Jump to content

Sopwith F.1 Camel "Clerget" - 1:32 Wingnut Wings


Viking

Recommended Posts

Sopwith F.1 Camel "Clerget"

1:32 Wingnut Wings

 

box.jpg

 

[EDIT] Review build of 'The Duellists' Camel underway in 'Work in Progress' [/EDIT]

 

[EDIT] Finished model of this kit 'Wonga Bonga' in Ready for Inspection [/EDIT]

 

For the past 12 months or so, Wingnut Wings have been very quiet in terms of new releases. As was apparent from visiting their website they clearly had their ‘heads down’ while they concentrated on producing a Sopwith Camel. This is probably the most eagerly awaited model that WNW has ever released. Anticipation and expectations were very high, due to their reputation for meticulous research and total accuracy, combined with flawless fit and ease of build. The wait was probably longer than most wanted, but it is well known that Wingnut Wings do not release their models according to any pre-prepared schedule. They release them only when everything, and I mean everything, is at the supremely high standard they set themselves.


When all was ready for release, there was a big surprise in store. It wasn’t just a single release but Six different kitsets
32070 Sopwith F.1 Camel “BR.1”.
32071  Sopwith F.1 Camel “Le Rhone”.
32072 Sopwith F.1 Camel “USAS”.
32074 Sopwith F.1 Camel “Clerget”.
32076 Sopwith 2F.1 Camel “Ship’s Camel”.
32803 Sopwith F.1 Camel &LVG C.VI “The Duellists’


Wow, no wonder it took so long to research and produce the Camel. Pause for a moment and consider the massive task of project managing all this to Wingnuts exacting standards. All the subtle (but very important) differences between versions, applicable colour schemes, the breakdown of parts and allocations to various sprues, getting the moulds right, and on and on, the list of things that had to be achieved, and decisions made, must have been colossal.


The Sopwith Camel.
Developed in 1916 as a successor to the single gun Sopwith Pup, the Camel got its name from the ‘hump’ in the forward fuselage that enclosed most of the twin Vickers guns. Entering service in May 1917 and serving right up to then of the Great War in November 1918, the Camel served with many air forces, and was the mount of a large number of allied aces.


Initially the aircraft suffered from the poor quality of its Clerget 9B engines, so other engines were tried. The RNAS preferred the Bentley BR.1, and the RFC settled on both the Le Rhone 9J and the improved Clerget 9Bf.  The United States Air Service (USAS) received 5 Squadrons of Camels as their forces built up through 1918. A further development was the 2F.1 ‘Ships Camel’ which featured a shorter wingspan and detachable rear fuselage.
All these versions are available from the Wingnut Wings range, it only remains to be seen if the F.1/3 ‘Comic’ night fighter joins them. I certainly hope so, and notice that kit number 32073 sits unused between the ‘USAS’ and ‘Clerget’ releases. Could it be for the F.1/3? Fingers crossed everyone!

 

The Kit

There is nothing quite like the thrill of a new Wingnut Wings kit, the silver gilt edged box with its fabulous Steve Anderson painting, draws you in to lift the lid and see the latest wonder from our friends in New Zealand. Shown in action here is a very dramatic scene with Camel B3834 ‘Wonga Bonga’ shooting down a Gotha under a moon lit sky.
Inside are 5 individually wrapped sprues, all of which are further wrapped in a larger bag, a large decal sheet by Cartograf, and an etched brass fret with seatbelts and gun sights.
Also contained is one of Wingnut Wings instruction books, which is way more than just a guide to the assembly sequence. The drawings are very clear and logical, with colour call outs to every step, accompanied by more detailed painting guides at various points. The ‘icing on the cake’ is the inclusion of photographs, both original and modern, to help the modeller understand how everything should look. Want to see how the fuselage interior should look? There are a couple of colour photographs of an original Camel under restoration, before the cockpit area was covered with fabric.

