'Beer Belly' Bellamy

Thank you Mr. Brand!

And good point Mr. Hook! But "Nixe" or "Loreley" would be to excentric for a pirate boat, don't you think?

I would like to just blend in the bretheren and not to have to explain such an alien name (and the stories behind them) for english accustomed ears

By the way. Not far from my home town there is a small town called "Blaubeueren" and there is a here well known tale about a "Nixe", the "schöne Lau" (the "pretty Lau"):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blautopf#Legends

And there are "Donauweibla" (="little Danube females") who are "Nixens" too to the River Danube.

But I also think that these tales and figures are of later origin than 1715 or at least their level of broader publicity, seems to me that they are from the 1800's.

Two nights ago I spontaneously made the decision to change the angle of the bowsprit. I know that this is not very authentic, but it was a decision from the perspective of the Art Director in me.

Two hearts are beating in my chest - the heart of wannabe Mr. "A" (for authentic) and the heart of pretending Mr. "H" (for Hollywood). As the boat is not meant to "perform" in an museum enviroment (because there is no museum which would match the theme in my area of the globe) it was easier for Mr. "H" to win the decision process.

Now there's more space for a figurehead (also not "A" for a boat, but I would like a figurehead so badly) and the possibility to attach a spritsail (square-rigged), which makes it even more pirate-esque.

And the boat has also a name now: the "Rummy Wench" - I hope the translation is as funny as this name would be in German.

Is "Rummy Wench" funny and not to offensive for a native English speaking person?

I would like to know your oppinions! In German "Rummy Wench" could be understand all between "a funny/weird maid" up to (if you are a man of poor manners) "an alcohol addicted prostitute", the ambiguity makes the name even more funny and the imagination of the figurehead even more fantastic. Would you agree?

A beer loving captain who is commanding a "Rummy Wench" is really funny, isn't it?

You may have noticed, I did some "upgrades" that a normal longboat hadn't. No. 1 I added a "beakhead" ("Galion" in German), because I am a fancy pirate (or at least I want to be one). And No. 2 I added "Rüstbänke" (I couldn't find a translation, the planks outboards, were you fix the shrouds). I know normal longboats did not have them either, but I thought they would be an improvment, as the "thingies" to go aloft (didn't find a translation either). Because the boat, compared to a merchantman even a sloop, has a lower freeboard, an me pirates need something to get easier on the prize's deck when comming alongside.

This is an interpretation of what have could been done as improvements. I know this surley wouldn't happen back then, because why improve a boat, when you could easily just "upgrade" by keeping a bigger prize till you are able to catch an even bigger one and so stepping up the "career ladder"

But in my case things (the boat) will not get bigger even if I stay succesful.

I also did some improvements to the mast and the rigging, pictures will follow.

Text will follow!

I am hailing from the middle of South Germany. A city called Ulm at the border between Baden-Wuerttemberg and Bavaria and next to it's Bavarian twin city Neu-Ulm (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulm).

Thank you Mr. Brand!

I had a hard time planking the hull, because on some locations there occured gaps between frames and the planking up to 9 mm (which would be 3.54" at the big "model"). I am still searching the reason for that. Such should not happen when I am building the big one.

Pictures will follow, as soon as I have the time to format and uploading them.

You are totally right Mr. Carb and thank you for the advice!

But

I am approaching this from the viewpoint of an "Art Director", but not as an usual Hollywood Art Director (with a big fee and lots of Dollars to spend on a set and not a deep knowlege of the content - I don't mean it bad there are guys making really good stuff) but a hopefully true to the matter guy who have to "sell the picture" to an audience.

Germany is according to pirates a Third World Country and South Germany in special is to far from any shores away to get a real feeling for maritime stuff.

If I would show up with a typical 18 ft. jolly-boat dressed and behaving like a pirate, the audience would just laugh and would probably think "hey what a funny dressed guy with an ordinary fishermans boat. But the pirates over the Seven Hills at the Seven Dwarfs Place have a way different looking ship!"

