Painting & Staining The Model; Stage 1: Building The Engine & Propeller - Model Airways SOPWITH CAMEL F.1 Instruction Manual

Getting Started
Before commencing each stage of construc-
tion, have all the parts for that stage identi-
fied and ready to use. It helps to lay each
part on its corresponding location on the
full-size plan to facilitate identification as
you proceed. Lightly sand wood parts as
required to remove any fuzziness and prepare
the castings parts as noted above.
Painting and Staining
Your Sopwith Camel model need not be
painted or finished at all. However, it is rec-
ommended that you seal the wood parts and
Britannia castings for protection. Due to the
STAGE 1: BUILDING THE ENGINE AND PROPELLER
Although a counter-intuitive design by today's standards, fixing the
propellers to a spinning engine on a stationary crankshaft simplified
cooling, had an excellent weight to horsepower ratio and allowed
greater flexibility in locating the aircraft's center of gravity – affect-
ing maneuverability - over the in-line engines of the time. One
drawback, however, was the pronounced gyroscopic effect that
pulled the aircraft to the right. To fly in a straight line, pilots had to
compensate for this by applying constant left rudder.
The Clerget rotaries provided improved speed control over the
Gnome and Le Rhone rotaries by replacing the standard "blip"
switch that temporarily grounded the magneto (killing the ignition)
with a selector switch that restricted the engine to run on 9, 7, 5 or
Parts List For Stage 1
WP129K-1.5 Crankshaft tube
CLE02 Crankcase
CLE03 Crankcase covers
CLE04 Front propeller flange 1
CLE05 Rear propeller flange 1
CLE06 Camshaft box
CLE07 Induction box
CLE08 Igniter ring
CLE09 Spark plugs
CLE11 Cylinders
Engine group:
Begin by attaching the front and back
crankcase covers (CLE-03) to the crankcase
(CLE-02). Note that there are tiny notches in
the castings to help you align the parts. Glue
one side in place, then make sure the bolts
heads line up on both covers before gluing
the second cover in place. Slip this subassem-
bly onto the crankshaft tube, which you must
cut from (WP129K-1.5) to ensure that the
engine parts line up properly, but do not glue
the cast parts to the tube at this stage.
Slip the nine cylinders (CLE-11) over the
pistons on the crankcase so that the paired
intricacy of the finished model, this is best
done as you go. Using carpenter's glue on
raw wood allows the strongest bond, but
inevitable glue smears and runs leave the
wood essentially impervious to staining, and
end grain will stain darker than the rest. A
good compromise is to airbrush or brush
varnish onto completed wood subassemblies,
followed by a tinted coat to even out the
color or darken the tone, followed by a finish
coat of varnish to even out the gloss. The
first, sealer coat, is especially important if
you use water base products.
Britannia castings parts may be left polished
or painted a steel or gunmetal color, or as
suggested during construction. Sparkplug
insulators can be painted white. Other fit-
1 3/16" diameter x
1-1/2" brass tube
1 Britannia casting
2 Britannia castings
Britannia casting
Britannia casting
1 Britannia casting
1 Britannia casting
1 Britannia casting
18 Britannia castings
9 Britannia castings
sparkplug holes all face the same way, per-
pendicular to the central axis of the
crankcase. Now hold the subassembly facing
you so that the sparkplug holes are to the left
on the cylinder at the top. This is the front
of the engine. Slip the camshaft box (CLE-
06) onto the brass sleeve and align it so the
paired depressions for the tappet seats (GS2-
3) are centered in front of each cylinder.
Looking at the top cylinder, the left hand of
each pair should be closer to you. Glue CLE-
06 against the crankcase. For the best fit of
the tappet seats (GS2-3) later on, use a 3/32"
twist drill to clean the 18 depressions in
CLE-06. Finish up with a quick twist from a
4
tings, such as turnbuckles and instruments
castings, can be painted black. Varying the
tones on the various parts will add a nice
contrast to the finished model.
The distinctive wicker seat back is provided
as a Britannia casting to simplify construc-
tion. You will need to paint this, after gluing
it to the seat, to give it an appropriate rattan
finish. A tan base coat followed by light and
dark washes will give you a good effect.
After you have shaped and finish sanded the
laminated propeller, you can achieve a more
authentic look by staining it golden
mahogany and then building up two or
three thinned layers of varnish or shellac.
even 3 cylinders. Like the earlier rotaries, the Clerget spewed
unburned castor-oil from the exhaust, adding to the pilot's discom-
fort. Pilots were issued a small bottle of blackberry brandy to coun-
teract the smoke's laxative effect.
The completed engine subassembly slips onto the fixed crankshaft
at a later construction stage. Super glue and/or epoxy should be
used to assemble the parts. Care must be exercised with the many
small parts. Refer to Figures 01 through 05. For clarity, drawings
may show a single cylinder. It is a simple matter to repeat the assem-
bly for the other eight cylinders. The key to success is to carefully
clean up all of the castings and then to dry fit everything before
applying glue.
Parts List For Stage 1
CLE12 Cylinder heads
WP162-1.2 Valve lifters
GS2-3 Tappet seats
CLE15i Intake rocker arms
CLE15e Exhaust rocker arms
CLE16 Induction pipes
CLE17 Propeller
WP1218 Ignition wires
7/64" drill to bevel the edges. Be careful not
to drill too deep.
Refer to Engine Photograph 1 to align the
cylinder heads (CLE-12) on the cylinders
before you glue them in place. NOTE that
the two flats on the top do not match: the
larger one, with straighter sides, also has the
larger hole; it is for the intake rocker arm,
which goes to the side opposite the spark-
plug holes. The flats should line up with the
central axis of the engine, which will set the
two holes at an angle to that axis. Next, glue
the intake rocker arms (CLE-15i) to the
cylinder heads so that the flanged pipe on
each goes to the rear of the engine.
9 Britannia castings
18 15/16" x 1/16" d.
brass rods
18 Small brass eyelets
9 Britannia castings
9 Britannia castings
9 Britannia castings
3 Laser-cut basswood
5/32" thick
9 cut from 72"
black thread