fishplate7

Eoin. That's excellent. Many thanks for sharing!

Excellent video tutorial! I would say yes, definitely, regarding the programming service. I was talking with some fellow modellers only the other day about this and we were all in agreement that this would be a good idea!!

That is absolutely excellent! The 121 looks and feels right at home!!! Imagine what this layout will be like when the tippex's arrive!!!!

Patrick. Let me join the queue of well wishers and to wish you a speedy recovery! As others have said, yours is an inspirational layout where 'less is more'! I always enjoy looking at the development of the layout and look forward to the next series of photos. I also note you have included traps - an essential part of the working railway! How did you do this - dissect a standard point? Tks. Eamonn

To see it finally in the flesh and complete (regardless of livery) is a dream come true! It has been years worth waiting for!! Well done to Paddy and to all concerned!

This might be what you are looking for! This is a screengrab from the JP O'Dea collection, courtesy of the National Library of Ireland. This photo was taken at Nesbitt Junction, on the MGWR between Enfield and Hill of Down looking towards Enfield. The distant on the left is for the main approaching Enfield, the line on the rignt is the branch from Nesbitt Junction which is behind the photographer and to the right!

This is a wonderful project and I am really looking forward to seeing it progress! Not sure if this will help your research of the buildings etc., on the Atholne side of the station but if you scroll to 3.25 on a video I uploaded to YouTube some years ago, it might be of assistance! Your era is older but perhaps the layout and buildings have not changed that much! And of course there is a load of stuff in JPO'Dea's collection. Keep up the good work and keep posting! Eamonn. The link is

I passed by the Ramble Inn at Halfway on the N71 in Cork this afternoon. I noticed that the various bits of railway stock (the brake van, bulleid wagon, etc.), which were visible from the roadside, have all disappeared from view. The site looks like it's being cleared out! See some of my photos below from some years back. Does anyone know what has happened to them? Thanks

Once again Patrick, excellent stuff. You have created a wonderful atmosphere!

Patrick. Absolutely fantastic! Its my era and totally inspirational! Keep up the excellent work and more importantly, keep posting!

That is terribly sad news indeed! My thoughts and prayers are with his wife and family at this very sad time. Ar dheis De go raimh a anam dhilis.

Many thanks Dart 8118. Re the paint I used a 500ml can of Halfords Primer Grey. I think it cost me c. €9. The best advice on using I got is to first put the can in a basin of warm water for a couple of minutes. Then remove and shake the can vigorously for over 2 minutes to agitate the paint. I sprayed it outside in a sheltered area with little or no wind. Hope this helps. Leslie's cattle wagons are next on my list. Good luck!

With Covid-19 affecting us all in one way or another, I decided it was time to get off the sidelines and dip my toes into a bit of modelling to pass the time and develope my skills! I had bought this SLNCR cattle wagon kit from Leslie (Provincial Wagons) at a show some years ago. I have no experience of building a resin kit, nor much more in the modelling world tbh. So following the instructions, and spending an hour or more each night over the last couple of nights, this is the end result! I have a small portable workbench, some sanding files, Swann Morton scalpel, steel right angle, tweezers, Loctite glue (the small 3 pack glues), good lighting, etc. With these I set about the task. I found it a really enjoyable experience, and learnt a lot from it - (this was a trial run for me before I attempt the first of 10 kits of the CIE cattle wagons, also from Leslie). So to some of the points I picked up, and things I would do differently next time: I should have painted the full buffer casting before fixing it in place. Much more difficult to do when it is stuck in! The gloss black also looks wrong I taped over the barrel of the buffers to keep the chrome appearance of the working element, but I failed. Ended up painting them all black. Pay more attention to aligning the sides and ends before gluing. There are gaps between the roof an the body which are noticeable on the ends. But this adds to the charm of the van in my view and i think I will leave it as is! The roof needs to be painted a darker colour - that will have to wait for another day when the shops are back open! I hope to fit Kadee couplings soon So to anyone thinking of having a go - just go do it! It is great fun and more importantly you'll learn a lot. There are lots of inspirational modellers on this site, and if I can develope a smattering of their talents over time to come then I'll be more than satisfied! All comments, tips, tricks etc welcome! Thanks Eamonn

That is top notch Noel and exactly the era I want to model! Many thanks for posting and giving us valuable information!

Ah yes Leslie, there's no hiding place to be found. Yes, you got it in one - fishplate7 aka Eamonn G. Don't worry about the children, we wont starve this Christmas (and I'll still take 10+)

Looks amazing Leslie! I'll take 12 minimum - built or in kit form! I think I'll have to give the turkey and ham a miss this Christmas so!!!!!!!!

Here are two examples from my collection. The colour photo is the down home and loop signal at Kilcock station from the early 1970's. The B & W is of the up loop starter at the same station in 1974. Hope this informs the discussion. Cheers. Eamonn

Great stuff Leslie. between 10 - 15 for me. Would love them in RTR format but kits are equally good!

Just adding my voice to the above thread. I bought Park Royals and a TPO from Tom/IFM at the beginning of this year. Sent him a cheque. Could not fault the process and the models arrived, well packed, and the finish is excellent! no complaints whatsoever from me. Eamonn

Well, my pair of IR ploughs arrived at a secret address in daylight hours during the week, and will be transported to their home under cover of darkness very shortly! Not much that I can add that has not been said already about the quality but they are simply superb! I have never seen a RTR wagon with such wealth of detail, irrespective of whatever angle you view them at! I saw my first weathered set at Bangor yesterday, courtesy of Graham from Mark's Models! 2019 is going to be an exceptional year for those of us into the Irish scene, with the arrival of the 121's from Murphy Models, the A classes, container traffic, etc, etc. I have now started saving to have full medical check-ups on a more frequent basis!! I want to be around to enjoy all this exciting rolling stock! Well done to Fran, Stephen, Patrick and Richie for giving us all a reason to live much longer!

Oh my sweet Lord...I'm not going to get any sleep now!! Amazing!

That's terrific news altogether. What a great achievement! Well done to everyone involved!

Done and dusted from me too! Good luck!!

Eoin. That's fantastic news - thanks for posting the thread. Eamonn

The instruction sheet that comes with the Murphy Models locos, lists all the spares you can order, which includes the staff/tablet catcher. Well I thought I'd be clever and order some of these a while back through Marks Models, which I did, as I wanted to add them to an A class. Alas when the spares packs arrived (I ordered a few of them), the only thing missing was the staff/tablet catcher. Seems it is not included as a spare! So no point going down that road. Is it possible to make moulds of the ones on the 141's/181's and make them that way? - someone on the forum would know I'm sure.