I don't want to be another Jack Sparrow - God forbid (I don't want to be bad toward all those Jacks out there I really like them, but this will not be my way ) - but I try to walk the middle line between an entertaining type of pirate and an educating Living Historian. And to be honest I am still a boy who want's to have his own pirate ship (although it's only a big boat).

Living History in Germany is a real hard marketplace if you are not doing the Middle Ages thing, which is often more like a "Punch-and-Judy show" than real Living History (you call this "Ren Fair" I believe?) or just playing soldiers in the American Civil War or the Napoleonic era, doing more a kind of "encounter group" for demilitarised Germans than educating an interested audience about the real life back then.

The boat I am planning to build should serve as an eye-catcher without being a fairy tale swimming fancy swashbuckling thing. It have to serve as a substitute for a real pirate ship, which I couldn't handle this way (build and store it on land and transporting it on a trailer etc.).

As I have decided to become a pirate the question arose how I could get myself a ship. Unfortunately I live far away from any sea, so only a boat would be suitable, because I have to somehow transport it over land.

As you can't - at least in the middle of south Germany - just walk to the next pirate boat seller around the corner, I have to build such a boat by myself.

To still get it on a trailer such a boat should not be to big, so I made a design (all the members of the "Mercury" will recognise the design, because Mr. Brands "Gullah" was the inspiration for my longboat https://pyracy.com/index.php/topic/19074-draughts-of-the-mercury-and-smallboats/?hl=gullah#entry413342) with a hull length of about 26' (ca. 8 meters) - this is somehow about the maximum length allowed to transport on German streets. The designing process is still in progress, but somehow I got stuck in making the plans. So I begun to make a 1:10 model.

While building I got some whole different measures at the model than I have detected within the plans. But I can see this happen in real. But only according to my boat building abilities.

The boat is still very silent future music. Money, a place to build and the whole pirate project is still in limbo. But playing with that in my head makes really fun

By the way. Mr. Hand's link (from this thread: https://pyracy.com/index.php/topic/10905-pirate-instruments/) was very helpful (http://www.concertina.com/anglo/index.htm), now I know what the buttons are - thank you Mr. Hand!!!

I bought myself a concertina (how could I) without having the smallest clue how to play that thing

Could someone please point me out how I find a (quick) source to learn "Drunken Sailor"? Youtube was no help yet, because the very few who are playing "Drunken Sailor" there don't really show which buttons they push. I somehow have managed to "play" the first six tunes, but after that it becomes complicated.

I am quite new to this forum too, but now I have the chance to give you a happy welcome, welcome on board Mr. Wild Bill!

My favorite movie on this topic is Polanski's "Pirates" and it sets me in a good mood, because it's a very well made movie although the story itself is a little to thin.
They did a very good job in the casting for even the smaller roles and Walter Mattau is outstanding in performing his Captain Red. I was very suprised how well Mattau did his fighting scenes, he was 65 then and had to perform with a pegleg. In my oppinion the costumes were very good and the ship (The Neptune - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neptune_%28galleon%29) itself looked very accurate.

For sheer entertainment I like "The Crimson Pirate", it's a lot of fun and the music is quite inspiring.

Thank you!

But this is only a small prelude. Wait until I start my Autum/Winter project (or maybe late Summer?)

As I would need a befitting my rank (or shall we say a befitting to my cockiness) seating for future camps (and as justification to tell another big story of my pirate's jarn) I plan to build myself the golden throne from Polanski's "Pirates".

This will be so much fun, I hardly can wait

Did I ever told you that Walter Matthau's Captain Red is my pirate No. 1 - he did such a fine job portraying this character, he was so awesome!!!

As a succesful pirate I would need to have a treasure.

First item of 'Big Belly's' Treasure is an Aztec Artefact. Made in an one day tinker project out of plywood, cardboard, toilet paper, lots of wood glue and gold color.

Over all it took me about 12 hours of work with some freewheel time in between for a little dry off. The toilet paper is fully soaked with water-diluted wood glue, so the whole thing will need several days to dry completely.

The inspiration

The stiching of the fringe is yet to be made on my flag. It's a real pain to get both sides of the applications lined up eactly and it won't work every time, but the fringe stiching should cover up most of the unaccuracies

But after all it's a pirate's flag, so some unaccuracies should make it just more accurate

Your flag looks very good Mr. Pete, I also like the design, it feels quite period.

