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Heller Citroen Fourgon HY 1/24


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This is only my second WIP post but as I'm waiting on some fresh paint for my chinook I felt I should crack on with something else.

 

Problem was, I didnt own this kit until Amazon delivered it too me last night at 19.15!!! 

 

Through the early 90s as kids we went to France for our summer holidays and from 2006 to 2013 we toured most of France with a tent. Citroen HY Van's were very prominent throughout the 90s, they were built until 1981 and it was a van I always like the simplicity of. In 2008 we toured the west coast of france and I got offered a1957 model by a farmer my brother in laws relatives knew. It had sat in a shed for 20 years and I could buy it for a mere €1000 and a crate of red wine. 

 

I politely declined but one day I will own one I'm sure. 

 

So this kit will be built as a 1957 model and as close to the photos I still have of the one Jerome offered me. It will most definitely not be pristine, it was straight and solid but surface rust galore, the passenger seat was just a bare frame and the drivers one had been covered by an old tarpaulin so was still quite decent looking tan vinyl. 

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I read a few threads on here regarding the poor quality of the kit from Heller and must say that has not been the case with this, everything has fitted almost exact from the off, and has gone together very quickly and no filler has been required anywhere which was a surprise. 

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Great back story to this one Craig, I love the weathering you've achieved so far, the seats are particularly effective.

 

If you've got any more Heller kits lurking, maybe you'd be interested in the Heller Classic GB later this year?

 

If you haven't got any more Heller kits but you've got a hankering to remember the days touring France, you may be interested in the proposed French Fancy 2 GB for next year?  Anything French or used by the French goes!

 

I love the old Citroën HY, but for me, the objects of desire are a Citroën DS and a Renault Fourgonette.

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Thanks Wez, I've only been a forum member for a week, having spent acouple of years with N gauge Railways, I had absolutely no idea these type of "get togethers" took place, most of the topics I've read refer to "Getting things ready for Telford" which I think I know is an airfix event with a competition there as well 🤔

 

It will be something I look into and find out what the setup is. I'm far from worthy of competing with anything I build, some of the masterpieces I have been admiring are simply stunning!!! 

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9 minutes ago, FalklandsCraig said:

Thanks Wez, I've only been a forum member for a week, having spent acouple of years with N gauge Railways, I had absolutely no idea these type of "get togethers" took place, most of the topics I've read refer to "Getting things ready for Telford" which I think I know is an airfix event with a competition there as well 🤔

 

It will be something I look into and find out what the setup is. I'm far from worthy of competing with anything I build, some of the masterpieces I have been admiring are simply stunning!!! 

Group Builds aren't a competition, far from it, they're intended to be a virtual version of a club build and they're simply a chance to model something on a common theme, in the case of the two examples I'd linked they were kits by Heller or anything French.

 

They're open to all-comers of all abilities, they're first and foremost meant to be a bit of fun but if we can pick up some knowledge, tips and techniques along the way then it's all for the good.

 

All you have to do is build a model to the theme in the time period (usually four months four Group Build or three months for a Single Type Group Build (STGB), the latter are dedicated to a single subject such as the Spitfire or Tiger tank for instance.

 

The main stipulation is that you have to have a work in progress build like you're doing here with the HY and if using an already started project it can't be more than 25% complete at the start of the GB.  Some GB's have additional rules such as the Heller Classic GB is only eligible to kits originally moulded by Heller up to 31 Dec 1985 (they can be a modern release of an old kit or in somebody else's box).

 

Your participation in any GB would be very welcome I can assure you.  I suggest that if you see a post for a subject that's in a Group Build, you give it a look so you can catch the drift of what they're about, but let me emphasise this, they really aren't competitions.

 

Back to the HY, I didn't realise they were still making them that late, I thought they stopped making them in the late 60's, it just goes to show.

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Sounds like a very interesting thing!!!  I will try and find some happening and try and catch up with what's happening.

 

I usually think I can achieve a better finish then I do so have quite afew kits to work on and try to better myself 😬

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1 hour ago, FalklandsCraig said:

Thanks Wez, I've only been a forum member for a week, having spent acouple of years with N gauge Railways, I had absolutely no idea these type of "get togethers" took place, most of the topics I've read refer to "Getting things ready for Telford" which I think I know is an airfix event with a competition there as well 🤔

 

Off topic but I also have a N gauge railway.

 

I remember my first visit to France and seeing a HY van for the first time, probably about the same time as you.  Although I'm sure that I saw more HY vans as trendy catering vehicles at events last year than I ever saw in France.

 

It looks like you are off to a good start with your HY.

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Well a couple of hours spent on the HY today, work has a tendency to get in the way and slow my efforts down but, hopefully shes starting to look a little bit unkempt and ripe for a restoration???

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Still very much WIP and definitely having some strong thoughts about a couple of tweeks, hopefully this week will get the inside weathering complete and able to get her glued together 

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Well a bit more progress (I think) has been made, structurally the HY is complete just all the ancillary parts too add and give a final weathering to, but as this is the first vehicle I have ever got to this level of completion I invite criticism over what I've done wrong to hopefully get next projects better.

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It looks great so far! I think it captures the look of these vans really well. My wife wanted something to build during the lockdown a while back and I gave her this one. It's been ready for paint for some time now, oops. Still on my list though, but she wanted it to look nicely painted, not rusty. 

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I seem to be getting lots of likes on the pictures so I guess I must be doing alright 🤨

I've now begun working towards the setting for its Ready For Inspection which isnt too far off now,  

 

I've made new mirrors for it as my 1957 pictures show them mounted on the top of the doors easily achieved with some 0.8mm brass rod, and being a '57 model it doesnt run indicator lights like the later models did. 

 

A simple A Vendre sign has been put in the windscreen and at €6,700 I'd snap it up in this condition!! 

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Both positive (if there are any) and negative comments invited, the world of 1:24 is a long way from my 1:148 N gauge background 😬

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I'd say it looks pretty superb, even more so when it's something out of your comfort zone. The only thing which doesn't look quite right (to me) is the headlights, although I think that could be a result of the kit parts rather than your work - were the headlamp lenses the sort with a post at the back to aid in putting in the right place? Just asking because they have a black hole appearance in the middle - it's probably too late to do anything now but if you're tempted to delve back into the murky world of 1/24 you can reduce this by painting the back of the post white. As for the rest of the model, pretty close to flawless in my eyes.

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Thanks Spiny (I'll learn how to tag you properly) the lenses were literally just glued in with glue n glaze and hadn't dried, hence the black spot, they have now dried fully clear but I might revisit these in the near future with a tweek or two

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