Galteemore

Terrific work, Phil. The KS 2-6-0 is a lovely loco - look forward to learning more. Kathleen’s exciting all right - especially as it’s meant to be the start of a range ! Imagine - an NCC 2-4-2T or a C & M ‘Blarney’……Neil Ramsay has produced stuff in 45mm gauge - see below - but mass production makes it more available for us lesser mortals…..

If you get the livery of the cart right, it at least says ‘Ireland’ in a way that scale 4’ gauge track decidedly does not!

That makes perfect sense. Salmon pink…. in the 70s, we had an old hedge trimmer stored in the long byre - which had probably travelled to Dromahair on the SLNC when new - and every so often when the turf piled over it reached a certain level, you’d see those pink wheels !

Like it. With the NIR rail bus painted two tone SLNC green waiting in the bay…..

Looks like a half demolished loco shed.

Lovely stuff Ernie. 4T is my favourite T and D loco even though it was despised in Tralee for its poor brakes. On the C and L, where fatal consequences were much less likely to ensue from this failing, it was more popular!

Wonderful stuff David. Just full of 1950s magnificence.

I’d approach someone like Johnstown Museum in Wexford re vehicles, and Gurteen Agricultural College or others can advise re breeds and what was historically used locally. In terms of the smaller scales, colour is as important as anything, and painting a generic cart orange and blue will give it an Irish flavour. This is a 3mm scale one I did recently - there will be milk churns in the back as per Ernie’s photo above! My mother was very familiar with these carts as a child in the 50s in N Leitrim and says that the driver always sat perched in front as it made the weight distribution easier for the donkey to manage.

When ‘Blanche’ was loaded, she was 15 tons over the load limit for the wagon. The bearings kept running hot and the crew taking her to Portadown spent 18 hours booked on, as it took so long to get the load safely down the line. Delays to the Derry Road schedule that day were significant….my dad saw these loads in transit, and recalls Blanche at Portadown without a chimney (presumably removed for gauging purposes).

Perhaps these may have a future yet - using surplus industrial steam for shunting is quite eco-friendly……

Brilliant Eoin. Reminds me of when 85 was being rebuilt at Harland and Wolff 40 years ago….at least the Belpaire firebox allows a little more room than the original round top!!

Very smart locos. The Irish 4-4-0 was such a varied phenomenon - and the early 50s was arguably the Indian summer of it all - everything from ancient, spidery GSW types as in Ernie’s lower photo, to the gleaming blue bulk of the GN VS, not to mention the 3’ tanks hammering across south Leitrim……

Looks great David and thanks for the reminder to those of us who are mostly show ‘consumers’ of just what it takes to put on a show. Hope Mrs H appreciated having such a quality layout erected in her home - what a privilege!

Absolutely classic stuff - wonderfully atmospheric.

That’s a huge debate when Stratford on Avon Model Railway Club start a new layout project. Kadee or not Kadee, that is the question. Sorry - I’ll get my coat - or hose and jerkin…

Just imagine what those trains would have looked like in 1951..ancient 4-4-0s or Woolwich moguls with strings of goodness knows what antiquity trailing behind

It’s worth persisting on their building materials tab, JB - the stone sheets etc are really very good. But I’ll concede, their stuff is best seen at an exhibition…

York Modelmaking for windows and doors. Although it’s easy enough to make your own sash windows. Slaters plastic rod and strip will do your gutters and downpipes - it’s what I use in 7mm and 3mm. Easily sourced off EBay or direct from Slaters themselves. SE Finecast are another useful supplier. These guys are good for all sorts too, with a great tool catalogue ….https://www.hobbies.co.uk/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaignid=2039839371&utm_campaign=Hobbies_Brand&utm_term=hobbies uk&adid=536046008612&addisttype=g&matchtype=e&gclid=Cj0KCQjw4eaJBhDMARIsANhrQAAyCgPkBqgz3fjQpcaw418sok_FtSlhCg_bQ3XA11p2xYbx0c07yLQaAjKpEALw_wcB

Fascinating stuff with loads of detail on what NIR used to be- back in the day when the old NCC main line was effectively mothballed. Nice to see the late Davie McDonald driving - the epitome of the understated Ulsterman….

That’s fascinating, and a rule that just sounds so Irish! With a bit of imagination, not hard to envisage a Brexit or post-partition scenario Irish line like that….’.any cattle transported by rail across the land frontier go duty-free etc’ - cue a 100 yard stub of the SLNCR crossing the border !

Thanks - that led me on a most interesting Google hunt! Images from DubDee on Flickr.

And we wonder why people don’t understand our hobby Sad thing is I know exactly what you mean !!!

Some years ago we lived near - 10 miles - the Mid Hants Rlwy, which in those days ran a semi-daily steam service with 2 locos and Mk1 sets in use, over a respectable distance with some great inclines - and a buffet car. It was possible to spend a day of more or less constant steam haulage for a respectable sum, and often with few other passengers. And some days they had the Thumper DEMU out, which sounds just like an 80 class….

It was an interesting area in the wartime era - was also the Gortnagallon long siding a bit further along the branch, which had regular passenger trains to bring in staff for the factories etc.