Lead Adventure Forum
Miniatures Adventure => Medieval Adventures => Topic started by: Verderer on July 18, 2018, 12:31:17 PM
-
I started on a viking style longhouse, here's a shot of the first stage...
(http://i.imgur.com/ECKWYhJ.jpg)
I am not aiming for authenticity as such, just going by feel. I haven't decided yet whether I should do plank walls or wattle&daub, or should I do peat/thatch roof or shingles... shingles would be much more work though, so I inclined to the former.
I guess it really would depend on where this house would be, Nordic countries would more likely have all wood & shingles materials, and further down south, you could have w&t and thatched roofs (like saxons)? I really don't know much about the subject. Besides, if I use this in LoTR themed games, then it's not that important anyways.
-
Looks promising :)
have you thought about a turf roof, could be interesting.
-
Could be, I will try to look for suitable terry cloth material in the shops. I do have teddy fur, so that would be the easiest option.
-
Looks rather good to me, great start.
-
Quick shot of some central pillars i made for the hall, need to sand and clean these a bit after the putty sets.
(http://i.imgur.com/aB6V9H2.jpg)
-
Wow. Those look great. I initially thought you had carved them. lol
-
Those central pillars are impressive. I thought they were carved as well.
-
Thanks, but I cant take the credit, as I cheated by press-molding. :`
-
Interesting! :-*
-
A bit more progress:
(http://i.imgur.com/VIARIHW.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/fWGyHI4.jpg)
The bits look a bit wonky still, as I don't want to glue anything down yet. Want to be able to adjust things while I go, as I have no fixed plans or measurements. It holds together pretty well for dry-fitting anyways.
This is rather large house obviously, so probably some chieftain's meadhall or something like that?
-
Liking it so far 8)
-
Liking it so far 8)
+1
Your press-molding is inspiring!
-
Great project- I look forward to more. :D
-
Made some more progress, here's couple of shots as the walls are starting to come up. I think I am going add a secondary door at the side, nearer the back.
(http://i.imgur.com/o0tk51F.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/cCVhw6R.jpg)
-
Looking good. Definitely add a second door, it adds a lot to playability. Looking forward to see where you take this :)
-
This is looking very good. I think the second door is a good call.
I did some quick internet research and found that second and third entrances were the usual configuration. One entrance was often for animals. Apparently, one end of the structure was often used as a stable, barn, and sheepfold. I guess they didn’t want the animals to freeze or get taken by wolves overnight.
Have you seen the animated longhouse floorplan from YouTube?
-
Yes, in practice I guess livestock would be kept in the same building, both for protection and warmth?
Anyways, I thought I'd make this a more official house where the head-honcho would hold court, so to speak? He coudl afford several buildings, ones for livestock etc. That's my excuse anyways. lol
A bit more progress, next I need to figure out the doors. I think double doors at the front, and single one on the side (where the two posts are now?
(http://i.imgur.com/UF4w50B.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/S9XAIhC.jpg)
-
Is the roof going to be removable?
Doors: nice solid wood doors. Crisscrossed planking. That sort of thing. If it was me I would be inclined to hiding/incorporating magnets somehow which would function as hinges. But they would also allow removing the doors entirely. In case a tabletop wizard fireballed or vanished them.
-
I'm a bit late to this party, but WOW, that is really impressive!
-
Thanks folks, yes the roof will be removable. And I got some special plastic strip to use for hinges which I think I got from Antenociti's. It makes sort of an L bend which swivels freely from the 'corner'. Feels pretty durable.
-
That is becoming more and more fascinating. I will have an eye on it!
-
Coming along nicely :)
-
Very nice. The carved posts are a great detail.
-
Looks great, I particularly like the pillars.
-
This is looking great!
I am taking notes and stealing ideas.
-
Things have slowed down a bit due to work, but mostly due to getting down to the fiddly bits and hitting a snag.
