Eduard Weekend edition Hobby Plastic Model Kit Sopwith F.1 Camel — 1:48

from its Weekend Edition range, and lists it as discontinued.
Manufacturer

Eduard is a Czech manufacturer of scale-model kits and aftermarket accessories. The company is particularly well known for detailed aircraft subjects and its different kit ranges, including Weekend Edition and ProfiPACK.

The 8450 kit was released as a Weekend Edition in August 2008, with Eduard's contemporary catalogue listing a US retail price of $19.95.

The Weekend Edition provided the core plastic kit and decals at a lower price than Eduard's more elaborate ProfiPACK releases. Eduard produced several 1:48 Camel variants, including RFC, RNAS and ProfiPACK editions; the 8450 was the straightforward Weekend Edition boxing.
Kit contents

The 8450 represents the famous Sopwith F.1 Camel in 1:48 scale. The kit includes the principal components required to construct the aircraft, including:

Injection-moulded plastic components

Detailed fuselage and wings

Cockpit and pilot's position

Rotary engine and cowling

Propeller

Undercarriage

Tail surfaces

Twin machine-gun armament

Clear components where applicable

Decals

Assembly instructions

This is the Weekend Edition, so it should not be confused with Eduard's ProfiPACK Camel releases, which included additional photo-etched components and other extras.

The Eduard kit has subsequently been reissued by other manufacturers. A contemporary review of a Revell reissue notes that the Revell instructions were based substantially on Eduard's original #8450 tooling and describes the original Eduard kit as having good detail, although its numerous small parts make it less suitable for beginners.
History of the full-size aircraft

The Sopwith F.1 Camel was one of Britain's most important fighter aircraft of the First World War. Designed by Herbert Smith for the Sopwith Aviation Company, it was developed as the successor to the Sopwith Pup and Sopwith Triplane.

The Camel's name came from the distinctive raised fairing around the forward fuselage, which enclosed the twin machine guns and gave the aircraft a hump-backed appearance.

The aircraft was a compact single-seat biplane powered by a rotary engine. Depending on the production aircraft, engines included the 130 hp Clerget 9B, 150 hp Bentley BR.1 and 130 hp Gnome Monosoupape. Its standard armament was two forward-firing Vickers machine guns, synchronised to fire through the propeller.

The Camel entered operational service in 1917. Its combination of manoeuvrability, climb performance and heavy armament made it an effective dogfighter. However, it had demanding handling characteristics, particularly because much of the aircraft's weight was concentrated around the nose.

The large rotary engine generated significant gyroscopic effects. Experienced pilots could exploit these characteristics to make extremely rapid turns, but inexperienced pilots could find the Camel difficult to control.
Combat history

The Camel became one of the principal Allied fighters during the later stages of the First World War. It served with both the Royal Flying Corps and, after the 1918 reorganisation, the Royal Air Force.

It was employed extensively on the Western Front, where it fought German fighters including the Albatros and Fokker types.

The Camel was not only an air-to-air fighter. It was also extensively used for ground attack, attacking German troops, transport, artillery positions and airfields at low altitude.

One of its important late-war roles was attacking German airfields and troop concentrations. The aircraft's relatively heavy armament made it particularly effective against ground targets.

The Camel was also used in night operations and served with naval units. The Sopwith 2F.1 Camel, commonly known as the "Ships Camel", was adapted for operation from ships and was used by the Royal Naval Air Service.
Famous pilots

The Camel was flown by many of the leading Allied pilots of the First World War. Among them was William George Barker, who became one of the most highly decorated Canadian military aviators.

The aircraft also became associated with numerous RAF and RFC aces, including Roy Brown, Arthur Harris, Donald MacLaren and Cecil Marchant.

Its reputation was therefore built not simply on its technical characteristics but on its extensive use by experienced fighter pilots during the crucial air battles of 1917–18.
Production and legacy

More than 5,000 Sopwith Camels were produced during the First World War. The aircraft remained in frontline service until the end of the conflict and was subsequently operated by several countries.

The Camel's combination of excellent manoeuvrability, substantial firepower and difficult handling made it a distinctive product of the First World War's rapid fighter development.

Although later aircraft were faster and more advanced, the Camel remains one of the most recognisable aircraft of the conflict and one of the classic British fighters of the First World War.