danjcoleman

1/72 Sopwith Camel kits: From Worst to Best: Airfix: 2F1. No dihedral to the lower wing (must be cut and angled near fuselage). Useless prop, Nose is too squared off, too wide a hole for gun as it goes all the way across the top of the fuselage rather than just open where the gun should be. Undernourished struts everywhere. Engine molded into nose (as 150BRI Bentley?). Wheels are the best part--in my opinion. Academy: Maybe too much dihedral of lower wing. Useless prop, wheels are too small, guns are thin, tail skid is BIG. Curve of the fuselage goes a little too far and makes the flat area on the side a bit underscale. Tail and fin are a bit underscale. Engine molded into nose as Clerget. Esci/Ertl: Similar to Academy but better. Better dihedral. Prop is better, wheels still too small, guns are thin, tail skid is better, Curve of turtle deck has same issues as Academy. Tail and fin are a little better. Engine molded into nose as Clerget. Revell: Fuselage scales out bigger than the Academy/Esci/Ertl kits and closer to Roden. Tail fin seems a little too large, struts are a little thin and long. Guns sit a little high. Engine molded into nose as Clerget. Roden/Encore: Seems all to scale (awaiting books to verify--Windsock datafile). Struts are not integrated in wings like all the others which seems great but provides no stability or angle when installing. It would be great if it came with jig pieces like the Sopwith Pup by Airfix. Cockpit is wide so needs to be cut down a little. Engine options as the kits come with options and separate from the nose. Also, struts are attached to sprue in funky spots so cut carefully. More details on struts and body than others. Mashup options and Conculsions: If you have them, Roden has a number of kits outside Sopwith Camel that use Sopwith Camel sprues (I think the later Nieuports 24+) so you can replace tail fin, wheels, prop of the Academy or Esci/Ertl for example. You could use the Academy or Esci/Ertl struts on the Revell kit to adjust the extra length and they're a little thicker so seems a little more accurate. Will modify this if I'm incorrect in any areas. I'll add when I get scale drawings. If you want something out of the box, Roden is ready to go, If you're good with a Clerget engine, Revell with adjustments (like guns need lowering, Esci/Ertl with new wheels. I'd pass on the Academy and Airfix unless you have replacement parts or take on a project.