Author Topic: 4276 Roman Trireme -- Look, Mum, also a Renaissance Trireme!  (Read 12700 times)

Offline Timotheos

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4276 Roman Trireme -- Look, Mum, also a Renaissance Trireme!
« on: November 04, 2007, 21:50:30 »
Nobody has done a trireme report (at least not that I saw), so here goes:

The trireme was the Roman set that interested me the most.

The Good:
1) Modestly priced at US $40 - $60
2) Comes with a full range of Roman military types.  Legionnaire, auxillary, Syrian archer, centurion, and legate/tribune
3) Floats!  Give it a push in the bath and it sails like it was born for the water
4) Looks good, a nice-looking cartoon caricature of a trireme
   
The Neutral:
1) In water, the boat kilters badly if you don't evenly distribute your clickies on board.
2) The red flag on the mast is smaller and less interesting than the flags that come with other vessels.
3) The oars are advertised as being raise-able, but considering they only rotate one or two degrees, it isn't worth listing as a feature.
4) Supplies on deck are sparse (one wooden chest with two goblets). 

The Bad:
1) The oars are simply a large piece of plastic clicked into the side of the boat.  The oars can move up and down a degree or two, but you can't move them forward and back, which would seem to me the most fun.  For detail oriented playmobil, it seems a little corner-cutting that they didn't design a full lower deck where you could actually sit people at the oars.  As-is, the lower deck is a small compartment under the cargo hold door, conscripted in space by the shape of the place for the battery-operated turbine accessory (not included).

2) The stickers are very long and difficult to align straight.  You can tell barely by the picture.  I messed the left-hand side's curved region above the eye.

Trivia:
In order to float the boat uses a small piece of foam inserted into the ship's interior.

More Trivia:
Triremes were still being used during the middle ages for Mediterranean shipping, so this ship, with some changes, can be re-used for medieval (see my next post on this thread for photos).
« Last Edit: February 05, 2008, 21:52:10 by Martin Milner »

Offline Timotheos

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Re: Roman Trireme -- Look, Mum, also a Renaissance Trireme!
« Reply #1 on: November 04, 2007, 22:00:55 »
A renaissance trireme!

A slapped this together quickly for the camera and should have swapped the sail out.

-Tim

Offline Richard

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Re: Roman Trireme -- Look, Mum, also a Renaissance Trireme!
« Reply #2 on: November 04, 2007, 23:20:25 »

Thanks for the review, Tim ...

I especially liked the Roman soldier looking into the bilges ... ;)

I also launched mine ... ;)
(please see attachments for a photo of the ship and where it sailed)

All the best,
Richard

Offline Timotheos

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Re: Roman Trireme -- Look, Mum, also a Renaissance Trireme!
« Reply #3 on: November 05, 2007, 02:13:53 »
Thanks for the review, Tim ...

I especially liked the Roman soldier looking into the bilges ... ;)

I also launched mine ... ;)
(please see attachments for a photo of the ship and where it sailed)

All the best,
Richard

The pool shots look great.  If that's your private pool, you could have an entire naval battle!  Have you toyed with the removable turbine engine?  I don't have enough water space to try it (unless I go to the nearest lake).  But, I was wondering how well the trireme cruises for long distances.

I shook the water up a little in the tub.  The figures fell out pretty quickly.  I didn't want to try to capsize the boat, though, for fear of ruining the stickers.

-Tim


 

Offline Richard

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Re: Roman Trireme -- Look, Mum, also a Renaissance Trireme!
« Reply #4 on: November 05, 2007, 03:47:45 »

Hello, Tim ...

The pool shots look great.  If that's your private pool, you could have an entire naval battle!

Yes, it's our pool. However, my Playmobil is currently spread between the two VI's (Vancouver Island in the Pacific Northwest and the Virgin Islands in the Caribbean). And, unfortunately, my "fleet" of pirate ships seems to be docked in the wrong VI. I am hoping that by next year I will be able to move the "fleet" from the cool Pacific Northwest to the warm waters of the Caribbean.



Have you toyed with the removable turbine engine?  I don't have enough water space to try it (unless I go to the nearest lake).  But, I was wondering how well the trireme cruises for long distances.

I have used the removable battery powered Playmobil boat motor and it works great. Fortunately, there is always a nice breeze blowing across our pool which moves the little Roman Galley along quite realistically.

All the best,
Richard


Offline arab warrior

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Re: Roman Trireme -- Look, Mum, also a Renaissance Trireme!
« Reply #5 on: November 05, 2007, 08:36:26 »
You don't have to worry about ruining the stickers, i have a thirty year old pirate ship and it has been under water for more than half its life ;), they still stick perfectly!!!!

Rob

Offline CountBogro

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Re: Roman Trireme -- Look, Mum, also a Renaissance Trireme!
« Reply #6 on: November 05, 2007, 09:29:50 »
... i have a thirty year old pirate ship and it has been under water for more than half its life ...

Isn't it time you salvaged it then  ;)

Bogro
... and then dusk came and brought despair.

Offline Martin Milner

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Re: Roman Trireme -- Look, Mum, also a Renaissance Trireme!
« Reply #7 on: November 05, 2007, 11:17:04 »
Richard has an indoor AND an outdoor pool...  :(o): I have a shower and a birdbath.  :lol:

I'm not so bothered about the lack of an oar deck on the Roman ship as many seem to be - it looks good and it's not too bulky. Another deck and a bunch of slave klickies to man the oars would have greatly increased the price.

It's always possible Playmobil may bring out a bigger Roman ship, just as they have a range of pirate ships.

This has nothing to do with the thread, but I just discovered there's a smilie version of my avatar...  :lens:

Offline Richard

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Re: Roman Trireme -- Look, Mum, also a Renaissance Trireme!
« Reply #8 on: November 05, 2007, 11:42:22 »

Hello, Martin ...

Richard has an indoor AND an outdoor pool...  :(o): I have a shower and a birdbath.  :lol:

You have a shower? ... AND, a birdbath?

With the incredibly outrageous prices of property in London, you must indeed be a very wealthy man, Martin! ... ;)

I'm not so bothered about the lack of an oar deck on the Roman ship as many seem to be - it looks good and it's not too bulky. Another deck and a bunch of slave klickies to man the oars would have greatly increased the price.

It's always possible Playmobil may bring out a bigger Roman ship, just as they have a range of pirate ships.

I have been exploring the possibility of modifying my Roman Galley so that the oars could be manned. Although unlikely, another ancient ship or two from Playmobil would be wonderful!

All the best,
Richard


Offline Timotheos

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Re: Roman Trireme -- Look, Mum, also a Renaissance Trireme!
« Reply #9 on: November 05, 2007, 12:13:53 »
You don't have to worry about ruining the stickers, i have a thirty year old pirate ship and it has been under water for more than half its life ;), they still stick perfectly!!!!

Rob


I see a bathtub that somebody forgot to let the water out on...
For 15 years???????  :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o

But, seriously, thanks for the info, Rob.  I'll be more cavalier about sinking my ships. 

-Tim