WNW Camel Firstever build log

[bobs_buckles]

You're doing lovely work on the Camel, Richie and to top it off, you're doing the livery of one of my idols. Magic!

Every modeller worth his/her wings has etched finger prints into their creations. It's part and parcel of the hobby, but thankfully, one of the easiest things to solve.

Keep up the good work!

Von Buckle 

[RichieW]

Thanks Bob, I've been doing a lot of reading recently on this period of aviation and Raymond Collishaw seems to have been an extraordinary pilot and leader.

I found your superb build of his triplane recently, what a great tribute.

[bobs_buckles]

[lone modeller]

This is making excellent progress - thumb print aside! What a relief to know that I can at least be a member of th thumb prints club!!!

Stephen.

[RichieW]

  Thanks Stephen, I imagine there's quite a large membership of the thumb print club. It's been my house style for years. Spitfires and Hurricanes have been utterly plastered with them since childhood.

I seem to spend far more time correcting things like this than anything else. All part of the fun!

[smperry]

You know you are becoming a Master Modeler when you get your fixing screw ups to actual building ratio down around 1:1.
I still remember the Aurora Dr.I in maroon and black plastic covered in glue fingerprints I got for my 5th birthday. At least I got the decals on in the right places thanks to raised markings Aurora so helpfully molded into their models.

Those finger prints on your Camel will disappear without a trace after a gentle rub down. Welcome to the fingerprint club...if you aren't already a member.
sp

[RichieW]

 Thanks SP, I'm not sure I'll ever be a master modeller but I shall certainly have fun trying. I'll be thrilled if I can end up with a reasonable representation of a Sopwith Camel at the end of this build but aim to do better with the next project.

I remember trying to build an airfix 1/72 Camel as a five year old, there were thumb prints galore and tears before bedtime! 

[RichieW]

What a week it has been! hope you are all well and taking care of your health and your loved ones.

Well I got my workspace back after Mrs W and I rearranged our tiny home so she could work at home and I could pursue my hobby. In my last update I had a beautiful thumb print to remove so my first job was to deal with that. I had sprayed Vallejo satin varnish to protect the decals from masking before the upheaval.

20200321_164834 by Richard Williams, on Flickr

Next job was break a couple of cabanes to gain entry to the elite club of Sopwith Camel cabane snappers. This I did by carefully dropping it so I still had one left on each side.

20200321_164526 by Richard Williams, on Flickr

I'm not too worried about it because I know I can sort it out but if you look carefully at the fuselage decals you can see that the varnish did nothing to protect the decals and the got pretty shredded.

Did you know that Rowney odourless turps strips Vallejo satin varnish? I didn't either but I tried to cover my decal repairs with an oil wash, stripped the varnish and shredded the decals a little more!

These decals are lovely in some respects but so brittle, you can see all the little pieces missing here. Again not worried, I can always touch them up with paint or spare bits of decal. I used Micro sol on them, perhaps this is part of the problem.

20200321_164722 by Richard Williams, on Flickr

I'm not ready to declare this innings closed yet but will treat it all a learning experience. There are far bigger problems in the world right now so I'm still smiling!

I hope this post has raised a smile, I said at the outset I was a clumsy man and am actually quite pleased with how it's going. Got to keep yourself occupied in these challenging times!

Happy modelling and thanks for reading.

Richie

[RAGIII]

First I want you to know that you really didn't need to One Up me on the cabanes  Next I like how she is coming along with the markings applied! Great scheme. Valejo  clears are a bit of a Mystery to Me. They work great but on My Camel It seems they are staying a bit tacky  I think on future builds I will go back to Tamiya for the clear coats. Never had a problem with oil washes or not drying properly! I am looking forward to your continued progress!
RAGIII

[RichieW]

Haha, thanks Rick. I actually feel quite liberated now it's all gone a bit pear shaped.  I'm learning so much from this build and will see it through to the end. It won't win any beauty contests but I'm having fun with it still. Have ordered another eindekker to have a relatively stress free build. Got a Roden SE5a on it's way to me too.

[lone modeller]

Never mind being in two clubs at once Richie - we can all regale each other on or modelling mishaps long into the night......

More importantly, this is looking a great deal better than you are allowing. Given that it is your first large biplane I think that you are making an excellent model - remember the 2nd rule of modelling: that although YOU can see all of the errors and bits that are not quite right, others rarely do - they just see the overall model.

Keep going because you will forget most of the problems in a couple of months too!

Stephen.

[RichieW]

Thanks so much Stephen, I really appreciate that. I'm enjoying the build still and think I can get a reasonably acceptable result. I've always been more artistic than practical so I'm learning a lot which is what is important.

I still plan to scratch build a Beriot XI and am busy researching materials plans etc. Will be bothering you for help soon.

[Alexis]

Richie , your Camel is turning out great so far  I'm impressed with your work and your cheerfulness . Your Awesome ! Keep up the good work 


Terri

[RichieW]

Thanks Terri, I'm hoping to mount the top wing today. I have a cunning plan of how to reattach the cabanes. Having the 3 pieces still separate should make it easier. In cricketing terms the opening partnership was solid before a mid order batting collapse but I'm hoping the tail can wag and get us to a decent total. 

[RichieW]

For the sake of my sanity this one has to go on the shelf for now. I haven't hoisted the white flag and will get this done in the end.

I have made up my own masks for the C on the fuselage and have some montex masks for the roundels. The registration codes are proving tricky to replicate.

Going to the stash now to see what seems the least challenging. Any recommendations?
I have the following:
WNW Sopwith Tripe
WNW Pup
CSM Nieuport
Roden SE5a

I'm remain cheerful about it all and am enjoying the challenges!

Best of health everybody!