Dragon Model Ships 1/350 German Scharnhorst Battleship 1943 Kit

The 31,500-ton Scharnhorst was commissioned on January 7 1939, and it often operated in partnership with its sister ship, Gneisenau. Buoyed by a top speed of 31.5 knots, this battleship wreaked havoc on Allied shipping with its nine 11-inch guns. It was involved in the invasion of Norway in 1940, during which it sank the British carrier HMS Glorious. In early 1941 the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau broke out into the Atlantic to lay siege to Allied shipping lanes. On December 25, 1943, the Scharnhorst and accompanying destroyers put to sea to interdict Arctic convoys heading to Russia. However, aware of German plans, the British intercepted the Scharnhorst with a Royal Navy battleship, cruisers and destroyers. Reeling under multiple salvos of 2195 shells and 55 torpedoes, the Scharnhorst finally succumbed to its mortal wounds at 1945 hours on December 26. Of the 1968 crewmen aboard, only 36 survived. As an interesting footnote, the wreck of the Scharnhorst was discovered off North Cape in northern Norway in 2000.

Dragon’s project to create a 1/350 scale kit of the Scharnhorst was a mammoth undertaking. The enormous lower hull is made as a single piece via slide molds, and the accurate hull includes the correct undercut shapes. The deck fits perfectly onto the one-piece hull, with a single joint line completely hidden beneath the superstructure. The deck includes fine lines representing the plank pattern, and the bridge superstructure is made to the finest possible thickness. The bridge is also made by slide molds so that there are no parting lines to mar this highly visible element. The kit makes use of multimedia materials with a judicious use of photo-etched parts. The canvas waterproof covers that fit over the guns in their turrets are made from DS in order to give the necessary flexibility and realistic texture. The gun turrets, made by slide molds, are fully detailed, with even their riveted construction depicted.

This kit represents the Scharnhorst as it appeared on its final mission in 1943. Ship modelers are certain to be tantalized by the Scharnhorst’s mouth watering level of detail and sophistication!