Unfortunately I forget also to make enough pictures mainly when I do "miracles" (or as another would say: "when things come/fit together just a miraculous way by sometimes pure incident" ), because I am too focused and deep in "the world of arts and crafts ZEN". Later I will post some more pictures.

After several (thick) coats of paint you won't tell the difference between this glue "refined" ropes (or cardboards) and wooden ornament strips

Mr. Christian -

Well done!

I just saw your Davy Jones Locker photos. Awesome!

What is the base (material) for the placque and ropes?

I will answer here.

Thank you Mr. Hook!

The main material is cardboard (2mm thick). The background was glued on a plywood plate with addidional wodden strips left, right and center to give the background a slightly wave. The letters are cardboard too. All brush-painted serveral times with PVA glue (the glue you use in woodworkings - we call it white glue = "Weißleim"). The cords were fixed also with PVA glue and the ropes were heavily brush-painted with it too. This unusual covering with PVA glue "turns" all materials in a kind of "plastic", pores and small gaps got filled well with that glue and you even can shape (or mold) a little so all gets a good blending. Later all will look like lacquered wood and after several weeks it became very hard and durable. The rope is an ordinary rope from a local hardware store.

In real life I am an educated joiner, so I had to deal with this PVA glue very extensive and I lerned to love this kind of glue.

As a pirate one should have a pirate flag. That sounds easier than it is to achieve, at least that's my experience.

There are lots of templates out there, but I found it very difficult to find a pattern that suits my taste and needs.

I don't want a too complicated design, because such don't feel very period, if you consider that a sail maker had to make such a flag back in the 1700's. And I don't want to just copy one of the better known designs like that of Calico Jack, although I like the crossed sabers more than the crossed bones (because in my oppinion the ratio between the head and the sabers looks better than between head and bones - just a feel of design).

And then a flag design really hit me. It's from Roman Polanski's "Pirates". Who ever came up with that design did a really great job. It looks handmade, it feels period and it have some humor just sewn in. The teeth missing skull is less scary and more funny!

I first thought of making my own design based on this flag but then I decided to just copy it one to one, because that design just feels perfect (and it could be seen as an homage to the original designer).

My flag is made of linen and has the measures 135 cm x 250 cm (about 53" x 98").

The inspiration (a srceenshot from Polanski's "Pirates" title sequence)

my design made in corelDRAW (I have made the sabers a little bit wider)

the layout for printing

the pattern on cardboard

the cut-out pieces of linen

positioning on the black linen

the obverse

layout on the reverse - back-to-front

spray adhesive comes in handy when you do not like pins to attach stuff down

I still have to made the hem by hand

more rope attached

the backside

there are still more rope onraments to attach to the locker, but first the several coats of red has to dry

more rope ornaments added

yesterday I ran out of rope (because it was a holiday in Germany so I had to wait till today to buy more rope)

I am still working on the locker. More pictures will follow

more cord attaching around the letters

another coat of primer

First six coats of golden color (the hour glass was first supposed to be blue, but I changed my mind later)

more color added

the nameplate attached to the locker

The design was made in corelDRAW

cutting out the letters and glueing them to the sign

attaching of the rope

attaching of a cord to the hour glass

first coat of primer

Maybe one of my primary skills is to pattern (or talking big?), I think that is a good skill for an old pirate like me. You know, the looting ships business is more for younger lads, telling the tales is more appropriate for riper dudes.

A few days ago I started to renovate me a chest (or a locker) to use it at future pirate encampments. While I was thinking how to alter an old wooden locker to my new needs I started to spin a backstory of this locker, how I got it, who the prepossessor was etc. And suddenly a muse was kind enough to me to make up a really nice story (at least I believe so). But this is another story

I have uploaded some pictures here: https://pyracy.com/index.php/gallery/album/657-making-of-davy-jones-locker/

Later I will post the pictures in this topic (as soon as I have the time to upload them somewere else. I somehow are not allowed to link the picture from my members gallery in this post?)