inst.jpg


Assembly begins naturally enough, with the cockpit area. A full set of instrument decals are provided for the panel, each of which is readable under a magnifying glass. The cockpit side frames are moulded in one piece with the cabane struts. Care will be needed during construction not to knock them, but they will ensure that the top wing will just click accurately into place during final assembly. (The same system was used on their Sopwith Pup model, and having built 2 of them I know that it works a treat).

spruea1.jpg

 

The cockpit is fully fitted out with all the fine detail you could possible want, the only things to add are the bracing wires between the fuselage frames, and the control wires from the stick and rudder pedals. Stretched sprue or rolled fuse wire is ideal for this.

spruea.jpg


The two Vickers guns are fitted in two stages. The main stocks go in during the cockpit assembly, with the barrels to be fitted later on from the outside. This will make painting both them and the cockpit coaming area a much easier job. Who needs resin when you have plastic moulding like this?

spruea3.jpg


Another nice feature of Wingnuts thoroughness is that one of the marking options has an extra bit of stitching on the starboard mid fuselage. Rather than supply it as a part to be glued on, Wingnut Wings provide you with 2 complete starboard fuselage halves. One with and one without - a great example of their dedication to doing things right. Lesser companies would have provided 1 fuselage part with the extra stitching on, and instructed the modeller to scrape it off if not required.

 

sprueb.jpg


Note in the photo above, the lower wing is moulded as a single piece including the dihedral, contributing to what should be fool proof assembly and line up of the biplane wings. The wings themselves feature nicely moulded inspection panels, with the lines and pulleys inside. These have clear panels to attach once the details are painted.

sprued1.jpg

 

Also on the clear sprue is a choice of three different windscreens used by the different marking options.

spruec.jpg


The upper wing is a three piece assembly, as per the real aircraft, with beautiful rib and stitching detail, and fine trailing edges. Two different centre sections are on sprue B, with only the small cut out version being applicable in this release.The completed wing should lock into position on those pre set cabane struts, and line up easily with the interplane

struts.

sprued.jpg


The etched fret provides details for the gunsights, even including William Barkers little ‘red devil’ in fine detail.

etch.jpg

 

Two types of undercarriage are available, the early aerofoil steel tube version and the later round steel tube with wooden fairings. The wheels themselves are from one of the two complete sets provided. More evidence of attention to detail by Wingnut Wings, as I bet few of us would know that different wheels were used on Camels.


Final items are the Cooper bombs on their beautifully moulded rack,

spruea2.jpg

 

and the Clerget engine. Different crankcase/pushrod mouldings are supplied to enable either the 9B or 9Bf version to be modelled, all but marking option F using the 9B. Wingnut Wings engines are always a highlight of their kits for me, and I often start my builds with them because they are such fun to build. This little rotary is comparatively simple but no less detailed than some of the bigger in-line engines.

spruee.jpg

 

spruee1.jpg

 

Assembled and painted it should look gorgeous. And to help you, there is a colour photo of the real thing on the restored Camel B5663. I know we should be wary of taking information from restorations, but TVAL (Wingnut Wings sister company) do such meticulous work, that there is definitely value in seeing it. Where else are you going to get detailed colour photographs of a Sopwith Camel? The engine is covered by one of four cowlings on sprue A, the other three not being applicable to this version. Finally one of two propellers completes the construction phase.


A detailed rigging diagram shows where everything goes. There are a couple of double wires, but on the whole this is a fairly straight forward rig. Not the simplest, but certainly not very complicated either. Interestingly the instructions point out that the Camel was not rigged with turnbuckles, so that is one less thing to have to do.

 

Marking Options.
Rather than Wingnut Wings standard five different finishing options, here we get six! It is always a difficult but pleasurable decision as to which one to choose. I’m afraid that it is almost impossible here as they are all absolutely stunning. Many modellers are going to be unable to resist obtaining more than one copy of this particular kit, in order to satisfy that urge. The decals are perfectly printed, with sharp edges and accurate colours. Dozens of fine details are provided, from ‘Sopwith’ logos for the struts to markings for the little Cooper bombs.

decals1.jpg

 

The big sheet is by Cartograf, your assurance of top quality.

decals.jpg

 