(http://i.imgur.com/bMqZj8J.jpg)
I started on the main entrance doors, gluing the frames using thin strips of bamboo, so in effect laminating these. It allowed me to make joins too. So far so good.
(http://i.imgur.com/CAWpKQs.jpg)
Then I glued the frame, measured the door sizes, and and then glued them together. Vertical panes on the front, and horizontal on the back. Then I started with hinges, cut some strips and bent them in shape with the help of heat gun (and the jig I made, in the pic). Here's the snag: after gluing them to the doors with super glue, I discovered that they just won't stay stuck, the come right off with a little pull. That's no good at all. I could of course pin them on the doors with needles etc, but I suspect that if this plastic material won't take super-glue, then it won't take paint either? Which is another worry along the way.
So I think I have the make the hinges some other way. Probably the old-fashied, ie. sheet metal and some pins. Oh well. it'll look better anyways.
-
In the past I have had trouble glueing plastic to wood with superglue as the wood simply "drinks" the superglue. I would try with pva in stead. And as for the plastic not taking paint. You could try and paint them and see what happens before sticking them on.
-
The door looks promising but how about trying the hinges in thin card?
-
Not sure that it helps, but I make hinges from narrow (usually 4mm) gold ribbon...
-
Thanks for the suggestions, guys. There was a good residue of dried up glue under the plastic bits, which I had to sand away to make it clean again, so it didn't just get sucked in the wood. I could try PVA and maybe roughening the surface of the plastic. But it's the kind of annoying 'bucket' plastic, which just frays and doesn't sand well. Trying the paint should be the first thing, since if it doens't take paint, it's not worth even trying.
I have some 0.5mm steel sheet which should work ok. It's a bit harder to work than softer metals (I got copper as well), but if you can manage it, it's more durable in the bargain.
-
That looks incredibely good so far !
-
How about hidden magnetic hinges? You have steel and copper sheet but how is your supply of neodymium magnets?
The idea (which works perfectly on the blue prints in my head lol ) has two magnets on each side. These are mounted to or embedded in the door frame. Each door has something metal embedded in it (like the heads of sewing pins). The door pivots almost frictionlessly on the magnets. The door can be removed completely (in case marauding Frisians raid the place and smash the doors).
-
I am making an attempt with 0.5mm thick steel sheet. It's ok, a little harder to work with, and my tin snips are too large to be able to cut it very precisely. So these are far too robust and thick, but at least they should be durable, workable and paintable? :D
(http://i.imgur.com/z10TpEC.jpg)
Might file the ornaments a little thinner and then drill some holes in them for nails/pins.
-
Fantastic work, very impressive!
-
Fantastic work, very impressive!
I agree- excellent detail.
-
More progress on the doors:
(http://i.imgur.com/c7d2J9x.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/E9zQ2sL.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/2kyY5mj.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/N15vqus.jpg)
As you can see, the blacksmith had a real bad hangover when making the bottom left hinge, so it's cut all wonky... lol
Have to fix that and while I am at it, fix the door so it doesn't hang so crooked. But otherwise it's getting there. I need to add more nails, door handles, and maybe ornament the door posts a little? I thought I'd add an arched bit to the top post to act as a stopper and to give it a bit nordic feel.
As you can see, I am making the doors open inside - I think it makes more sense here, but I guess either way would work?
-
Really really impressive looking longhouse - can´t wait to see more!
-
I like the job you did with the door, the whole project is coming out very interesting!
-
Barn doors open out. House doors open in. No reason to believe it has changed in 1200 years or so.
-
Barn doors open out. House doors open in. No reason to believe it has changed in 1200 years or so.
I think it's more of a cultural thing: roman house doors opened out for instance.
-
Barn doors open out. House doors open in. No reason to believe it has changed in 1200 years or so.
Scandinavian house doors open out. I have heard we do this so that snow does not come tumbling in, but instead gets pushed away from the entrance.
