Galteemore

Chary of admitting or aspiring to ‘greater knowledge’ but Johnson’s book states that shed allocation ended under the UTA. This implies that it existed before. I am not aware of any published lists, of the kind that exist for the GSR in the 30s: IRRS may have GN loco dept records - and the Mallon collection in Louth CC archives may be a mine of information. I suspect that, otherwise, allocations may simply have to be inferred from the photographic archive - how frequently a particular loco appears at a particular shed. Thus AL class no 59 was, I think, an Enniskillen engine, and has been identified (in Johnson again) as the resident pilot loco. Enniskillen engines could always be identified anyway as the cleanest on the system !

Looks like you’re right on both Ernie. Looks like Derry city in backdrop of pic 1. Classic 1930s boarding house background in pic 2 suggests Portrush. The table here was a fair way out near Metropole Corner and I think may still slumber under the weeds.

Turf, clearly!

On that note, never approach a Chinook helicopter from the front….the blade can sail alarmingly….vaguely on topic, one of my earliest CIE memories is lying in a hotel in Mullingar c1980 and hearing GMs running all night in the ice-bound station.

Sorry to hear that Michael. Will have a think about it and see if I can come up with something.

This is entirely possible, as I have the jigs to do it. But you could make it up yourself in half an hour. Happy to correspond with you and talk you through it.

Is such a thing even possible ?

And at Navan Junction.

Thanks John. I have never used Railtec so that factoid is noted for future reference!

A world without the Sligo Leitrim? Go and wash your mouth out!!

Excellent John. I think MicroSol would also work well in this scenario - it’s especially formulated to get transfers sitting well around raised surface detail etc.

Funnily enough, my first ever Irish layout was based on what this line might have looked like had it survived into the 70s. I modelled ‘Grange’ in a box file, here with a 141 indeed. Poor quality image but all I’ve got !

Almost certainly the lower rungs of the GN motive power ladder. P/PP class for passenger (possibly even J). AL, PG class for goods. Possibly C class railcars too, and a JT class for local trains. Or you could just use what actually ran to Bundoran, such as the odd U class. Try Sprinks 1970 SLNC book for background.

Thanks Mark - I won’t deny I’m tempted by a MERG gaslamp twinkler for the station and signal cabin….,

As in many other areas, the SLNC ploughed its own furrow in the area of train control. Block and staff instruments were kept in the station house, not the signal cabin as other railways did. I purchased a Peco signal box interior kit recently, and as I can’t prototypically use the block stuff they provide in an SLNC cabin, thought it should go in an authentic location! As part of my station build, the Peco machines (which are not quite correct but beggars …..etc etc ) has been painted up and installed in the station office….it will be invisible in the gloom when the roof goes on but I’ll know it’s there ! The green cabinet is, of course, for secure storage of the tickets that were issued in lieu of the train staff. The left hand instruments are Belcoo-Florencecourt, right hand Florencecourt to Enniskillen.

Wow wow wow. Couldn’t resist putting that last pic through a sepia filter…..absolutely wonderful atmosphere.

Yes, the panel layer only needs to be 20 thou - 0.5mm.

If you are looking at a cottage industry approach, might be some mileage in offering silhouette cutting or similar of the elaborate MGW coach side panels to use as overlays in the Jenkinson style of ‘panel and box’ build. By offering such panels, a huge amount of work would be saved, as the actual construction of the coach carcass is a fairly simple task. In terms of Shapeways, my own experience has been similarly mixed!

Thanks John. I have used a simple beam before, but on this occasion I will have to use horn blocks on a driven axle, which will require CSB of some sort, I fear….

The Upperlands ones on your actual Flickr site today are also lovely - glad someone captured that just before it all vanished

Would have been so much easier to use an off the shelf cardboard kit - but that scratch build looks so much better! Love the little architectural details that give relief and character to this.

Wow. Very nice to see, too, a Sligo Leitrim engine and carriage

Rough guideline is lower the speed you want, the higher the ratio. Over 100 ideal for a small shunting layout.

Excellent @Mayner I have just acquired several sets of HL Hornblocks for a project. How did you spring them, please?

100% agree. Any steam loco is simply an assemblage of different sized cylinders and boxes, really. Start off with something simple like a loco spectacle plate. Identify just what it is that makes this loco’s spectacle plate different from another. Look at drawings, look at photos, and try to copy what you see…not what you think you see….before you know it you will have one finished part.