A -Sopwith F.1 Camel B3834 “Wonga Bonga”, RH Daly (7 victories) & AF Brandon (1 victory), Manston War Flight RNAS, July-August 1917.

opta.jpg

 

B - Sopwith F.1 Camel B3889 “B 1”, CF Collett (11 victories), B Flight 70 Sqn RFC, August 1917.  

optb.jpg

     
C - Sopwith F.1 Camel B3893, AR Brown (10 victories), 9(N) Sqn RNAS, September-October 1917. 

optc.jpg

 
D - Sopwith F.1 Camel B6289, HL Nelson (1 victory), WM Alexander (23 victories), A Flight 10(N) Sqn RNAS, January 1918.    

optd.jpg


E - Sopwith F.1 Camel B6313, WG Barker (50 victories), 139 Sqn RAF, late July 1918.  

opte.jpg


F - Sopwith F.1 Camel B7406, HG Watson (14 victories), C Flight 4 Sqn AFC, March 1918.   

optf.jpg


Conclusion.
Every Wingnut Wings kit I have seen has been special, but this is something else. It has all the things we have come to love about their kits: the way they present them, the quality of the moulding, the instruction manual, the marking options, etc. Open the box and you will happily spend an hour or two going through the contents, admiring the mouldings, reading the booklet, mentally building it, and best of all, trying to shortlist which option to build.


Since last year Wingnut Wings have changed the way they supply their kits. No longer do you order directly from them in New Zealand, and await the arrival of your kits with a Customs and VAT charge. You can now purchase from their partner Weta Workshop, or numerous smaller (often fairly local) retailers, some of which are members on Britmodeller.  It seems that all six of the Camel boxings are proving to be very popular and selling like hot cakes. There has been an ongoing thread here on Britmodeller, showing how popular it has been and also how one of our member/traders, Duncan, has been winning praise for his service! See here

 

You don’t even have to start actually building it to get your money’s worth. A good mug of tea (or a decent single malt if it is later in the day), your favourite armchair, and a spare hour with one of Wingnut Wings new Camels will wash away all the cares of the world, and put a huge smile on your face. I know, and I’ve already dipped my hand in my pocket and bought three more!

 

Very highly reccomended.

Review sample courtesy of
logo.gif

 

  • Like 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is a serious question: With a kit this good, do you think there will be aftermarket guys improving upon this? Or would that be non-sensical/impossible/insane?

Just to compare this to other very good kits that *did* get AM stuff.

Is there a line that can be crossed that AM just isn't needed anymore?

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I would guess that, as with a lot of the other WnW releases AM will be few and far between and will mainly be seatbelts, and decal options. I have made a start on one of mine, the Br.1 which I am currently carefully painting the cockpit components for at the moment and I can't see anything that needs improved in the kit so far. Detail is superb even down to the injection molded cocking handles for the guns.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, Basosz said:

This is a serious question: With a kit this good, do you think there will be aftermarket guys improving upon this? Or would that be non-sensical/impossible/insane?

Just to compare this to other very good kits that *did* get AM stuff.

Is there a line that can be crossed that AM just isn't needed anymore?

 

Very good question Basosz.

For many of their kits, and particularly the Camel its is hard to see what aftermarket improvements would be worthwhile. the only thing I can come up with is perhaps a set of pre-painted seatbelts of the type Eduard produce. Perhaps an engine with cast resin cylinders would be useful. Not for the extra detail, but it would eliminate the need to remove the seam that runs through the cooling fins. So really the only 2 things I can suggest are items that would help the less experienced modeller.

 

I know that Wingnut Wings have planned for many years to relase 'Deluxe' versions of their kits, with extra etched brass frets and resin figures, and perhaps other resin items. I will be really interested to see what they include in them. Barracuda do some very nice wicker seats and exhaust pipes, HGW do etched brass and seatbelts, so perhaps this is the sort of thing WnW are thinking of.

 

Decals are probably the best area for aftermarket suppliers to complemet WnW kits. HGW do 'cookie cutter' wooden fuselage panels for the Albatros D.v, and Uschi van der Rosten do A5 sheets of generic woodgrain decals that you have to cut out yourself. I first used it here.

