Edo

Looking great Noel

Lordy the father in law has 12 of them in the attic that he bought in a job lot when the Jouef factory in Shannon went bust 40 years ago - I must tell him he's sitting on a fortune! I'll track this just to see if it sells.... Well its salad days for the Irish modeling scene - there was I balking at paying 200 euros for a 141 this time last year and now the going rate is at least 300 euros plus - this is bitcoin territory. Obviously a lot of folks with lots of cash building up in bank accounts with little to spend it on in these lockdown days - good luck to them and I hope a good proportion of them stick around when the world opens up again next year.... I, on the other hand, have been financially hammered ( well the model train funds are non existent for the forseeable) as I am in the aviation retail and hospitality sector ...existing on 5% of what I was taking in Feb 2020............surreal does not come close!!............Still I have my health and my sanity ( except when I go on ebay) and I really must stress to the big fella up in the clouds that I think I have now had my quota of once in a generation/lifetime/century events impact on me!....

Fantastic Space - enjoy Jon!

No progress to report - just took the 42ft fleet out for a spin today - in between cooking the dinner! - 20210314_132914.mp4 delighted that the compact non prototypical passing loop still is able to hold up to 9 containers or ferts comfortably..... 20210314_132650.mp4

Hi Jhb I have code 75 in the scenic area of my layout - transitioning to code 100 for the fiddle yard etc etc.... No problems with any of my MM stock, IRM stock, 00 Works stock...etc etc.....anything after the mid 80s should be fine I got a Lima Gwr King Class with 4 carraiges and some freight stock circa 1970s/80s from the father in law to clean up and they wont clear the code 75 sleepers without the wheels being replaced with modern stock. You should be fine

Lovely job Noel

Definitely interested Robert

Feb update On the face of it - not a vast amount done since Christmas. I had a bit of a rethink on the underlay - for the better I think. Also changed the lift out section in front of door into a hinged bridge section - its functional - i can see it being refined as time goes on. The Bagnalstown yard track is pretty much cut and fitted - just the engine shed and yard to be completed. The Palace East branch is in place as are the goods shed and sidings....im going to take advantage of the fact that Bagnalstown had 2 rather long sidings/headshunts on either side of the passing loop (osi maps)to give myself options for double line running..... Thats going to be it for a while - work and the garden are going to take over until the autumn now - but i have a functional railway to run my As when they arrive in a few months time. For the first layout i've attempted since i was in short trousers (40+ years) and without an engineering bone in my body - its going ok and very educational.....next up is wiring which i will attempt ....hopefully without shorting out the entire Shannon region!

My very first Train set -1 year saving up after which we went the whole way up to Dublin after Christmas ( on the train!) to purchase in British Home Stores back in 1970 something.................memories! I'm another of the returnees to the hobby after decades away so am playing catch up - my preferred era would the 1950 to 1980 - the age of the snail and the roundel. So really its end of the steam era and the early to mid -peak diesel era - from the J15 to the 071 class ................so lots and lots of variety in there. I understand that Im still in a distinct but growing minority in this era - its a real real pity we don't have a serious heritage railway line down here in the Free State for the RPSI and other preservation societies to show off their locos to entertain kids and dads in their droves and then sell them replica toy train sets of same in the gift shop on the way out............... The IRM guys have a fairly good idea what is going to sell and what isn't .............and also ,more importantly, what is going to return their investment back into cash to fund further adventures in a timely fashion....lessons from the Plough I'm sure have been learned. I think the issue with doing an Irish Steam loco is how long they are prepared to wait to get their investment back...............regardless of the model - it will be longer than for a Diesel and some of the modern rolling stock.....I'd love to be proved wrong - but thats the way I see it for the moment.....as it is Accurascale makes IRM possible........ I have purchased a couple of the 00 Works J15s and I've over half a dozen of the A's of most of the early liveries on order so you can take it that I'd be in the market for multiples of any possible J15 run - particularly the later era variations with the high tenders etc etc.....( Im not a rivet counter but I know what I like!) ........and I'd pay similar or more to the 00 works prices for what I would expect to be a superior model......no disrespect to 00 works implied The 800 Class would be a luxury for me.....my interest is more on the quieter lines and mixed goods and country stations.............I'd still get one or two to support the cause and throw up in the display case..............ditto any of the other steam locos At this moment in time - I know the guys have a good idea of their customer base and what buttons to push - they know that I'd sell the wife and dog to a Moldovian Circus Troupe, rent the house to the Cosa Nostra and move in permanently underneath my layout if that's what it took to raise the finance for a complete CIE Steam loco collection from 1959...........actually 8 141s - 4 in B&T and 4 in Supertrain - would do it really! We're all a little bit mad I think................. My two cents BTW - the Manor Class looks fantastic.......God's Wonderful Railway was always my favourite of the UK Big Four.............I might yet be tempted!

Just fantastic Noel - you are going great guns there - more power to your elbow!

From Conrad Natzio's Irish Steam in the 1960s..... He mentions that j15 No197 had been subject to a further oil burner trial as late as 1954....most of the others had been during the "emergency "...but converted back to coal afterwards..... Below is no197 back burning coal in early 60s on a beet run to Palace East....

Hi Murph Heres a few photos of peco code 100 and code 75 side by side and piece of transition track ( from 75 to 100) to join them. As much as i'd love to go down 21mm route and make my own track ala David H, GM , JM et al....im just not at that level of modelling proficiency yet and i'd like to get something built in the near future....so im building a layout using code 100 in the fiddle yard and non scenic areas and code 75 in the scenic areas.....all modelling is about compromise to some degree - all comes down to the resources, skills and time you have or have not to spend....

