1:32 SE-5a

A circle within a circle: what the British roundel looked like

The markings of the Royal Flying Corps rested on concentric circles in the order red in the middle, a white ring around it and a blue rim outside. The proportions changed several times during the war, but the principle stayed: the color bands were meant to keep the same width so that the roundel would be legible even at a great distance and against the sun. On the upper wing surface the roundels were usually larger than on the fuselage, because an observer saw them from further away, and that is the detail on which hand-painting most often fails.

The machine that carried the roundel

The SE-5a from the Royal Aircraft Factory was sturdy, fast and exceptionally stable in a dive. It was not as agile as the Camel, but it forgave mistakes and let the pilot shoot from a steady platform. A Hispano-Suiza and later a Wolseley Viper engine gave it the performance with which both Mannock and Bishop made their mark. It is precisely on its large flat surfaces that the accuracy of concentric circles stands out most.

Procedure on the model

Spraying starts from the lightest shade: the white base area first, then the circles are covered and the blue and red are added. The film has to seat without a fold, otherwise the circle goes wavy and the asymmetry is apparent at first glance. The box carries three national insignia stencils and assumes a finished, sanded and degreased surface.

Anyone painting roundels by hand usually struggles with two things: keeping the circles concentric and getting the same insignia to come out absolutely identical on the left and the right half of the aircraft. Die-cut film solves both by fixing the size in advance and repeating it exactly. All that is left is to watch the airbrush pressure, because too heavy a coat bleeds even under a well-pressed edge.