The G van solution

Yesterday I was disappointed to find out that Oxford Diecast's supposedly OO scale Citroen H van was in fact HO and far too small to fit in my collection, and suggested OO modellers should avoid buying this model. I'm pleased to now report that I've found a potential solution for those who have already bought one and may be regretting it that possibly allows its use on an OO layout after all, as long as you're not hung up on historical accuracy.

H for HO

What scale is Oxford Diecast's Citroen H van supposed to be?

Here's a brief word of warning to my model-making friends - don't always believe the scale a model is claimed to be! You're probably all familiar with Oxford Diecast's large and ever-growing range of mostly excellent 1/76 OO scale models, but I've discovered to my cost that one recent addition is not actually anywhere near this scale at all...

Chevrons Rally Top Ten

It's winter, it's cold, dark and wet, and the car show season seems like it was an age ago. As I sit here in the darkness, I think back to the shows I've attended this year and some of my favourite things I've seen. Although I've never owned one, I do like Citroens and the Citroen Car Club holds its annual Chevrons Rally just down the road in Little Horwood over a weekend in September, so for the last two years I have visited in the Maxi and been made very welcome despite not even having a Citroen. Here I present my personal top ten of the cars in attendance at both events.

As you can see from the contrast between the cars above (a 425cc 2CV from 1957 and a 1998 XM V6), the Chevrons Rally is open to all of the many cars made by Citroen over the years, right up to brand new ones, and there is always a large and diverse turnout. The 2018 event also saw a celebration of the Citroen Visa's 40th birthday, with an impressive lineup of 14 cars assembled. So without further ado, read on for my top ten favourites from the 2017 and 2018 Chevrons Rallies...

Back in the Field of Dreams

The weekend just gone marked the first anniversary of the muddy spectacle that was Shitefest 2016, and it was appropriately celebrated by being back in Chris and Claire's Field of Dreams. This year's official Shitefest took place at the beginning of the month at the Bubble Car Museum in Lincolnshire, but Chris decided to hold another open day in the field for visiting Autoshite members. So it was that another small group of shiters convened on Sunday for more tinkering, visiting cars this time including a beautiful Fiat X1/9 and a smart K-reg Astra diesel estate.

Tiddly Truck is alive!

...plus more Citroening

The weekend I recently spent with Chris and Claire wasn't all about the Oltcit, but seeing that was a reward for a successful day's work in the field of dreams. You'll probably remember the Tiddly Truck and our failure to get it running on the two previous occasions, but we weren't prepared to give up on it so the main purpose of our visit was to have another go at this. I can report some good news: it may have taken three attempts and a lot of tinkering, but it is now alive and moving under its own power at last!

This is how we left the Tiddly Truck last time. Getting closer but still not running.

Oltcit oddball

I have previously mentioned my friend Chris's love of all things Citroen, and this weekend I was able to get up close and personal with what to me is the star of his collection, something so unusual in the UK I doubt many readers have ever heard of it, yet alone seen one in the flesh. Alongside several Visas, he also has a rare example of what the Visa could have been: the Oltcit, also known as the Citroen Axel. Those names probably mean nothing to you, but the Oltcit is significant as the last pure Citroen design devoid of any Peugeot influence. It wasn't even built in France though - read on to find out more about the peculiar story of this curious little car.

It could only be a Citroen design, but not one you'll recognise

Shitefest take three

Back to the field of dreams

By now you should be familiar with our friends Chris and Claire and their field of dreams, location of this year's Shitefest. Having been a bit disappointed with the turnout at the first post-Shitefest get-together and with more vehicles in need of tinkering, they decided to open up the field once more to visiting Autoshite members while the weather was still good, so off we went again, this time in the Maxi with its huge boot filled with tools. Other guests were James (another local chap), Richard from Surrey and Hugh from Hampshire on Saturday, and on Sunday Anthony returned along with new face Julian from Stoke-on-Trent, so people were prepared to travel long distances to attend and were hopefully rewarded with an enjoyable weekend.

Tinkering in progress. Maxi makes an excellent mobile workshop.