Albatros Productions | Building the Wingnut Wings Sopwith Camels (& LVG C.VI)
Reviewed by Kevin Williams
The "Building the Wingnut Wings"" series of modeling specials from Albatros Productions, offer up a unique look into the world of the subject WWI aircraft, with a look at the aircraft during the wartime years, as well as in the case of this particular volume, some very nice detail shots from various museum type restorations/rebuilds/new builds. Adding up to roughly 60 pages, this would seem to be a sort of "one stop shop" for all Camel fans. Naturally enough, as the title implies, there is also a great selection of two of the various Camels during various stages of construction, with hints and tips interspersed throughout.
Nine sections make up this volume, and they are:
- Inside the Boxes
- Building the Sopwith Camel 'Clerget'
- The Rotary Club
- Tweaking the Duelists' LVG C.VI
- What's in a Name?
- Building the Sopwith 2F.1 'Ship's Camel'
- Tondern Raiders
- Aftermarket Accessories
- Appendices and Dedication
(Most of the sections, seem pretty much self explanatory, so I will elaborate no further.)
A large portion of the book, is dedicated to the 'Clerget' build of the Camel, covering roughly 30 pages, while the rest of the volume is dedicated to the aforementioned chapters, with excellent photos and illustrations to be found throughout.
A small portion of the publication, interspersed in certain areas, has data on various WWI aviation sites, publications and materials, and is most welcome, as they, as often as not, point out material that I had otherwise been unaware of.
Yet another plus to recommend this volume, are the numerous excellent color profiles offered up by well know aviation artist Ronny Bar; really good stuff.
Anyone with even a passing interest in WWI aviation, is usually familiar with the extensive line of publications offered, and the overall high quality that is typical from Albatros. This volume is certainly no exception, offering forth a glimpse into an era long since passed, but hopefully, never forgotten. Unfortunately for me, now that I've seen what these modeling specials from Albatros really have to offer, I'm quite sure that I'll now just have to order the similar volume on the Fokker D.VIIs.
Press release
My particular copy of the book, had an included press release as well, explaining the nature of the book, as well as pointing out highlights.
Typical Photo Quality/Illustrations
The text and model photos, are augmented with a very nice selection of period and/or museum restoration photos, giving the reader lots in the way of "eye candy", in addition to the wonderful Ronny Bar illustrations.
All in all, I'd recommend this book without any reservation at all. At a decent 60 pages, this volume makes for a nice addition to the library, and may well prove invaluable when I attempt to eventually model my own Camel(s). As stated previously, I like this book so much, that I'm now compelled to seek out the comparable D.VII volume from the same publisher.
If you have but even a passing interest in WWI aviation, this series of books (as well as indeed all of the other Datafiles), may just convert you into a fan.
Review copy compliments of Ray Rimell at Albatros Productions.
© Kevin Williams 2017
This product is available from the following LSP sponsors
This review was published on Thursday, December 14 2017; Last modified on Monday, May 07 2018