Bengalensis Posted August 25, 2022 Share Posted August 25, 2022 The Citroën SM; one of those top iconic cars of the early 70's; built to eat the mileage over the continent in good speed with superb comfort, using advanced French hydraulic technique with Italian V6 power from Maserati, all packed in that fantastic styling from the pen of Robert Opron. A glorious concept in its own right and well worth a good model to be built! If you haven't met a Citroën SM, here is a youtube video from Ian Tyrrell. Luckily Ukrainian maker USCP provided us with a very nice looking resin kit of the Citroën SM only a few years ago. Even better is that USCP now seems to be back in work, despite the ongoing despicable aggressions by their neighbour. Slava Ukraini! I have two of these in my stash and it's time to get one built now. It will probably be finished in the gold-beige metallic paint with brown interior, and registered on Kyiv plates, just because. Here we have the content of the box. All the resin parts are very nicely cast and the option of the standard steel wheels with hub caps or the Michelin composite plastic wheels are included. The steering wheel is completely circular though, which will need a bit of attention We get a sheet of photo etch, nicely printed instruments and very clear vac formed windows. The roof is very thin, and the temporary reinforcements are well needed to make it survive in the box. The edges around the front and rear windows are extremely thin, and must be treated with great care to survive cleaning up and paint preparation. The small instruction booklet is a nice colour print. The set of parts also come with options for the manual transmission or the rarer automatic, manual or powered windows, all well pointed out. I have made a small start cleaning up the bodyshell. A couple of imperfections, mainly on the roof, needed cleaning out and filling. Also some minor filling and sanding at the bottom edge was needed. The window edges and roof pillars are thin and fragile and will need to be handled with care during the process. 23 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keefr22 Posted August 25, 2022 Share Posted August 25, 2022 9 minutes ago, Bengalensis said: registered on Kyiv plates, just because. That's a great idea! 🇺🇦 Looking forward to this one Jörgen, really nice looking kit ! Keith 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anteater Posted August 25, 2022 Share Posted August 25, 2022 Oooh, this has my attention. Great to hear USCP are back at work too. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark_C Posted August 25, 2022 Share Posted August 25, 2022 Definitely following this one! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hamden Posted August 26, 2022 Share Posted August 26, 2022 A blast from the past one of my former employers brother had one of these (they were Citroen dealers) but we were never allowed near it! Looking forward to seeing this come together and thanks for the memories - great days Stay safe Roger 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeroenS Posted August 26, 2022 Share Posted August 26, 2022 Niiice! That looks like a very good casting, it looks gorgeous. I'm sure you'll have another beauty in the making. I saw one in the French car museum in Mulhouse last month, next to another one of those beautiful Citroën classsics. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatW Posted August 26, 2022 Share Posted August 26, 2022 Very interesting, I had two Citroen BX's, my favourite at the time was the DS, who a friend had the estate version, but SM was just too expensive but the top in design and performance. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klubman01 Posted August 26, 2022 Share Posted August 26, 2022 Here's one I spotted in December '20. Great looking car. Trevor 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElectricLightAndy Posted August 26, 2022 Share Posted August 26, 2022 Beautiful car, I have had the pleasure of driving one of these, as well as doing quite a bit of metalwork on it. The colour was a slightly tweaked version of the gold with a little more warmth to it. Looking forward to see what you do with this beast! Andy 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marco F. Posted August 26, 2022 Share Posted August 26, 2022 Great!! I will follow this WIP. The SM was a fantastic Grand Tourer sadly most owner/garages were not able to treat them as they should Good to hear USCP is back again. Marco F 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neddy Posted August 26, 2022 Share Posted August 26, 2022 Is there room for me on the train following this build? The moulding quality looks very impressive, the vehicle itself is a fascinating subject for a model and it'll be interesting to watch it develop. I can imagine how fragile the roof pillars are going to be - it'll make building very tricky but the end result should make it worth all the heart-stopping bits when you're sweating fractured pillars. I came very close to ordering it's successor the XM before being tempted away by a SAAB 9000 back in the '90s. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pouln Posted August 26, 2022 Share Posted August 26, 2022 Very nice, Jörgen. I remember that at the time Johan Cruijff had one of these. Citroën made sure that this was widely known. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bengalensis Posted August 26, 2022 Author Share Posted August 26, 2022 22 hours ago, keefr22 said: That's a great idea! 🇺🇦 Looking forward to this one Jörgen, really nice looking kit ! Keith Good to hear Keith! The kit is a very nice effort indeed. 21 hours ago, Anteater said: Oooh, this has my attention. Great to hear USCP are back at work too. You're most welcome! Yes, it's very hopeful to see new activity there, can't imagine how difficult is must be. 19 hours ago, Mark_C said: Definitely following this one! Happy to hear that! 11 hours ago, Hamden said: A blast from the past one of my former employers brother had one of these (they were Citroen dealers) but we were never allowed near it! Looking forward to seeing this come together and thanks for the memories - great days Stay safe Roger Nice memories indeed Roger! I hope I can do the justice. 11 hours ago, JeroenS said: Niiice! That looks like a very good casting, it looks gorgeous. I'm sure you'll have another beauty in the making. I saw one in the French car museum in Mulhouse last month, next to another one of those beautiful Citroën classsics. Thanks a lot Jeroen! Actually "7858 ST 68" is represented on the photo etch sheet. 11 hours ago, PatW said: Very interesting, I had two Citroen BX's, my favourite at the time was the DS, who a friend had the estate version, but SM was just too expensive but the top in design and performance. The DS is forever the Godess. I have two Ebbro kits in the stash I must get done before too long. The BX is quite under rated, even if it's in a different league of course, the design is growing as the years go on. 10 hours ago, klubman01 said: Here's one I spotted in December '20. Great looking car. Trevor That's lovely Trevor, so nice to see these cars being driven and enjoyed! 10 hours ago, ElectricLightAndy said: Beautiful car, I have had the pleasure of driving one of these, as well as doing quite a bit of metalwork on it. The colour was a slightly tweaked version of the gold with a little more warmth to it. Looking forward to see what you do with this beast! Andy I'm sure the driving was a much nicer experience than doing the metal work (usually meaning rust repairs...). Good to have you along Andy! 7 hours ago, Marco F. said: Great!! I will follow this WIP. The SM was a fantastic Grand Tourer sadly most owner/garages were not able to treat them as they should Good to hear USCP is back again. Marco F Welcome Marco! Yes, crossing Europe in one of these...! It's good indeed, I hope they can keep the business going all the way until the agressors are thrown back home and beyond. 1 hour ago, Neddy said: Is there room for me on the train following this build? The moulding quality looks very impressive, the vehicle itself is a fascinating subject for a model and it'll be interesting to watch it develop. I can imagine how fragile the roof pillars are going to be - it'll make building very tricky but the end result should make it worth all the heart-stopping bits when you're sweating fractured pillars. I came very close to ordering it's successor the XM before being tempted away by a SAAB 9000 back in the '90s. There's all the room we need on this train, you're most welcome! The XM would have been a great choise, especially a V6, although as much as I hate to admit it the SAAB might have been slightly easier to keep reliably on the road. Officially I have never written that... 1 hour ago, Pouln said: Very nice, Jörgen. I remember that at the time Johan Cruijff had one of these. Citroën made sure that this was widely known. Thanks a lot! I well remember that name, he was obviously also a man of very good taste! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bengalensis Posted August 26, 2022 Author Share Posted August 26, 2022 I had to do a bit of paid work again today so not that much progress. The front and rear sections need a bit of trimming to obtain a good fit. Thin pieces of Evergreen strips were glued to widen the rear hatch slightly. The low front end parts were easy work. There's more work ahead with the lights and bumper section. There are some pretty good detailing of the underside. The screw will be hidden by the engine oil pan. 11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabrejet Posted August 26, 2022 Share Posted August 26, 2022 Nice work Juergen: USCP make some lovely kits 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vesa Jussila Posted August 26, 2022 Share Posted August 26, 2022 Nice work! I hope I have next week time to start to follow these projects and continue my own ones. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bengalensis Posted August 27, 2022 Author Share Posted August 27, 2022 21 hours ago, Sabrejet said: Nice work Juergen: USCP make some lovely kits Thanks a lot. They sure do, all I have seen looks lovely in the box, but this is my first real build. 20 hours ago, Vesa Jussila said: Nice work! I hope I have next week time to start to follow these projects and continue my own ones. Many thanks Vesa! Looking forward to see new progress in your builds. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul H Posted August 27, 2022 Share Posted August 27, 2022 Can't wait to see more! Looks like a fantastic kit, and what a great vehicle. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bengalensis Posted August 27, 2022 Author Share Posted August 27, 2022 20 minutes ago, Paul H said: Can't wait to see more! Looks like a fantastic kit, and what a great vehicle. Thanks a lot! This time the wait won't be too long 😎 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bengalensis Posted August 27, 2022 Author Share Posted August 27, 2022 We have a little issue here. The nose piece is too wide for the bodyshell, or the other way around. I checked my other kit and it's the same, but I have seen earlier builds that appear to not have this issue. I suppose it might have to do with different resin shrinkage, or I don't know. I'll find some solution. The chrome wing corners also need to be rounded a little, the centre section needs to be cut so it raises with the bonnet (imaginary) and I need to add the little joint cover at the centre of the bumper, so I have to do a little work anyway. I felt this might be easier than it first looked. I made a careful cut exactly at the centre line. Then I sanded off material at both sides of the cut until I had the desired fit and CA glued the joint with the pieces held in position. Some CA and sanding later I had this much better situation. With the chrome corners rounded off and the insides adjusted for the glass to fit, the chrome strip cut for the bonnet, the rubber side sections slightly thinned down and the centre joint piece added from thin sheet styrene I had this solution. So far very promising. The bottom panel is just held with blue tac here and is falling off, but I had to see the parts together like this. 19 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windy37 Posted August 27, 2022 Share Posted August 27, 2022 Not just me cutting things in half to make them fit ! Gary 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrazyCrank Posted August 27, 2022 Share Posted August 27, 2022 Very interesting build, @Bengalensis and a good start on it 👍 It's a shame USCP kits never come with engine 🙄 In this particular case, it had a V6 Maserati, and it would have been a real challenge to detail it, and to get it fit entirely and correctly in the engine bay The Citroen brand is known for having bulky engines, which take up all the space under the bonnet, making it difficult for the mechanics to carry out any work, and adding to the bill for the customer. (Of course there were some exceptions to this rule: Citroen Traction Avant 11 CV and 15 / 15-6, Citroen 2CV 5 ("La Dodoche"), the AMI 6 and 8... ) 7 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keefr22 Posted August 27, 2022 Share Posted August 27, 2022 20 minutes ago, CrazyCrank said: making it difficult for the mechanics to carry out any work Difficult? Looks like a nightmare...!! 🤣 Nice solution on the front panel fitting Jörgen, very neat. Keith 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete in Lincs Posted August 27, 2022 Share Posted August 27, 2022 If the DS was a flying saucer, and compared to anything else on the road back then it looked it, Then the SM was a Starship! A fascinating design (and as @keefr22 says) a nightmare under the bonnet. Well done on the cutting. I'll keep an eye on this build. It has great promise. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul H Posted August 27, 2022 Share Posted August 27, 2022 2 hours ago, CrazyCrank said: making it difficult for the mechanics to carry out any work, and adding to the bill for the customer. A while back, my father told me that his father nearly bought an SM when they were new. However he said that there was something relatively mundane (I think it may have been just changing spark plugs or the battery) which required so much dismantling, possibly even engine out, that it made him walk away and buy something less complex! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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