Quick and easy ships hulls

[pete.cook]

I've come across a nice little utility that the ship modeling community seems to quite like. For all of you have struggled to make a convincing hull, or those of you who want to build a hull quickly, check out FreeShip (http://www.freeship.org). The latest version is at 2.6. It can import plans and references and allow you to manipulate where the control points need to go. It is fairly straight forward to use. I knocked this basic hull up in about 2 minutes and that included exporting it to dxf and the render in Max!

[FitArtistSF]

Hey Pete,
I checked out the program's site. One question I have that it didn't seem to address: Can this program be used with Cinema 4D? That's the program I am learning, and if I could use the Freeship program with Cinema that would be a great leap for me in hull construction...
Do you know?

[pete.cook]

FreeShip isn't specific to any 3D or CAD program. It can export the objects it creates in a number of formats. Not too sure which are compatible with C4D, but I'm sure can use it and import them in any number of formats. Almost all of them export into 3DS Max.

Formats it can export to are:
DXF, STL, IGES, OBJ plus a few others.

[Martocticvs]

DXF and OBJ should be absolutely fine for cinema.

[FitArtistSF]

Most Excellent!!! I will give it a try this weekend....if it works, I will be one helluva happy sailor! I can't wait......:p :)


BTW, Lord Martocticus, what is this "Conscript" nom d' plume I see under my screenname? When I reported back aboard site, I believe I was not noted in the log as "Compulsorily Enlisted", but made my mark next to "Volunteer" and so took the King's shilling...... :lol:

[Martocticvs]

Times are hard after the Great Crash of '06... hehe

[FitArtistSF]

LOLOLOLOL......ROTFLMAO!!!!!!! I get it....... :lol: :lol: :lol: :rolleyes:

(sheesh, I am SUCH an Anglophile..........)

[Martocticvs]

How's that? hehe

I think we're a little off topic here now.... so... hulls, yes... looks useful!

Talking of hulls, I'm still looking forward to seeing a WIP from you!

[FitArtistSF]

Yes, Paul, I know..... I actually started another hull attempt for my Constitution mesh, my 6th, I think, recently...trying something new. (well, for me...)
But I just downloaded the FREEship app last night at home. Looks VERY, VERY promising. I will be going over the manual this weekend. From what I gather, I guess you build a wire frame mesh in FREEship, and export it into Cinema? Then finish detailing and texture it, etc., there? Just from the examples/demos of differing hulls provided by FREEship, building a hull for a 17th - 19th centuries ship will be fairly routine. But since I am sooo detail-oriented, and anal about making the hull (which may or may not ever be fully viewed, depending on the scene) as accurate as I can, the app looks like it may just be the trick.
I also have tried to work on a few of the other details for Old Ironsides. I think I have the masts down pretty good, they're not so difficult. The standing rigging will be a pain. On Agamemnon, did you instance any or all of the rigging? As you build Bellona, would you maybe do a few side tuts on small details like that? Rigging, deck equipment, figurehead, stern gallery details (carved figures, shapes, any of the carved adornments...), ship's name on lower transom, etc. I think attention to those kinds of details would be appreciated by quite a few.
Anyway, If I can get my hooks around FREEship, it may just be the push I need to get Constitution sliding down the ways, she's been stuck on the blocks for far too long. (which actually happened. They had to try launching her 3 times before she slid into the water....)

Todd (FitArtistSF, one of the King's own Volunteers...) :rolleyes:

[Martocticvs]

Well good luck with that then. Yeah I'll see what I can do about the little details. They're certainly going to be far more detailed and accurate than they were on the Agamemnon so it might well be worth going into some depth about how I built them. I've actually been chatting to a mate recently and come up with what may be a decent way to 'rig' the rigging up so that I can make changes easily. It will be complex to rig up though, requiring formulae to determine angles of things but I think it can work. But thats a long way off!

[Lukem]

Isn't that, sort of, cheating?

Nevertheless I've downloaded it - thanks for the link!

[FitArtistSF]

No Lukem,
I wouldn't think so. It is after all a program to build ship hulls, ideally for real plans for real ships. But as anyone can tell you, and you may know yourself, the old axiom is true: ANYTHING to get the job done. Time is money. If it helps to create what you need in a shorter time, great. I can see though that the program is going to take some time to learn...

[Lukem]

Yep, sorry. I should have looked at the manual before I posted - it dosen't look like cheating at all.:)

[Spinner]

Hmm,
Not having much luck with this program at all.
I've drawn up hull cross sections and hull-lines with PSP, attempted to input the blueprint data into Freeship and the Hull program associated with Freeship to no avail.
I think I'm missing a step in the usage flow with Freeship. Am starting to think I'd be better putting the time into trying for a descent hull in 3D max.
Its only a small hull, at 80 foot and I've lucked out with the original blueprints so have up to 24 cross-sections, an embarrasment of info.
Could any of our naval modellers advise me on the better way to model the hull as it has a concave curvature to the planes from keel to chine and chine to deck.I can draw splines from the hull-lines or work from the cross-sections but lack the experience to foresee which is the better way to go.
I guess, I'll wind up doing several aproaches to it.
Any advice?

[FitArtistSF]

I'm still learning the program, too. I went to the FREEship site, found the Yahoo Users group for FREEship, with its' Q&A and tutorial sections. There is a basic beginner's tutorial in there, which I printed and am using. You will have to join the User group, but it is membered by many actual naval architects, building real boats/ships. I can see the value of the program, but like Cinema, I am still very new to it, to be of much help. Try: www.hapby.v-nam.net/FREEship/FREEship-Tutorial1.html It is a site mentioned in the user group that a guy created a basic tut. Sorry, that's all I can help with right now. But I will say, when I master this program, I can tell my sailing ship models will take a great leap forward....

[Spinner]

Thanks M8.
The tute is a big help.