1:35 Feldkuche Auf RSO/01

A field kitchen on the RSO/01 tracked chassis

This injection-molded plastic kit from the Ukrainian brand MiniArt builds on the mold of the Raupenschlepper Ost tracked tractor and adds a box body with complete kitchen equipment to it. Besides the sprues with plastic parts, the box contains photo-etched sheet for thin details, a clear part for the cab glazing and a decal sheet. Both the doors and the hatches can be built open, so the equipment inside stays in view.

A tractor for the mud and a cauldron for a whole company

The Raupenschlepper Ost came about as an answer to the eastern mud and snow in which wheeled vehicles bogged down hopelessly. Low ground pressure from the tracks, simple construction and easy field repair made it both an artillery tractor and a supply vehicle. The designation 01 belongs to the original version with the enclosed sheet-metal cab. The cooking cauldron on the bed, which the soldiers nicknamed Gulaschkanone, decided the mood of a unit just as much as the supply of ammunition.

What to start with and what to watch

Finish the running gear and the body separately and join them only once painted. Bend the etched parts in a bending tool or between two blades. The pots and the utensils come out well under a dark metal shade polished out with graphite. Build the mud deposits on the tracks up in layers, so that they do not bury the engraving.

Who the set suits

• anyone interested in German rear-area and supply vehicles
• builders of dioramas with a crew at rest
• collectors of the RSO family in a single scale
• modelers who like plenty of small equipment

The parts come on sprues and unpainted; the box contains neither glue nor paints.