Ruston's
1000th Sopwith Camel - Profile
By: Steve Schofield
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The Ruston Proctor factory in Lincoln,
England celebrated the production of their one thousandth Sopwith Camel
by painting it in a special dope scheme. They also produced a special colour brochure to mark the occasion, enabling us to be a little more sure of the colours than we normally are when dealing with WW1 subjects. |
| B7380 was delivered to Lincoln AAP
on 25 January 1918. The special dope scheme was inspired by Colonel
Ruston's studies of Egyptology and represented the winged god 'Behudet.' During early February, the aircraft was used to promote war bonds |
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| The aircraft was delivered
to France in late February. Rather than repaint the 'plane in a less conspicuous scheme, B7380 was sent home again, where it probably served in a training unit. As to its eventual fate - I'd be interested if anyone has any clues... |
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| And now some colour detail
for modellers:
Yellow, Pale Green, Pale Blue and Roundel Blue bands on the forward fuselage. These were separated by black - edged white bands. The rear portion had more free-form bands of Roundel Blue. 'Eyes' painted on the cowling were black, with a white flash and a Green ring towards the outside. Wheel hubs painted with red, yellow and Roundel blue rings both sides. |
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The upper fuselage followed the port and
starboard side bands, with the tailplane mirroring the designs found on
the wing surfaces. The guns were painted with wavy bands of Roundel Blue (possibly edged in white) over Yellow |
| While the Roundel Blue band appears to be missing from the lower fuselage, the concentric Blue/Green/Yellow pattern was repeated on the undersurface of the tail. The rear fuselage, from the Pale Blue band back, was white. Front legs of undercarriage were Yellow, back legs Roundel Blue and the axle was white. |  |
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The top wings (left) were white,
with Roundel Blue, Pale Green and Yellow centres. Straight black
lines radiated from the middle, and scallop-edge black lines demarcated
the coloured sections. The centre-section cutout was coloured Pale green to the port and starboard sides, while the front section was probably Roundel Blue. The rear face of the cutout was Yellow. Red, white and blue roundels on the upper surface.
Lower wings (right) were similarly marked - roundels on the lower surface, this time, of course. The word 'Ruston' appears on the undersurface of the starboard wing. It may have appeared on the port wing too. |
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| Finally, the propellor was natural wood, with Red-Brown
tips and central boss. There were 'flares' of Red-Brown to either
side of the boss - both front and rear - edged in Pale Green, which in
turn was outlined in black. The Ruston Logo appeared on both blades. The engine cowling was Yellow, with black, white and Pale Green 'eyes' and carried the legend 'Ruston - Lincoln' across the ten to two position. Suggested Colours - Humbrol Numbers: Yellow - 154 Insignia Yellow
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