Castle Doors

Aidan · Post by **Aidan** » Fri Jan 28, 2005 3:29 am

Well I am going to have to post pictures of parts of the castle as I complete them because progress is slow. In fact, its not even as fast as slow.

The first teaser.... Doors!

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?i=1080656

I tried a number of different hinges before settling on these;

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?i=1080657

They are pretty sturdy, and fit together very tight (almost too tight) but that keeps them securely closed.

I tried a few different door designs, but ended up with something rather simple. I tried to replicate the look of wood doors with the vertical tiles.

This is my first MOC picture

. Let me know what you think.

Post by **Bruce N H** » Fri Jan 28, 2005 3:36 am

Hey Aiden,

These look really good, especially the triple slopes on the fronts of the doors, and the shields set in alcoves on either side. One question. It looks like you took this plate:

and turned it on the side in a SNOT construction to make the hinges. Why didn't you just use this plate:

instead?

Bruce

Aidan · Post by **Aidan** » Fri Jan 28, 2005 3:54 am

Bruce N H wrote:Hey Aidan,

Why didn't you just use this plate:

instead?

Bruce

Thanks! My original vision was a door of solid triple slopes, but it looked silly when I built it.

Good question. It was a problem with having the clip line up correctly on the hinge in 3 different places, and make sure there was no clearance at the bottom of the door. My SNOT clip sits a smidge higher then your suggested clip. Kind of at 2 1/2 plates up instead of 2 if you follow.

Dragon Master · Post by **Dragon Master** » Fri Jan 28, 2005 3:59 am

I like the doors, but how would they look if the spikes were placed one row closer to the centre?

Aidan · Post by **Aidan** » Fri Jan 28, 2005 4:35 am

Dragon Master wrote:I like the doors, but how would they look if the spikes were placed one row closer to the centre?

Thanks. I could either center the spikes on the door or in the opening. I went with on the door. I actually wanted half a spike on each door that would form a center spike when closed, but the fit is just too tight.

Post by **JoshWedin** » Fri Jan 28, 2005 4:49 am

Now those are awesome doors. I may have to steal that idea.

Very impressive.

Josh

forester3291 · Post by **forester3291** » Fri Jan 28, 2005 4:52 am

Awesome doors Aidan. I really like the bigness (lack of better term) of them. They seem massive and sturdy. Better than the Official lego doors for sure. I mayhave to borrow along with Josh.

Blueandwhite · Post by **Blueandwhite** » Fri Jan 28, 2005 5:59 am

Very nice! A simple sollution that is both functional and visually pleasing.

Kudos to you

!

Later.

LusiferSam · Post by **LusiferSam** » Fri Jan 28, 2005 6:31 am

I like that a lot. It's very well done. I'm looking forward to move photos.

Post by **SavaTheAggie** » Fri Jan 28, 2005 6:46 pm

That is one awesome set of doors. I really like how easy they are to see (brown, not black) and just how imposing they are. I'm definately going to have to steal this idea.

I do have to say, though, I'm not too fond of the hinges, from the rear the doors lose a lot of majesty, inspite of consummate V's on the front.

Aside from Bruce's idea, all I can offer is what I used to make my MOC Doors. Which is a combination of 1x4 plate hinges and brackets. Specifically

and

You'd still have your brown doors, but they might be thicker, and that may interfere with their operations.

--Anthony

Tycho McKorley · Post by **Tycho McKorley** » Fri Jan 28, 2005 7:12 pm

Beautiful doors. I'd like to see an attacking army attempt to get past them.

As mentioned, the hinge on the back is a little... bulky and unpleasant. However, I think that it's a sacrifice well made for such wonderful doors on the exterior.

jwcbigdog · Post by **jwcbigdog** » Fri Jan 28, 2005 7:57 pm

I have to agree with Tycho that the bulky hinges are well worth the sacrifice to get those doors, they look fantastic. I like the suggestion of moving the slopes, I think that they look off when the doors are closed more than when they are open. You should try to add the bars across the door like Jojo did on his Falkenstein (sorry about the spelling), there would be no way to get through them then.

What kind of defenses were planning to put in over/next to them?

Aidan · Post by **Aidan** » Fri Jan 28, 2005 10:21 pm

Thanks for all the feedback! You have inspired me to take more pictures! I have posted a second version of the doors.

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?i=1081993

I'm not sure if I like them better or not?

You can also start to see some more of the castle in this shot. And I added another teaser photo to the folder.

I think the hinges look "sturdy and substantial" as opposed to "bulky and unpleasant". But I respect your opinion

. I didn't care as much for hinges that were the same width as the door. They don't look strong enough, and they don't fit together as tight.

forester3291 · Post by **forester3291** » Fri Jan 28, 2005 10:53 pm

I think the new doors look better. Also, cool teaser pic!

doctorsparkles · Post by **doctorsparkles** » Sat Jan 29, 2005 2:56 am

I love the black banding, and the brown tiles look awesome. I don't think that the hinges look bad. Bulky, yes, but one of the only ways to counter that is with a thicker door, which does indeed interfere with the operation of the door. I encountered this on my castle, but it actually just makes the doors seem sturdy to me.
The only thing that I don't like (and this is nitpicking) is that the doors open inwards instead of outwards. I always try to make my doors open outwards so that attackers can't bust them inwards as easily. All of my doors tend to brace themselves against a wall in the event of an attack. Of course, that wouldn't work with yours because of the arched doorway.
I'm also a big fan of the inset ovoid shields, and the use of 1*1 round bricks as trim.