Amusing Hobby 1/35 Rheintochter R-1

Rheintochter was a German surface-to-air missile developed by Rheinmetall-Borsig during World War II. Its name comes from the mythical Rheintöchter (Rhinemaidens) of Richard Wagner's opera series Der Ring des Nibelungen.

The missile was a multi-stage solid fuelled rocket. It had four small control surfaces, resembling paddles, in the nose, six fins at the after end of the top stage, and four at the end of the main stage. It stood 6.3 m (20 ft 8 in) tall, with a diameter of 54 cm (1 ft 9 in). The sustainer motor, located ahead of the 136 kg (300 lb) warhead (rather than behind, as is more usual) exhausted through six venturis between the first stage fins.

Rheintochter was ordered in November 1942 by the German army (Heer). Starting in August 1943, 82 test firings were made. An air-launched version was also designed. The operational version was intended to be fired from a ramp or converted gun mount.

The project was cancelled on February 6, 1945.  Several examples still exist in museums.

Amusing Hobby has built a bit of reputation doing project and prototype military subjects. So it is not surprising that they would tackle this one. For those who want to spend more money, one kit includes a Panther chassis. This one just has the standard ground launcher.

Both the launcher and the SAM itself are fairly complex kits. The SAM because of all the fins, venturis and rocket tubes. The launcher as it is designed to traverse in both azimuth and elevation. The truly complex part of the launcher are the operator's positions that are attached to the launcher. One wonders if they are supposed to stay put during the launch or not. I wouldn't.

Instructions are excellent and quite detailed. No decals are included or needed. Since this missile never reached operational service, you are pretty well on your own in terms of camouflage. AH recommends a few metal shades and much of this was made of unpainted wood. There are photos on the 'net or you can devise your own scheme. The painting guide basically offers multiple color variations for the launcher based on schemes used by general military equipment of the late war. 

This is the sort of military subject I like and am most likely to build. It is fairly parts intensive so won't be a quick build, but it should prove satisfying and add something new to one's collection.  

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rheintochter

July 2019

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