Pirata Codex - Help

Capt TJ

Capt TJ

Well-Known Member
Ahoy mates!

I'm working on a replica of the Pirate Codex from PotC. Does anyone have any hi-res shots of the book? Has anyone attempted this before?

I know that the actual prop had only a few "real" pages, with the majority being a solid mass. I don't want this thing to weigh a ton, yet I want it to be real enough that it can be used as a prop and people can turn a page or two.

Thanks in advance!
 
I only saw the movie once, but if I remember correctly the book was really big. I made a book that size once and I had NO IDEA how much it was going to weigh. I can see why they would have made some fake/hollow pages in the prop, especially if that insanely old rock star had to carry it at some point. I had to use my book as a prop in a student film, which meant lugging it around campus for a whole day. Man, did I hate that day. Good luck with finding your answers, I highly recommend hollowing the book out a bit.
 
Risu said:
...I highly recommend hollowing the book out a bit.
Click to expand...

If I remember correctly, the majority of the book isn't even paper...it's a carved/molded section of foam (?) with only a few real pages in the middle.
 
Capt TJ said:
Ahoy mates!

I'm working on a replica of the Pirate Codex from PotC. Does anyone have any hi-res shots of the book? Has anyone attempted this before?

I know that the actual prop had only a few "real" pages, with the majority being a solid mass. I don't want this thing to weigh a ton, yet I want it to be real enough that it can be used as a prop and people can turn a page or two.

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...

I wanna say that it was an actual book, and that they hollowed it out because nobody took into account that a book that big would weigh a ton. Almost literally. :D

If you have the DVD there should be a documentary on there about it.
 
I'd say a book that size would weigh 20-30 pounds. Not too bad for a quick move from one table to another, but carrying it for any length of time would be a strain.
 
@Goodwolf: You are correct. I just watched the special features DVD and they made it 80 pages thick, and it ended up weighing about 80~100lbs. Between takes, they hollowed out all the blank pages to make it more managable.

They said they used vellum for the 6 or so pages they actually made. Where does someone get vellum, or a parchment, that size?

The hinges look like most wrought-iron ones, so that shouldn't be too hard. The cover/back of the book sure looks like wood.
 
This book may help with contents.

Pirate Guidelines, The: A Booke for Those Who Desire to Keep to the Code and Live a Pirate's Life (Pirates of the Caribbean) (Paperback)


Product Details


  • Reading level: Ages 9-12
  • Paperback: 112 pages
  • Publisher: Disney Editions; Mti edition (May 22, 2007)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1423106547
  • ISBN-13: 978-1423106548
  • Product Dimensions: 8 x 6.9 x 0.3 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces

I actually have a copy, it has quite a few interesting things to put in the book like avoiding monkey attacks.

D6
 
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It was extremely heavy. Very large. The cover was custom embossed. All metal parts were water jet then hand made pin hinges. The lock was made from scratch. All pages were hand duplicated. Each piece of scrap was measured and placed into each book. Hand stitching, etc. Very tedious. It was a nightmare.

They looked great though right?
 
postmortem01 said:
It was extremely heavy. Very large. The cover was custom embossed. All metal parts were water jet then hand made pin hinges. The lock was made from scratch. All pages were hand duplicated. Each piece of scrap was measured and placed into each book. Hand stitching, etc. Very tedious. It was a nightmare.

They looked great though right?
Click to expand...

Yes, it looked AMAZING! I did a much scaled down version. I took an old, oversized book, gutted it, placed hand-etched leather over the old cover/back and then hand stitched in new pages. It gets the point across, but it's definately not anwhere near the one from PotC.

Great job to you and your crewe! If you have a spare one laying around, feel free to send it my way!
 
 
dsc04170.jpg

dsc06450.jpg

dsc06462.jpg
 
OMG! Those pics are très fantastique!!

Is this the SU book? ...forgive my ignorance.....
Did you make it postmortem? ...for the movie?

Shylaah
 
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