WnW actually supply pre shaped wood grain decals for the fuselage in their Albatros B.II kit decal sheet.

The really good area though, is for full aircraft markings like Pheon Decals produce. WnW do great colour scheme options in their kits, but many of us like to produce something even more unique, and Pheon do some superb offerings.

 

Ultimately it is up to the individual modeller to consider what they get from the cost of adding aftermarket products to their kits. We rarely quote prices in Britmodeller reviews because cost is so much down to the individuals perception of 'worth'. With competing suppliers, prices can also vary quite a lot.

We should also consider why we do this hobby. 90% or more of us do it for relaxation and the pleasure of creating something we are interested in. Hardly any one else will ever see our finished work in 'real life', so if you want to add aftermarket, do it because you like it and not because you think it will make others admire your model more. They probably won't notice or understand.

 

Well you certainly got me thinking there! I've gone on a bit so I'll sign off now.

Thanks for sparking some thoughts,

 

John

 

 

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nice review.

Thank you.

On the am subject sometimes there is the feeling that a/m stuff HAS to be used.

This is not the case with the newer kits , everything is there for the hobby modeller. OTT types will ALWAYS have to add more.

I saw a kit a few years ago 'vetted' by an a/m manufacturer.

The kit came out AFTER THE A/M MANUFACTURER had already released a number of correction sets for the kit!

Collusion came to mind...

That kind of crap ensured I never bought the kit or any of the manufacturers stuff.

 

 

On my Gotha build I bought ALL of the available a/m , I'll MAYBE use 30% of it , the rest is not up to my standard.

 

Other a/m stuff gets sold even though it is impossible to get to work , p/e flying wires come to mind. Myself and a few others from my club bought huindreds of dollars of that crap and none of us ended up using it. It has VERY limited applications.

 

The problem with the internet is yer not allowed to say anything bad for fear of retribution from 'save the world' types , but if something is un-workable then that should be put out for public consumption as well as the kudo's.

Edited by krow113
  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I do have to recommend the HGW fabric seatbelts. I was 'turned on' to them by a fellow BM'er and they are rather nice. Pretty easy to put together with PE buckles etc. easy to install and 'dirty up' rather well.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 4/16/2017 at 8:38 PM, RNAS1916 said:

Hi All,

I have ordered 4 different ones from Wets in January and am still waiting!

WETA Workshop.

 

Two words RNAS1916 "BlackMike Models" I ordered 3 from Duncan on a Saturday, the postie was knocking at my door with them 3 days later on the Tuesday :smile:

(Other retailers are avaialble, but I believe in praise where praise is due :yes:. I'm sure other members will endorse Duncans service).

 

Oh - and I've started building the Clerget sample reviewed here. It is exquisite, I'll do a 'Work in Progress' thread when I've got time (and some progress).

 

And an edit - I've found something we need aftermarket for. The Cooper bombs have little star shaped 'props' on their fronts (for fusing I guess) Nothing in the kit, but they would be ideal in etched brass.

 

<Edit> 05 Sept 2017 . Eduard have released some sets  for the Camel, including those little start shaped 'props' for the Cooper bombs. Review here.  </Edit>

 

Cheers

 

John

 

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I heartily recommend BlackMike as well. A superb seller.

 

Another point on the Camels. I have found that the decals are rather exquisite in the Br.1 I am currently building although there is a decal for the elevator that has been printed back to front and so needs to be flipped before applying plus a couple of minor pitfalls on the Br.1 kit (see my thread in WWI aircraft section about the Hinchliffe scheme.) The instrument decals are very high resolution with even a little tiny silver pin at the centre of the hands on the chronometer and fit so far has been of the clicks neatly together variety.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Aha, at last,

1 large stout box arrived yesterday with four stout boxes inside.Each one containing the four Wingnut Wings camels.

BR 1, Clerget, Le Rhone and 2F1.

I have managed a quick peruse but no deep study yet.

Very excited.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...