-
Good points. Is there a porch in this build? Thinking back on it, all the houses I can remember living in or visiting had doors that opened inward but they were always sheltered by a roof overhang (at minimum) or more likely a porch.
Wonders if the archaeologists can tell.
-
I can still change them to open outside, by simply flipping the the whole thing the other way around in the house frame. But I dunno, I kinda like it better this way.
About snow, it could be a pother try to push the doors open, if it has snowed several feet of heavy snow, and for security, it might be best to keep the hinges inside. Not that this is a castle or anything.
I've been googling for 'viking', long-house, Islandic & medieval doors, and there seems to be a lot of variation with it. Some have hinges visible, some not, so it stands to reason some of them open inside. But how authentic some of them are is anyone's guess. But I try not to get too hung on this detail. ;)
-
About snow, it could be a bother try to push the doors open, if it has snowed several feet of heavy snow, and for security, it might be best to keep the hinges inside. Not that this is a castle or anything.
Is there a saga from Iceland where some bloke is cornered in his house, can’t get out, and the [archers?] burn him out?
Barn doors open outward so that the animals penned inside won’t end up blocking the doors from opening. Also, Maximizes the number that can be crammed inside in an emergency.
That door “blocked by feet of snow” scenario is not a hypothetical situation. My brother has sent me pictures on occasion. A door that opened outward could also be barred or blocked from the exterior by attackers so I think hinged to the inside makes sense.
I've been googling for 'viking', long-house, Islandic & medieval doors, and there seems to be a lot of variation with it. Some have hinges visible, some not, so it stands to reason some of them open inside. But how authentic some of them are is anyone's guess. But I try not to get too hung on this detail. ;)
I saw both variants when I did a similar search. I also saw Beorn’s Hall, an illustration by professor Tolkien! identified as an interior view of a Viking Longhouse. The internet can be dimwitted.
-
Scandinavian house doors open out. I have heard we do this so that snow does not come tumbling in, but instead gets pushed away from the entrance.
Swedish doors open out, Danish doors open in. I dont know about Norwegian doors.
-
I am getting buried under my workload at the moment, but I have made some small progress. The doors are almost done, I just need to make some bars / latches for them.
(http://i.imgur.com/JMOyNCg.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/t1GYNvl.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/Nd4mhcO.jpg)
Making the side door open inside as well causes a little issue. Firstly, it's a bit cramped in there but manageable I guess. Secondly, I was planning to make floor in the rear of the house raised, but I didn't come to think that the door opening inside would complicate things. It can't open inside like in the above picture, if the floor is 7 to 8 mm (or thereabouts) higher than it is currently... I guess I could raise the door the equivalent amount and make a little step outside, or figure out something with the floor that would allow me to use the door as is and have the raised section too. Bugger...
Making the door open outside is pretty much out at this point, unless I re-do the actual door again. If I just flip the door now, the planking would be horizontal on the outside, which I don't like.
I guess I am going to leave the door as they are for now, and move on to make the interior a bit, so I actually see how it will look in reality.
-
The doors look good 8)
Could you have the raised floor raised around the area where the door opens, like a recess of sorts, and have the raised floor as the ‘step’?
-
Just beautiful! :-*
Eager to see the continuation!
-
The doors look good 8)
Could you have the raised floor raised around the area where the door opens, like a recess of sorts, and have the raised floor as the ‘step’?
Thanks, yes I though about making the raised section end at the posts behind the door opening section, the ones that part of the wall structure, but the trouble is the door opens that far back and crosses over their line, if you know what I mean? So it it would require the raised section fall even more behind, and I think it may look odd, if there's a section of the back room with dropped floor in just at one corner?
I will build up the raised floors first and see what looks best. I am inclined to think that raising the door would be the best solution at this point, maybe a nice stone foundation under the entrance section? Not sure if that solution looks 'viking' enough precisely, but nobody's perfect? lol
-
Much awesomeness.
