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WNW Sopwith Camel F.1 USAS
- Thread starter SdAufKla
- Start date
centaur567
Well-known member
Holy crap Batman!! What a build tutorial. Love the finish of the paint job. Master craft. Gary S. XLV MMXXIV
SdAufKla
Active member
Thanks for all the kind words, guys! 
Some exhaust and castor oil staining on the bottom port side of the fuselage and lower wing. Done with Tamiya X-19 Smoke. I used a piece of a Post-it note to mask the edges of the fuselage framing to replicate the distinctive staining pattern on the fuselage bottom.
The speckled look near the leading edge of the wing is because the X-19 is a semi-transparent gloss color, so there's some glare here. I'll reduce this shine later with a coat of semi-gloss or matt clear.
Sorry for the focus on this last one. I think you can still get the idea, though.
Some exhaust and castor oil staining on the bottom port side of the fuselage and lower wing. Done with Tamiya X-19 Smoke. I used a piece of a Post-it note to mask the edges of the fuselage framing to replicate the distinctive staining pattern on the fuselage bottom.
The speckled look near the leading edge of the wing is because the X-19 is a semi-transparent gloss color, so there's some glare here. I'll reduce this shine later with a coat of semi-gloss or matt clear.
Sorry for the focus on this last one. I think you can still get the idea, though.
Why just one side? it looks great! 
SdAufKla
Active member
Why just one side? it looks great!
I believe that it's a characteristic of the Clerget rotary engine. It exhausts directly into the air, and it would seem that the exhaust valves fully open when they reach the 7-8 o'clock position (when facing the front of the aircraft)). It also seems that since the rotary engine used a "total loss" lubrication system, and the castor oil being water soluble (i.e. it didn't actually mix and completely burn in the cylinder), that not only was the bottom of the fuselage covered with the exhaust but it was also an oily mess from all the castor oil that spewed out.
The castor oil also had another unfortunate side effect. When it was exposed to the high heat of the engine combustion, it released the poison ricin. Pilots and observers often reported terrible headaches from the engine fumes.
I know you've done your homework and it might be something characteristic of the Camel but i've always oiled stain with equal covereage. Not saying I did it right by any means!
Quick look on google shows some period photos curtsey of WnW, looks like you're nailin it!
Carry on my friend!
Quick look on google shows some period photos curtsey of WnW, looks like you're nailin it!
Carry on my friend!
SdAufKla
Active member
Quite likely a quirk of the Camel and how the engine was timed and oriented. The exhaust valves could just as easily be open at any clock position, really, so I suppose just about all of the aircraft with rotary engines (Clergets, Le Rhones, Oberursels, etc.) could have differently distinctive exhaust staining.I know you've done your homework and it might be something characteristic of the Camel but i've always oiled stain with equal covereage. Not saying I did it right by any means!
Quick look on google shows some period photos curtsey of WnW, looks like you're nailin it!
Carry on my friend!
SdAufKla
Active member
More progress. I pre-rigged the cabane struts by anchoring the fuselage ends of the bracing wires and then lacing, but not tightening up their top, wing ends. All they should need when the top wing is added is a few gentle tugs, a dash of CA and a "snip-snip" to trim away the excess.
I'll be doing some pre-rigging for the front crossed bracing wires and "acorn" tensioner, but that'll start with the top wing. Before I add those wires, I'll also install the Aldis gun sight and wind screen. The Vicker's MG barrels should fit through all of that later.
If you look closely, you can also see the rear, double flying wires emerging up through their wing channels. I've pre-rigged these at their bottom ends since it looked like a real struggle to try to do these from the top wing down. The forward sets of flying wires should be easy enough to pre-rig on the top wing and attach to the fuselage, though, so that's the plan for them.
Most of my recent work has been weathering the bottom of the fuselage and the landing gear strut sub-assembly, then installing the struts and rigging them. The fuselage bottom and landing gear struts were weathered separately, and I did add the rigging eyelets to the struts before installing them.
The wheels clearly still need more weathering, and here they're just dry-fitted for the photos.
The bottom of the fuselage still needs a shot of flat clear here and there to get rid of some of the shinies, but I'll probably wait and do that with the wheels later.
I did try to airbrush on some contrasts to emphasize the radial wheel spoke ripples in the wheel covers. WNW does actually mold on some ripple detail, but it is so subtle that unless the wheels are held up at an angle under some strong light, these are invisible. There's also some molded on spoke and valve stem details inside the tire inflation openings in the wheel covers. Very hard to photograph after the covers are added, but visible through the holes with the right light.
The "Palmer Cord Aero Type" decals are kit decals that went on with no problems.
And that's all for now. Happy modeling!
I'll be doing some pre-rigging for the front crossed bracing wires and "acorn" tensioner, but that'll start with the top wing. Before I add those wires, I'll also install the Aldis gun sight and wind screen. The Vicker's MG barrels should fit through all of that later.
If you look closely, you can also see the rear, double flying wires emerging up through their wing channels. I've pre-rigged these at their bottom ends since it looked like a real struggle to try to do these from the top wing down. The forward sets of flying wires should be easy enough to pre-rig on the top wing and attach to the fuselage, though, so that's the plan for them.
Most of my recent work has been weathering the bottom of the fuselage and the landing gear strut sub-assembly, then installing the struts and rigging them. The fuselage bottom and landing gear struts were weathered separately, and I did add the rigging eyelets to the struts before installing them.
The wheels clearly still need more weathering, and here they're just dry-fitted for the photos.
The bottom of the fuselage still needs a shot of flat clear here and there to get rid of some of the shinies, but I'll probably wait and do that with the wheels later.
I did try to airbrush on some contrasts to emphasize the radial wheel spoke ripples in the wheel covers. WNW does actually mold on some ripple detail, but it is so subtle that unless the wheels are held up at an angle under some strong light, these are invisible. There's also some molded on spoke and valve stem details inside the tire inflation openings in the wheel covers. Very hard to photograph after the covers are added, but visible through the holes with the right light.
The "Palmer Cord Aero Type" decals are kit decals that went on with no problems.
And that's all for now. Happy modeling!
Lovin' the weathering, looks like we have cross genre techniques being applied with that mud on the axle. 
Great forethought on the rigging also.
Great forethought on the rigging also.
Last edited:
SdAufKla
Active member
Thanks for the props, but I have to give credit where credit is due in regard to the weathering.Lovin' the weathering, looks like we have cross genre techniques being applied with that mud on the axle.
I have a couple of books on building WNW aircraft models, and David Parker (yes, the "Super King Tiger" David Parker) has a couple of his builds included in them. All I've tried to do here is replicate the look of his weathering. When I first saw it, I felt like Col. Kurtz in "Apocalypse Now:"
"And then I realized… like I was shot… like I was shot with a diamond… a diamond bullet right through my forehead." That's how the weathering should look on one of these biplanes flying off of a muddy, dirt grass field!
Anyway, modeling techniques are modeling techniques, and they don't care what kind of model you're building. As long as it looks the way you want it to, then they're the right techniques to use.
Cheers, mi amigo!