Modelers, I’m building the Academy 1/32 Sopwith Camel. As some of you may know, the Camel (and I can only assume other WW1 aircraft) had a wicker chair bolted to the floorboards for the pilot. The problem is that the chair in the kit is aweful. It’s has molded detail on only the inside of the chair while the outside surface is smooth. In addition, the detailed side is obstructed by two ejector pin marks. Does anyone have any idea of an aftermarket chair is avaliable? I can’t see how this thing would be that easily scratchbuilt.
Thanks.
its just a little idea, but the wicker texture may be simulated with a rough fabric of some kind. it may not be fiber fabric, it could be something like wire or something [:P] sorry i cant be more helpfulm just trying to give ya ideas. happy modelling !
Reggie has a good idea; how about using cheesecloth for a start?[:)]
I have the Academy sopwith camel and in my humble opinion the whole kit is awfull…
i know the ejector pin marks your talking about they spoil the whole seat,i was planning on cutting the back off the seat and replacing it with styrene sheet covered in hessien or something like that…
Tom’s Modelworks has a useful photoetch set:
http://www.greatmodels.com/cgi/display.cgi?item_num=tmw0503
Good luck
The worst part of the kit is the ejector pin marks. Lots to fill as the ejector pins appear to be on the detail side of the mold. I can’t say for sure about the fit as I haven’t done too much test fitting.
Thanks for the ideas as well as the PE set link.
Gregbale is 100% correct on the PE detail you’ll be happy with that saet.
Techinclly speaking however the seat sits on a rasied cross members across the fuselage frame work which is only two diamensionly represented in the panel detailing onthe kits fuselage sides and floor board. Again the REAL reference material on the subject is the’ Windsock ’ Data File on it whic you can order : http://www.wiseowlmagazines.com/ . The cockpit is actualy inside a rectangular wood spar frame with cross wire reenforcements. The Kit is a scaled down molding of the Original Revel 1/28 series issue. Its NOT Bad theres a lot of room for some simple scratch build detail if you are in to it! Mike
Yea, I figured it was the old Revell mold. They look way too similar!
I’d already done some scrachbuilding int he cockpit. I had sanded the sidewalls smooth and glued in frames. I think the PE sets will add alot I can’t reproduce on my own.
I also intend to get one of the data files. Thanks for all the info gentlemen!
I’m not an expert on WW I a/c, but I have built enough vacform, multi-media and OOB bipes to have needed to research the seat issue. On many, if not most, Brit a/c of the period, Camel included, as well as the Sopwith Triplane and the Pup, the seat might have been wicker, or it might have been aluminum, as in the Tom’s Modelworks representation (those are excellent parts, very thin and delicate). Some pilots provided their own seats for their aircraft, to make themselves as comforable as possible in what were otherwise miserable flying conditions. I gave myself migranes trying to match the perfect seats to my WW I builds, and I kept running across that same answer: seats varied from one plane to the next, of the same type, very, very often. So don’t worry about it, and use that energy to concentrate on the less-than-thrilling job of rigging.
Tom
To each seat, his own.[:D]
Hey listen Bones, I forgot to mention I found a pretty big error in the rigging on the revel kit and I haven’t opened my 1/32 acedemy or Hobbycraft one to check to see if it was duplicated on it but I would suspect it was.
The REAR double flying wires which originate at the upper wing, Rear Spar and come down to wing root / fuselage near the cockpit? Well they actually should go through the wing and attach to the top of the rear spar of the landing gear.
Post some photos as you are coming along?
Try using cheesecloth soaked in diuted white glue. It looks pretty close; I’ve done that for a “Spirit of St. Louis” project that’s currently stalled.
Gary
I think I’ve lost my mind. I’m no scratchbuilding guru, but this is what I came up with after two nights:
It doesn’t look all that great, but I can assure you it looks alot better than the kit seat! Oh, and obviously it hasn’t been painted.
hey nice job! Looks pretty good to me! can you make me one too for when I get around to building mine? [:D]
i wouldent mind sitting down in that
That’s some great looking scratchbuilding.
What do you mean “it doesn’t look all that great.” It most certainly does look all that great, and I’d like to know what materials you used, and your method, so I can do one of my own. That beautiful brass one on the other site is totally out of my league, stunning though it is. Someday…someday…I can dream of being such a modeler as that. I can’t even solder, which I want to learn to do do I can replace kit framing in things like T-6s and GeeBee racers.
Tom
Bones YOU Qualify as Official SCRATCH BUILD GURU. It dosen’t get any better than that ! That will just set off what ever else you suround it with in the Cockpit. FANASTIC, Really VERY NICE, Much better than you propably feel about it after laboring over. Show us the rest of your build as your comeing along. MIke
Sharkskin, I’ll tell ya how I did it but I hate to say that there was soldering involved. The frame itself is just wire soldered together. I then used fine cut strips of regular paper and weaved it in and out of the wire as you see it. The cushion is two pieces of flat plastic stock cut to the same shape and glued together. The topmost piece is cut only slightly smaller in size. I then put regular masking tape on them to simulate leather.
Orgianlly, I was just going to cut the back off the seat kit and replace it. But after completing the back, I decided to build the frame for the bottom half. I then had to try a few things before I went with the paper strips for the weave.