The Molch (Salamander) was, for those who do not know, the Kriegsmarine’s first attempt at a midget submarine. 393 of these one-man submarines were completed solely at AG Weser in Bremen, Germany from 1944 to the end of the war. These boats were wholly electric, powered by a battery array and the motor section from a G7E torpedo. They had a relatively short range (64 km), a low speed (5kts) and carried two G7E torpedoes slung low to either side. They were to be transported to makeshift operation bases via truck and trailer and could be launched by crane or by floating off the trailers.
Despite high hopes by the Kriegsmarine, operationally they were unsuccessful, and the K-Verbande (Small Attack Unit squadron) eventually regulated them to training vessels for the other more successful midget submarines. There have been several surviving examples on display in museums, however recent searches have revealed that many have been removed from display.
Molch on display in Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine. Scrapped in the 70's.
History lesson aside, OTW Designs has an offering in 1/9 scale located here: https://otwdesigns.com/molch/ although it looks like Bob Dimmack is offering them as a special order at this time. On the page is a uncredited picture of a customer finished model. I have included that picture below for those who do not follow the link. Why is this picture important? We will cover that shortly.
OTW Customer finished Model.
Fast forward to ~10 years ago, when Subron4 had a larger member base than it does today, and I was still active duty. A member of Subron4 at that time, Kevin Price, has come into possession of a well-used and abused OTW Molch. She was in rough shape, the ownership chain of this particular model was pretty hazy, and prior to Kevin, I am quite sure that Tony G. had it pass though his hands, and I think Myles may have owned it at one time. Rumor had it that this model had been built in the UK, but I never had confirmation of that fact, despite talking to Bob Dimmack about it on a few occasions.
When I took possession, the torpedoes were barely held on, missing fins, the warheads were not attached, and the torpedo bodies were oblong from having the hull sit on top of them for many years. All the brass torpedo details were loose and failing off. The hull itself was in decent shape, but the upper hull to lower hull indexing system was broken and several cracks were starting where the horizontal stabilizers attached to the hull. The hinges for the very large stern plane were pulling out of their mountings and the rudder skeg was trashed.
Attached is a picture of the model as I received it. Does it look familiar? It should, it is the one and only customer finished model in the picture on the OTW site! Thus sets the scene for the 1st rebirth of this classic model.
Despite high hopes by the Kriegsmarine, operationally they were unsuccessful, and the K-Verbande (Small Attack Unit squadron) eventually regulated them to training vessels for the other more successful midget submarines. There have been several surviving examples on display in museums, however recent searches have revealed that many have been removed from display.
Molch on display in Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine. Scrapped in the 70's.
History lesson aside, OTW Designs has an offering in 1/9 scale located here: https://otwdesigns.com/molch/ although it looks like Bob Dimmack is offering them as a special order at this time. On the page is a uncredited picture of a customer finished model. I have included that picture below for those who do not follow the link. Why is this picture important? We will cover that shortly.
OTW Customer finished Model.
Fast forward to ~10 years ago, when Subron4 had a larger member base than it does today, and I was still active duty. A member of Subron4 at that time, Kevin Price, has come into possession of a well-used and abused OTW Molch. She was in rough shape, the ownership chain of this particular model was pretty hazy, and prior to Kevin, I am quite sure that Tony G. had it pass though his hands, and I think Myles may have owned it at one time. Rumor had it that this model had been built in the UK, but I never had confirmation of that fact, despite talking to Bob Dimmack about it on a few occasions.
When I took possession, the torpedoes were barely held on, missing fins, the warheads were not attached, and the torpedo bodies were oblong from having the hull sit on top of them for many years. All the brass torpedo details were loose and failing off. The hull itself was in decent shape, but the upper hull to lower hull indexing system was broken and several cracks were starting where the horizontal stabilizers attached to the hull. The hinges for the very large stern plane were pulling out of their mountings and the rudder skeg was trashed.
Attached is a picture of the model as I received it. Does it look familiar? It should, it is the one and only customer finished model in the picture on the OTW site! Thus sets the scene for the 1st rebirth of this classic model.
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