Mike Beckett

611111111 will also be tarped. So £2000 on tarps and straps.

This year we might get new tarps over the wreck. That is the limit of what we can afford for manpower and expense. £900-£1000 to properly cover it. This might give insights into the challenges facing a small railway with eff all support. We have to focus on rolling stock or locos that will actually carry passengers sometime in the next X years.

It’s coming on well there. The point rodding has my interest pricked, as a signalling nerd (through necessity), is there going to be a run round /engine release turnout in the platform?

You would have to weld up the doors.

Hence the quotes! M’learned friend, Lord Beaumont of The University of Railway Life, is of course right as usual (most of the time). Speaking for DCDR and ITG, we won’t be offloading any locos any time soon. RB3 is another matter, anyone want it? Even for a greenhouse in the back garden…?

That scrappy C (‘202’) is not at Moyasta Junction. It’s also, literally, hollow, with nothing inside it other than graffiti, drinks cans and rubber johnnies. I wouldn’t get too excited about it…

JB I realise this is the time of goodwill to all men, but as someone heavily involved in one of the major societies, has been implicated with the modelling weirdos, and also rubs diesels for a hated traction group, what on earth are you wibbling about? Be specific, because that is damn offensive to a lot of people who invest a lot of their time and money in things that nobody else can be arsed lifting a finger for.

Some more details about this running day, from ye website. Tickets on sale here: https://www.downrail.co.uk/event/diesel-january/ Trains will be running on Saturday 7th January, with the day starting at 11am and expected to run until around 4pm. Tickets are £20. For ticket booking, visit the DCDR website here. Planned traction for the event is: A class A39R B class 146 G class shunter G617 450 class Railcar 458 Trains will use the North Line from Downpatrick to Inch Abbey, as the South Line is currently under engineering possession. This will not detract from the fun, as the North Line is where the thrash is at! The day should feature: At least one out and back run with each locomotive/railcar Some mix-ups and shunts to watch A loco start-up or two A demonstration ballast train with 146 and the ‘new’ Irish Rail ballast hoppers and plough van Hopefully we will offer brake van rides up and down the station platform (within our premises) Limited and strictly controlled lineside photo/video opportunities Cab rides are not currently available for purchase, though we may offer some or raffle some on the day.

Looks quite convincing to me, and I should know….! If you want any pointers on some details that could be tweaked, let me know.

Shameless plug time: NEW YEAR DIESEL MINI GALA We will be hosting a diesel running day on Saturday 7th January 2023 at Downpatrick and County Down Railway, to clag away the post-Christmas cobwebs. No mince pies or any other nonsense like that, just diesel fumes and excitement. Available traction is likely to be 146, A39R, G617 and the funny railcar thing with sliding doors, 458. More details will be announced as soon as we have them. We are working on some fun extras as well... let's hope it works out.

Laminates 1918 and 2419 do indeed survive at Downpatrick. https://www.downrail.co.uk/rolling-stock/cie-1918/ https://www.downrail.co.uk/rolling-stock/cie-2419/ Not currently in passenger service. We would like 1918 to be refurbed soon as the brake compartment makes it a Very Useful Carriage. Also there’s a C class, C231, from the same pre-DART memories.

The recording source for the DCC sound chips, the real A39R, burst into life on Saturday for the first time since before Covid: https://fb.watch/gbKuwc5sX7/ Mega fun!

Pat and the gang need to get the finger out and make a G class. No, not a Finger. A finger.

I saw a pair of Hunslets on the Derry fertilisers pass my school at least once back in my youth. Probably should have paid more attention to maths and less to the railway line.

Are you seriously saying they need help just as much as the people of Ukraine!? Much as I admire the project, I don’t think auld Jim is being shelled by Russia.

Yeah, and I wasn't being personal with my remark, I didn't mean you - just the ratio of do-ers to wibblers is way off in this country. It's heartbreaking sometimes. Though I really do want 124, it would go well with 146 & co...

So do I, but I’m too busy struggling with our existing locos. More people need to care and need to contribute if a difference is to be made. Opining on forums and Facebook doesn’t translate into contributions of time and money. If it did, we’d be sorted.

Hah. It’s a couple of different pway machines from NIR for us, but it’s probably not my place to mention moves for various other organisations.

It’s definitely it. I’ve got the full load schedule for the rail moves RSS are doing this fortnight, DCDR got the first delivery and MaamX gets the next ones. Two hoppers to follow tomorrow I think. Then… secrets.

MaamX are getting the other plough van and the hoppers Downpatrick didn’t get. The plough van looks a bit like ours, only a bit… scorched. So not flully restored. The photo is ours, arriving yesterday.

What a lovely sight... three new (to us) ballast hoppers and a plough van in 304.8mm:1ft scale at Downpatrick and County Down Railway. Pat and the crew have done a lovely job on these models, very convincing and with a fully working mechanism, though we can't find where to put the giant three feet wide DCC chip in the plough van. Thanks to Irish Railway Models and their customers this month for contributing towards the delivery costs, and thanks to the unnamed and clearly mad volunteer who paid for the wagons (though he didn't fancy paying postage & packing). There's more photos on our Facebook post here.

On your marks… get set…. GO!

Actually we somehow got three. Imagine.

Remarkably, one of them has gone to a organisation that can actually use it on an actual locomotive, rather than as a hipster bar display item… imagine!

I resent that implication that we are abnormal, JB!