MiniArt Panzerschreck RPzB.54 & Ofenrohr RPzB.43 Set (35263) 1:35

[Mike]

Panzerschreck RPzB.54 & Ofenrohr RPzB.43 Set (35263)

1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd.

 

 

The German Panzerschreck is rumoured to be a larger copy of the American made Bazooka, possibly captured from a delivery made to the Russians on the Eastern Front.  It had an 88 caliber, and could penetrate over 100mm of armour at close range in its first incarnation the RPzB.43, which due to the smoke and heat it created was nicknamed the Ofenrohr, which translates to "Stove Pipe", requiring the operator to wear a protective hood to avoid the smoke and blast.  The improved RPzB.54 had a shield fitted in front of the user, which was necessary due to increased power of the rocket motor and the smoke and heat that it generated on ignition.  This later rocket was able to penetrate 160mm of armour, making it an almost certain one-hit-one-kill weapon in the hands of a skilled operator.

 

This accessory set from MiniArt comes in a figure sized box, with the instructions and painting guide on the backside, and lots of little sprues inside, neatly held together with a couple of elastic bands.  Inside the box are six larger sprues, twelve smaller sprues all in grey styrene, a card envelope with a sheet of Photo-Etch (PE) brass inside, and a small sheet of decals for stencilling.  From this mass of sprues you can make the Ofenrohr or Panzerschreck, or any mixture of the two up to the maximum of six.  The smaller sprues each contain four rockets with separate stabilising rings, where you have a choice between the original ring which had the prominent wooden grip for the loader's use at the rear, or change 12 out to depict the later design that had the grip shortened and fitted inside the ring.  You also get six crates that can hold two rounds each, and six backpack-style carriers of which you can only build three due to the amount of PE finishing parts that have been included, unless you fancy scratch-building extras.

 

 

Building the Ofenrohr is simple, and involves gluing the two halves of the barrel together, adding the PE muzzle guide, trigger and sight brackets in PE, and then fitting a long sling, which is also made of PE.  If you wanted to depict it in use however, your soldier would need the usage hood or he'd end up a bit crispy.  The Panzerschreck adds a front ring, the protective shield, a shorter shoulder-strap, C-shaped barrel rest and the clamp that holds the shield to the barrel.

 

 

The boxes are constructed from four bevelled sides, floor part with three brackets to hold the rockets, the lid, and a pair of PE clasps for the locks.  There are stencil decals applied to both sides of the lids, plus the sides of the rocket in black and white.  The shoulder packs have a support slotted in half way up the back that has 5 holes (one per rocket), a lower frame with PE waist comfort band, and a pair of straps that fit onto the soldier's webbing belt.  There are also two small clips that fit to the tops of two separators within the pack, which will be really easy to lose so be careful when you're handling them, as there are no spares.

 

 

 

Conclusion

A useful set for adding background equipment to a scene, a truck or other vehicle, or for integration with a figure you have or are adapting.  The Ofenrohr is less useful in the latter circumstance unless you plan on fabricating the hood on your operator.  The inclusion of PE parts gives additional realism to the set, but take care to anneal those straps to get them malleable enough to drape realistically.

 

 

Highly recommended.

 

 

Review sample courtesy of