Radschlepper Ost RSO/01 with Wooden Shelter

MiniArt, 1/35 scale

Reviewed by Zack Sex

FirstLook   

As mentioned in my previous MiniArt RSO review, Steyr in Austria, along with several other manufacturers, produced more than 23,000 examples of this versatile little vehicle in various configurations. These included versions with square cabs, self-propelled anti-tank guns and a range of wooden shelters.

These simple wooden shelters were fitted to the rear cargo bed, allowing Wehrmacht support personnel and their equipment to travel across the mud and slush that characterised much of the Eastern Front’s notoriously poor road network. The shelters served a variety of purposes, including mobile workshops, maintenance facilities and command posts. Perhaps most importantly, some accommodated field kitchens, or Gulaschkanonen, enabling hot meals to be delivered to troops in the field.

While not quite Uber Eats, these mobile kitchens were vital to the strength and morale of fighting troops, particularly in the appalling conditions encountered on the Eastern Front.

The RSO was not confined to the Eastern Front, however. These vehicles also saw service in Normandy and Italy, as well as during the Ardennes Offensive and the subsequent fighting as Allied forces advanced into the heart of the Third Reich.

MiniArt’s RSO with Wooden Shelter is a straightforward build. Having assembled two examples, however, I would note that the right-hand side of the rear chassis requires trimming by just under a millimetre to achieve a proper fit. The wooden shelter and rear deck otherwise assemble without difficulty.

The finished model includes the wooden shelter, mounting steps and Steyr branding cast into the drive wheels, unlike the unmarked wheels supplied in some other versions of MiniArt’s RSO kits.

Highly Recommended.

Purchased by the reviewer