn something, too, after all. The basic idea is that I show my approach to certain aspects of ship modelling (making the frames, applying thickness to the hull shape, modelling head rails etc) and then the participants can decide whether they want to follow my approach or try something different and then post it in the dedicated thread. To make this work properly, it´s important that we all work on the same ship and thus face all the same challenges and can transfer the input/help from other members directly on our own model.

 

What´s the scope of the tutorial?

Just the basic hard-surface stuff initially. Getting the plans into the modelling app, modelling the hull, head, transom, decks.

Standing rigging and applying textures optional.

 

What do I need to participate?

Well, I'm using Blender and Gimp but any other modelling app like Maya or SketchUp and a picture-editing software will do. 

If you´re also using Blender, I suggest you install Offset Edges and LoopTools, which are really helpful imo. There countless other nice add-ons for Blender (like TinyCAD) but I won´t use them for this tutorial as I try to keep it as basic as possible.

 

 

If you want to make a plan suggestion, please keep in mind that it should be a rather small ship, the plan should be in a decent resolution (min 3000 pix) and most importantly, free of any copyright.

I think I'll leave this thread open for proposals for a week or so, then we should decide which one we use. After that, we can start with the tutorial.

 

 

Here´s my proposal:

Triton (danish, 1790 - 1807)

 

Dimensions: 126 'x 34'x 16' 11''

Armament:  24 12-pounders, 6 12-pound howitzers (howitzers were kind of a scandinavian-navies-only thing and used explosive shot)

Crew: 260

Plan Quality:

Really good, no real distortions and the body plan lines up with the sheer quite nicely. One of the best contemporary plans I've seen so far. In total, there are 18 sheets for the Triton, including sail plan, cross section, inboard profile and separate drawings for the head and stern (which I put on top of the sheer and body plan, so you get a better impression what the ship looked like). It´s almost like a monograph for the Triton   Resolution: 8000*3000 pixels

Modelling Difficulty:

As far as I can tell, modelling the Triton would be pretty straight-forward. Head and stern are easy as it gets when it comes to 18th century ships (I´m not talking about the figurehead and carvings ) and the hull shape should be no problem, either.

Hull Shape Sneak Peak

 

 

 

 

Edited April 5, 2019 by Malachi

[Malachi]

This would be another nice candidate for the tutorial, the Najaden of 1818 (yep, you guessed it, she´s danish, too):

 

Dimensions: 112' x 29' 3'' x 15' 3'' (she´s roughly 125 imperial feet on the gundeck)

Armament:  16 short 18-pounders, 4 18-pounders (equivalent to 20 12-pounders)

Crew: 130

 

Plan Quality:

As good as the plans for Triton and there are more than 30 sheets for Najaden and her 4 sisters. Additionally,  C.W. Eckersberg painted her couple of times, so there´s plenty of reference material available. Here´s my favourite:

 

 

Modelling Difficulty:

Definitely easier than the Triton. V-shaped hull without tumblehome, it doesn´t get much better

 

I couldn´t find much about Najaden´s history, except that she´s been to the Caribbean thrice in the early 1820s and that her design (that of the Diana-class) was considered a very successful one.

Edited April 5, 2019 by Malachi

[Malachi]

My last suggestion and the best looking one imo : a snaubrigg / snow-brig by af Chapman.

 

Dimensions:   93' x 24' x 9 1/2 ' (95 imperial feet on the gundeck).

Armament:       14 18-pound carronades,  2 6-pounders

Crew:                76

Don´t be fooled by the rather plump looking body plan, this babe has a pretty sharp entry and a very fine run which would make for a very elegant overall hull shape.

 

Plan Quality:

Resolution and dpi are enormous (14000 / 400) and there very few distorted spots on the plan. There are only 3 sheets, but they provide all the necessary info.

 

Modelling Difficulty:

Between Triton and Najaden. The area aft would be the easiest of the three because of Chapman's preference for a pink-style stern, the bow would be the most difficult due to the extreme rake of the stem.

Edited April 5, 2019 by Malachi

[Rob]

@Malachi, I have to say that i like the snow-brig a lot. I think that one has my preference. I have been a bit busy the last couple of weeks so i have not been able to search the internet for plans. I will try to find some this week. But we shouldnt wait too long to start this awesome project.

[Malachi]

The snaubrigg is my favourite, too I totally forgot that I had this plan, otherwise I'd have posted it much sooner *facepalm*

 

At first I thought it was one of the many projects by Chapman which weren´t built due to the swedish navy´s chronic lack of funds. But after a bit of digging in my books, I found out that two ships were actually built to this draught, the Delphin (1801 - 1850) and the Vänta Litet ('Wait a minute' , 1803 - 1845). Here´s what the Vänta Litet looked like in 1821 after a rebuild:

 

But there´s another interesting bit of history behind these little ships: after af Chapman´s retirement from the navy and the post of superintendent of the royal dockyard, he finally had the time again to continue his research regarding the resistance of bodies in water. He had a large tank built at his residence (68' x 15' x 4') and conducted hundreds of trials with various models and shapes which were pulled through the testing tank (a picture of the setup and the tables can be seen in his 'Treatise on Shipbuilding').

He discovered that the stern shape played a very important part in the performance of the model, especially at higher speeds. This was quite a curious discovery as the shipwrights at the time were chiefly concerned with the shape of the bow. To transfer his findings onto a ship development, he came up with the 'relaxation method', which basically consisted of making the stern's diagonals rectilinear to the stem post and this form was to maintained as far as possible (ideally, 13° 17' towards the mean line).

The first ship to built according to his new method was the Svalan. Thorough sea trials were held after her launch and af Chapman stated that 'the brig Svalan built in accordance with these (i.e his relaxation method) has met my expectations'. He then prepared the drawings for nine frigates and three brigs  - one of them being the plan posted above - but only three of those were built, the 40-gun frigate af Chapman, the Delphin and the Vänta Litet. However, the sea trials of the af Chapman, launched 1803, were a disappointment as she didn´t sail as fast as expected nor did turn as well as other frigates designed by him. It took some time and modifications to the rigging to turn her into a good sailing ship (the french 'Atlas du Genie maritime', published in the mid-1840s,  even called her the 'meilleure marcheuse de son temps').

Edited April 5, 2019 by Malachi

[Malachi]

Gave the plan a try in Blender...

 

 

 

Holy hull shape, Batman!

Definitely tutorial material

Edited April 5, 2019 by Malachi

[Rob]

@Malachi That is one interesting and beautifull hull shape. I really like this one.

[Malachi]

Tutorial starting tomorrow, but with none of the ships above, I selected a cute, little 20-gun 6-pounder frigate with a slightly higher modelling difficulty:

 

 

 

 

Edited April 5, 2019 by Malachi

[LeBoiteux]

So many twists, red herrings, spectacular turns of events !!!