shapes of the decal matched the
shapes of the plastic and the job
was, as they say, “a good ‘un”.
Good though they were, they
were not exactly 100% perfect
and I found that there were gaps
left, particularly on the edges of
the cabanes and tailplane. That
said, it was a simple matter to
touch these up with a fine brush,
and the whole exercise was
infinitely superior to having to
paint my own little squares!
The lower wing was added to
the fuselage and painted. I tend to
use Humbrol H155 for Protective
Covering Number 10 (PC10) and
this was also suggested by the
instruction sheet. Humbrol H103
was the suggested paint for the
undersides. (Previously, I’ve used
Humbrol H170 and even H98
for PC10, with Mr. Color H74 for
linen, dry-brushed with H71).
The underside of the upper
wing was also painted at this
stage and my struts got their
woody finish, courtesy of Humbrol
H110, overcoated with Humbrol
Orange Clearcoat (note that if
you use clearcoat, your brush
has to be absolutely clean before
use, otherwise the finish will be,
shall we say, ”inconsistent”).
With the two sub-assemblies to
hand, it was time to start rigging!
Fortunately, the instruction
sheet gives clear guidance for
the placement of the rigging,
although it omits the rigging
required around the tail and the
cables linking the ailerons.RIGGING
Now then...rigging.
To my eye, a biplane without
rigging looks naked. It’s just
not right. However, rigging can
be a challenge and I know the
prospect dissuades many from
going anywhere near wire and
canvas. My rigging method is
relatively easy...provided you have
the right materials and tools.You’ll need the following:- Elastic thread, such as lycra
”knitting-in” thread or EZ-Line.
I’ve recently discovered Uschi
thread, which is absolutely superb.- A very sharp pair of small
scissors, and they do have to
be sharp to avoid crushing
the ends of the thread. - Zipkicker superglue
accelerator. This is essential
for setting the glue quickly. - Superglue gel. This is my adhesive
of choice. It can be applied in tiny,
precise dots to tiny, precise places. - Sharp cocktail sticks. Wooden ones
can be re-sharpened as required. - Good tweezers. Sounds obvious,
but you need tweezers that’ll grip
your thread without slippage.
Finally, it helps to have good
lighting and vision. I have strong
daylight bulbs and work from a
clean, white tile. It also helps to
be free from disturbance, and
neither alcohol nor caffeine help.- Step 1: A length of thread is
cut, slightly shorter than
the distance between the
two points to be rigged. - Step 2: The thread is
soaked in Zipkicker. - Step 3: Apply a tiny dot of
superglue gel to where you
want your rigging to begin. - Step 4: Apply the end of the
thread to the glue. It should
set immediately. Your rigging
thread is now anchored. - Step 5: Apply another dot
of gel to where you want
your rigging to end. - Step 6: Apply the loose end of
the thread to that dot of gel.
You have now completed one
piece of rigging. The BE2c has 42
pieces, including control cables!
My first stage of the rigging
process was to rig the vertical
”X” between each main strut
and the small pieces between the
cabanes. This was done before
the upper wing was attached to
the lower, simply because it was
still accessible at that point.
Happy with my progress so far,
I was then able to add the upper
wing to the rest of the model and,
because of the quality engineering
of the kit, everything fitted as it
should have done...either that or the
Modelling Gods were kind that day!
I now attached the upper
wing in place and I was then
able to complete the rest of
the rigging, including that for
the tail (which was omitted
from the instruction sheet).
After a nice sit-down and a
cup of tea, I now assembled the
undercarriage. Again, because
of the clever engineering, this
was free of any issues and it was
a simple matter to attach this
to the rest of the model before
adding a bit more rigging.COMPLETION
The wheels, now painted, were
added to the frame and the model
was built. Final painting was to
the upper surface of the top wing
and, whilst that was drying, I
added two small pieces of very
fine plastic rod to act as levers
for the elevator control cables.
These levers are represented on
the kit by moulded-on detail, but
I find actual levers are somewhat
easier to attach control cables to.
My final part of the build was
to attach the control cables and
to add the remaining decals.Everything was then all sealed in
with a coat of Humbrol Mattcote.
Job done.TO SUMMARISE
This is a nice kit of an important
early aircraft of the RFC and RAF.
Whilst appearing to the casual
observer to be a complex kit to
build, the engineering of the kit is
such that it is surprisingly simple
and a very good representation can
be made, out of the box. Throw in
some basic rigging and you have a
model that captures the fragility of
the real thing very nicely indeed.
In the Centenary Year of the RAF,
I find it both sad and inappropriate
that Airfix chose to re-issue
their 1957 Camel kit, alongside
their 1990 Eurofighter prototype
masquerading as a Typhoon II.
Their 1973 Sopwith Pup is a much
better kit by far, but better still is
this kit of the venerable BE2c.
I won’t be buying any Airfix
Camels, but I will be buying
more of the BE2c...provided I
can find more decals options for
them – come on, Xtradecal!
I thank Airfix for
supplying the review kit.Post Script: Avalon Decals now
produce a set for the BE2c.KIT REVIEWS
WWW.SAMPUBLICATIONS.COM • MAY 2018 • 63
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