Sound great - I must get me hands on a copy

He's on to us lads!!

My final Post of 2020 - what a year - and a happy new year to all. This year was the year i finally got the finger out on the layout. Progress so far has resembled the year - stop start - waiting for stuff - juggling the finances etc etc .....however im happy enough with things - all things considered. Im still awaiting a last delivery of track from Marks when the Peco delivery finally lands to finish off the track network - the layout is now really in 3 zones - 1) the permanent layout through the bookcase area 2) the display area of 3 removable 4 x 2 ft modules which is the station, and 3) the fiddle yard and lift out door crossing area. Zone 1 has had the most work - with the cork underlay and 1 of the 2 sheets of floor underlay im trying as a noise dampener down. The track plan is complete, cut and ready to be glued down permanently. The Shelve uprights have been reinforced and cleaned up. Next step will be to wire the section up for running and get the point motors in place...i also have LED lighting for the lighting of the Shelf sections ready to be installed....all in all lots more structural work before an ounce of scatter or paint goes anywhere near the area. 2) the display area - which will be Bagnalstown Station and yard circa 1960 - is coming along slowly - i've got the main line (dublin - kilkenny) in place along with the Palace east branch - i have the points in place for the passing loop and engine shed....and the points for the goods yard...all to be finalised and connected up when final track order comes in. The display area is all code 75 - the transition pieces to code 100 on the rest of the layout seem to work really well....again lots of structural work and wiring to be done here before anything else. 3) the fiddle yard area and lift out door area are still not really finalised yet - i still havent decided on a firm course of action as im not happy with the structure of the lift out piece and landing area ....to be revisited again and again id say! So lots more work this year - but at least it is up and running - hopefully i can get to some of Leslie's kits too to get some rolling stock for my J15s and Grey 121s Here's some video and pics of the current state of affairs - happy new year everybody and stay safe and please God i might get to meet some of you in the coming year at an IRRS meeting or a show as soon as its safe. Ed 20201231_205312.mp4 20201231_210348.mp4

Its a great book - i have the Western Corridor one too!.....put me down for your next one.....Limerick to Rosslare and all lines attached??? Got this from the sister in law......im expecting railway related pressies now for the next decade now that layout is up.....

My neighbour got me this - great pics

All my 121s have arrived and running great- poor B121 needs a little bit of tlc after a de-boxing malfunction - nothing that can't be sorted with a bit patience and glue!

Im pretty sure a very dirty CIE train appears in one of the Pink Panther films as one of the bad guys escapes from the train via a helicopter......was it the Mullingar - Athlone line? Just looked - definitely an A class - dont know about the carraiges.....The Pink Panther Strikes again (1976)

Yes - it was orginally an embankment What happened was that the Vocational school which was orginally built to the side of the embankment - it was massively extended in the 80s and the embankment was taken away to allow for this extension and new playing fields.................It was chosen over 3 other secondary schools in the area to be the designated community school for the area and it got loads of development money...I do remember there was unhappiness about the alignment being taken away as it was a very popular walk in the town for everybody - suggestions were made about making a tunnel through the embankment....all came to naught.........the school principal at the time was the sister of the local FF td............you know the way these things went....the railway was a thing of the past to be swept away.... 2 pictures of the school - the embankment continues to the right behind the buildings here - Borris House is the big building in the trees to the left.

The revamp of the viaduct in Borris is nearly complete and its now open to visitors to traverse. Needless to say - the Health and Safety commissars have had their say ( how in gods name did countless generations of Borris Youth play on the viaduct for over 150 years and nobody fell off) and the new structures have provoked mixed comment to put it politely. That said - Carlow County Council have made a fair stab at it and , a few minor details aside - have done a great job on it and it will hopefully be the start of a tourist greenway down the old Bagnalstown - Palace East line - a feasibility study has been greenlighted. Given that the last train ran in 1963 and there is more a chance of Andorra launching a mission to Mars in the next 50 years than a working rail line ever coming back here - I think its safe to say a Greenway will do more to preserve the memory of the line than anything else. Photos courtesy of my Dad (plus a few from the family archive!) as I'm living in the Mid West and travelling to Carlow is a no no for me given Covid Restrictions until later this month when I intend a flying visit.

I've been meaning to throw up a shout out to the Model Gallery in Shannon Airport for a while. Its a real "planes, trains and automobiles" collection courtesy of Mike Kelly and I believe its only the tip of the iceberg of Mikes Collection of all things model. As my permanent place of work is Shannon Airport - I pass it once a week at least - in these days of Brexit,Covid and all that awful crap that has accompanied both those words in turning our lives upside down over the last while - its nice to grab a coffee and come down to the gallery and just switch off for 20 minutes or so....its fantastic. If you want to visit - there is a catch - its Airside , as we in the business call it....... in the transit lounge which means ordinary mortals need a plane ticket to get to see the gallery....unless, of course, in true Irish style...........you...ahem..."know somebody" ....who can arrange a pass here's a few images to what is entailed - which don't really to it justice - you have to see it up closer

Thanks for the Card guys - its gone on the Christmas card thingy herself hangs up.....apparently ye do lovely christmas cards too!

Just brilliant - thanks very much to all at IRM and to PM! 20201209_210820.mp4