-
The doors look good 8)
Could you have the raised floor raised around the area where the door opens, like a recess of sorts, and have the raised floor as the ‘step’?
That sounds like the Viking equivalent of a mudroom. The Vikings probably invented the mud room. Maybe check archaeology sites and see what the Vikings did.
If all else fails, move the door posts outward, away from the building by 10-15mm. Is that an option?
-
Sure, and I can always widen the base around the entrace a bit in case the door looks to be too close to the edge. We'll see.
-
Started work on the raised floors, with a bit done on the left side.
(http://i.imgur.com/jTIErNx.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/SO6njLF.jpg)
I also decided the make the entrance raised, rather than have a sunk section of the floor. I tried it out, but it didn't look good to me. So I made a mock section of foamboard in the pic. I will make a better one eventurally, and maybe extend the section a bit outward and widen the base just a bit. I think it will look more natural once done.
-
It's looking pretty darn awesome.
-
Doing a great job on it, looking for Forward to your roofing work!
Cheers
Matt
-
I haven't been entirely idle, got the raised floors done and some other details:
(http://i.imgur.com/JegmYxL.jpg)
The side door is now raised with some stone foundation. As you can see, the walls there are taller than the rest of the house at that point, but I am not sure whether that is an issue. Will see when I get to building the roof. I can always cut it down a bit.
(http://i.imgur.com/ezhWzQF.jpg)
The side door has a working latch shaped like a bird's head. The beak goes in the hook to close the door, and the weight keeps up.
(http://i.imgur.com/WNymWuD.jpg)
I have no idea if this would be realistic, but I saw something similar while googling, and thought it looked pretty cool.
Finally, I've been experimenting with making wattle screens from coir (coconut fibre). It looks a little loose maybe at this point, but I like how it looks more organic and irregular than, say, string.
(http://i.imgur.com/uPKM3L4.jpg)
My intention is to make several of these screens for the main space, between the pillars and the walls, and then one larger interior wall for the chieftain at the back. Either wattle or plank. Might make both, as I intend to keep these separate, so I can use them when needed and other times leave the space more open.
-
wow, this is incredible stuff. Glad I chanced across this thread :-*
-
Lovely attention to detail as always :D
-
Moving on to roof construction:
(http://i.imgur.com/4AovJIz.jpg)
-
Very cool project. Great attention to the real longhouse structure. You could use these photos to explain the Scandinavian longhouse at school/university!
-
Fantastic - really a pity that the roof structure is barely visible later.
-
Very cool project. Great attention to the real longhouse structure. You could use these photos to explain the Scandinavian longhouse at school/university!
Thanks Anselm, but I've really cheated and taken too many shortcuts for this to work as any kind of true model: the proportions, structures, and joins are far from authentic. For example, I deliberately made the house too short, so its footprint on the table isn't too big. I merely try to give the impression of a longhouse... lol
Anyways, roof structure is progressing, I can now separate the basic structure from the house itself. It holds together and retains its shape, and it will get much more rigid and robust once I start with the horizonal planking. Now would also be the time to think about which type of material to use for cover: thatch or shingles? I've ruled out peat roof at this point.
(http://i.imgur.com/Jhh8fDM.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/B3mmbxx.jpg)
-
Cheating or no this is still an impressive pad!
As for the roof, from what I've seen its harder to make thatch look good so I'd say shingles. Still, you may well be the thatch master :D
-
Brilliant stuff, I love all the little details 8) 8) 8) 8)
-
Thanks Anselm, but I've really cheated and taken too many shortcuts for this to work as any kind of true model: the proportions, structures, and joins are far from authentic. For example, I deliberately made the house too short, so its footprint on the table isn't too big. I merely try to give the impression of a longhouse... lol
You should have taken the praise and run with it! ;)
Considering the amount of caveats and clauses academics tend to include in their reports, your's is not so different. Even with its shortcomings, it could still serve a purpose. At least you know and honestly tell what is wrong with the 'replica'. lol