SPA Modeler

Posted: **Sun May 03, 2026 5:49 pm**

It’s a Sopwith Camel flown by the RAF Major William Barker who managed somehow to keep the same aircraft through his military career. This represents the aircraft following a rebuild of new wings and motor following a takeoff or landing crash on the field. Barker was uninjured but the aircraft was seriously hurt and was rebuilt. At the time personal markings and a red devil hood ornament were added!

Crash photo

Posted: **Mon May 04, 2026 5:01 am**

Thanks Bruce - I thought that was the case but I got a bit confused by the Snipe photo's in the first page of your thread.

Woops! That's not a natural looking position for a camel is it. He did well to get out of that.

Posted: **Mon May 04, 2026 7:50 am**

My first thought would be... "Oops!" in that crash photo as well.

Posted: **Mon May 04, 2026 4:38 pm**

Stuart, Apologies for the confusion. I confused myself early on and throughout this project. I’ve since removed that photo!

Posted: **Wed May 06, 2026 3:34 am**

Ah no worries Bruce, certainly no need to apologise. It's more like me being a bit thick...

Posted: **Wed May 06, 2026 3:36 pm**

Not at all, Stuart. Not at all. I did actually pick this up last night and looked at it, which is about all I’ve had time to do with this project for two weeks.

Part of the reason I did this was to see if I could simplify the upper deck by using a modified Revell part. I know once I start sanding and shaping that part is gonna never be the same.

Posted: **Wed May 06, 2026 5:16 pm**

speedgraflex wrote: ↑Wed May 06, 2026 3:36 pm I know once I start sanding and shaping that part is gonna never be the same.

Isn't that always the way!

Posted: **Fri May 08, 2026 12:48 pm**

Agreed, Stuart. I’ve reluctantly set this project to one side for just a little while. An ant infestation and visible mold in the kitchen means quite soon there will be another invasion of handymen and everything I own must be squared away. I’m planning to repurpose a box from Lyle as a temp storage for painted and partially assembled parts. Thanks again, my friend.

I also sadly made the mistake to watch a video on the demise of Revell in Venice, California. Although Revell of Germany now holds the name after all of the sales and mergers, it is a very different company. Only the name survived.

The video also made the point of stating the rise of video games was the primary cause for the contraction of model building. I’m not sure that’s the real reason model building shifted from being a major component of childhood to being more of a minor footnote. The rise of the Games Workshop era is adaptation and continuance. Perhaps with the passage of time and the ending of the Boomer era, video gaming has replaced model building. Combat is computerized. Certainly from a financial perspective video games receive the coin.

I know I like these older model kits more because they aren’t CAD created. The jumps from CAD to CGI to AI mean that childhood is no longer what it was for anyone here; and the design and construction of physical models is a direct consequence of programming functions.

Posted: **Sat May 09, 2026 9:04 pm**

Rilke warned, “Beware of irony,” but in this case I ended up working on the cockpit subassembly I designed as I was putting things away, so despite ants and mold perils and nasty biting spiders I am still pressing forward; thr irony being I thought I was going to be shut down for a week.

Posted: **Mon May 11, 2026 11:23 am**

Modelling is far more fun than house maintenance or housework.

Besides as Kryten would say, if one day the Earth is going to be swallowed by the sun, what is the point of dusting...

SPA Modeler

Revell H-291 by speedgraflex

Re: Revell H-291 by speedgraflex

Re: Revell H-291 by speedgraflex

Re: Revell H-291 by speedgraflex

Re: Revell H-291 by speedgraflex

Re: Revell H-291 by speedgraflex

Re: Revell H-291 by speedgraflex

Re: Revell H-291 by speedgraflex

Re: Revell H-291 by speedgraflex

Re: Revell H-291 by speedgraflex

Re: Revell H-291 by speedgraflex