Sopwith Camel seat

[Little Cutie]

I have a question for the Sopwith Camel guys who have built the Academy, Hobby Craft or Revell 1/32 scale model.

I bought the Barracuda seat set from evilbay. It's two seats but not cushions. I don't care about that but who all has used one of these? I mean I can make my own seat cushions for it but does anyone else think that these are a necessity? No one ever really sees this once assembled. I built and entirely new interior for it as I saw one on a British modelling site but once it's built no one will ever see it. Am I wrong or is this something that you would recommend?

 

[the Baron]

I apologize for replying, because I've never built the kit or worked with that aftermarket set. But I have an observation, which you may disregard if you like.

The first question I'd ask myself is whether the seat will be visible or not. That is, will I put a pilot in the cockpit, obscuring the seat, or not?

If I'll add a pilot, which I prefer to do, then I'd probably leave the cushion out, unless it had a really noticeable effect on how the pilot sat, eg, too low, too high.

If I weren't going to add a pilot, then I would ask myself, "Can I find any photos of the cockpit, and do they show seats without the cushion?" If they do, then I wouldn't bother adding one. If all of the references I could find do show a cushion, then I'd add one, from 2-part epoxy (I use Aves Apoxie Sculpt).

That's how I'd approach it.

Best regards,
Brad

 

[Little Cutie]

Thank you for your reply. It has no pilot. The Wingnut Wings brand doesn't have a pilot either and those go for hundreds of dollars!! I have reference photos. I can whip up a cushion with some wood filler and sand paper. The thing that I am wondering is if this seat is worth the $18.00 U.S. that I paid for it? I've seen some pretty amazing things that other people have done with these kits even the ones that aren't the Wingnut Wings brand. I was inspired to do the same although I have put everything on hold after I got Covid last year and almost died. It's taken me some time to heal physically but the emotional side of things I have pretty much given up on everything including life itself! I am trying in vain to motivate myself to enjoy being alive but I've lost my interest in modeling for the most part. I guess I'm getting burnout from so much scratch building that I wish for something that I can build right out of the box. There's not a lot of it required but the scale is so small that it takes a lot of effort to make even the simplest parts from scratch such as the controls.

I bought the seats around about this same time last year after a lot of hemming and hawing. Now I wonder if I should recast it for the other model kits that I bought as the seats are incorrect. I am on the fence about just reselling it although I have reference photos. I bought one of these for the decals so the rest of it is incomplete. It's only missing a few parts so I will recast them. I plan to use the same cushion that I made last year but it's the only thing that's really seen inside as there's no pilot. I had to scratch make all the inside details as the originals are horrible. I made the stuff that's only available in the Wingnuts kits by hand but it's so much for so little reward as most of it will never be seen again once assembled. I only wonder if this seat was a good idea?

 

[Jim62]

My practice with aircraft is if you can't see it after assembly no need to worry about it. I have also stopped worrying about painting the wheel wells because I mount my planes on a base and no one sees them. Just saves some time and aggravation to skip painting things that won't be seen. Good luck

 

[Little Cutie]

Thank you, Jim. I think I'll use it but I'll recast it so that I can have the same seat in all three models that I own. This way if for some reason anyone happens to look inside they will see an accurate representation.

 

[michaelsatin]

I'm sorry to hear about how ill you were and how difficult has been the climb back! From what I've seen, those seats do look nice, but if what you need is something fairly simple, I'd go without the cusion. In the end, it's about what you want to do, and the cusion would just be more scratchbuilding. They look very good without one, so I'd leave it out.

Just my 2 sheckles worth. I hope this model helps you get your joy back.

Michael

 

[GaryG64]

I have a question for the Sopwith Camel guys who have built the Academy, Hobby Craft or Revell 1/32 scale model.

I bought the Barracuda seat set from evilbay. It's two seats but not cushions. I don't care about that but who all has used one of these? I mean I can make my own seat cushions for it but does anyone else think that these are a necessity? No one ever really sees this once assembled. I built and entirely new interior for it as I saw one on a British modelling site but once it's built no one will ever see it. Am I wrong or is this something that you would recommend?

Cushion or not is up to you. I added a cushion to mine and panted it an emerald green. My first WWI plane was a 1/48 tri-wing (sooo small) and the seat is visible. So, is buying an after market seat worth it? Whether anyone notices your aftermarket seat, you know its there. You have the satisfaction of knowing the work you put in, after all its your build that you can enjoy every time you look at it.

For my cushions I use Perfect Plastic Putty or Miliput.
I enjoy making a cushion for my planes it's something else for me to learn.

This is from my WWII Fokker. A well worn seat.

 

[smokeriderdon]

Barracuda does excellent work. And you can order straight from their site for future reference.

As for doing it or not. I tend to do cockpits. Yes, on many kits you wont see the end result or very little of it. Especially if you put a pilot in. I detailed a Skyraider I did, and between the pilot and the fact that that plane has a deep pit, you cant see anything I did. But I like doing the pits.

I generally tend to close up service hatches, engine cowlings etc as I dont want to detail that stuff. Aside rom thepit, if it isnt going to be seen, I tend to do a lot less detailing wise. But ultimately, its totally your call whether you want to do it or not.

 

[BlackSheepTwoOneFour]

Cushion or not is up to you. I added a cushion to mine and panted it an emerald green. My first WWI plane was a 1/48 tri-wing (sooo small) and the seat is visible. So, is buying an after market seat worth it? Whether anyone notices your aftermarket seat, you know its there. You have the satisfaction of knowing the work you put in, after all its your build that you can enjoy every time you look at it.

For my cushions I use Perfect Plastic Putty or Miliput.
I enjoy making a cushion for my planes it's something else for me to learn.

This is from my WWII Fokker. A well worn seat.

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No Fokker aircraft in WW2. Focke Wulf… yes

 

[BlackSheepTwoOneFour]

It's well worth the money buying aftermarket seats - especially of WW1 aircrafts. Some had wicker style seats, some don't. Depends on the aircraft. I know I planned on buying AM seats for my Sopwith Camel kit.