Warbonnet

Watch this space.

Derek’s buses are a work of art!

I stand corrected, it was a Galaxy. Planes never did it for me so my knowledge on them is weak to say the least! I might be mistaken, but didn’t CIE consider rebuilding the B101s similar to the As before ordering 071s instead? I guess CIE didn’t think a whole lot about the Sulzer powerplants to order more. EMD always offered great standardisation of components, quick delivery of parts and they worked out of the box so makes sense that 071s were ordered. Sulzers of that era were famed for leaking too and can confirm having been in the engine room of a sulzer Powered loco engine room it is the case. Would be interesting to compare the availability or mileage per failure rate of say a Class 24 and a 141.

I read a comment from an EMD employee involved that it wouldn’t fit in a Hercules so they had to hire the 124 through the British firm that were the freight agents for these. I believe this was a request from IE regarding styling. The 59 styling was loosely based on Class 52 westerns apparently! Regarding British diesel locos of the period being reliable, this is not strictly true. A Classes of course, but even in the UK there were the spectacular failures of classes 15, 16, 17, 21, 23, 28, 29, all the 263 Class 31s had to be re-engined within 10 years, all 512 Class 47s had their engines derated to improve their reliability. The Classes 40, 44, 45, 46 were too heavy and underpowered, the Class 50 was too complex and had a high failure rate. The Class 56 had availability rates so bad when new that Foster Yeoman bought GM Class 59s in the early 80s. A few years later BR wanted to buy a fleet of 59s but government pressure forced them to buy the British built Class 60, a loco with an availability rating of around 75% in early privatisation days, so a fleet of 100 locos had 25 out of use at any one time, whereas the 59s were posting 99%. Of course there were successes too, like the 20 and 37. The 37 is the only diesel loco from the era still truly working hard today, with test trains. There are some 20s and 47s still working stock transfers but that’s not the most gruelling of work. Most 60s sit rotting in Toton, most 56s are gone (with some currently getting GM engines) all the 58s are gone. I love my British diesels but they really weren’t tried and tested and a real mixed bag when it came to success when CIE was ordering its various generations of GM locos. GMs were working in the harshest of conditions and were well proven by the 60s. Competitively priced too I’m sure with lots of spares availability to this day. No brainer.

One in the next week (which is admittedly a little left field And a test in the water) and another later towards the end of September!

They are not in stock yet. The video is from the factory.

Morning everyone, Orders have been flying in for this overnight and almost 40% are sold already. Thanks to everyone for your support and orders! Cheers! Fran

Hi Edo, Many thanks. I dont take it personally and everyone has their view which is what it's all about. I just think it's important to explain where IRM are coming from and it's important to remember where the hobby was a few years ago compared to now (not to blow IRMs own trumpet or anything!) If we're not sensible then it's game over and the hobby will be poorer for it. Dont sacrifice the lab though, not when they have faces like they do! Cheers! Fran

Nail, meet head! Basically everyone would have to buy at least 2 (and some of you 3) of the weedspray vans to make it viable currently. It has one livery and you only need one, so why would anyone buy one or two circa €150 coaches they dont need? That's the reality I'm afraid, Noel! If we can work something out we may do something like this. Cheers! Fran

Hi Wexford70, We always appreciate your custom, along with everyone who purchases from us. I understand your point of view, but if we made the vans and were unable to sell half of them and the price was astronomical as it was such a small run (which it would be, we're looking at at least €150!) then IRM would be sunk and that would be that. I wish it wasnt the reality, but it is sadly. As I said, we're trying out best to resolve it. Thanks, Fran

The original first EP of the weedsprayer was shown here: https://irishrailwaymodels.com/blogs/announcements/first-project-42-sample-arrives also shared on the forum. There is a van for this set already available from Silver Fox models. We were honest and up front from the outset that doing the van will be very difficult. If you read back over my opening post it states that we have not ruled it out yet, but it is very difficult to do. We have been honest about this from the beginning and any level of debate cannot alter the facts of this matter. With a van available from Silver Fox you can now complete a weedspray train. I think people are looking at this from a glass half empty viewpoint. Thankfully there are many who are looking at it from a glass half full viewpoint and 25% of the production run has sold since announcement. Thank you to everyone who has purchased and supported us so far! Cheers! Fran

Hi Grahham, We would need to make 1000 of the vans as a minimum, which is a totally unique tooling. We do not have 1000 customers for IRM, or anywhere near. It's a completely unique body compared to other vans. As we saw with the plough vans these niche items dont seem to sell and we are a business at the end of the day. the outer hoses were left off as they would've caused derailments around curves. We modelled the container in original condition as it was longer lived and it is easier to add the panel than remove it and match paint. Both are prototypically correct. The 42 project cost a small fortune to tool and the grills would have caused all the other wagons in the series to be incorrect with mounting points etc., so we had to make a call. Would be a nice area for some etching manufacturer to offer components perhaps. We are sorry you are disappointed with these, but it does seem to be a highlighting of very small areas. Totally understand if they're not for you but many others are speaking very positively of them. We have had much feedback complaining of long lead times, now we release something to buy straight off the bat and we get more complaining. We really just cant win. Thanks, Fran

Thanks Robert, we tried to keep the prices on these as keen as possible! Thanks for the order. The headboards are not included but believe Studio Scale Models offer them. They were modified for weedspray use, but you never know! Cheers! Fran

Our highly anticipated weed spray set is now in stock in time to signal the final days of the prototype in service on the network! IE's weed spray train has been an essential infrastructure service for many years, operating every May across the entire IE network (including closed lines) to keep weed growth under control. In latter years it has also operated in September due to a change in the chemicals used. The prototype train switched from 20ft flats to 42ft flats in the mid 2000s with the introduction of the modified BR van. Operation was usually with a 141 and latterly an 071 with a very occasional 201 providing haulage. More recently the weed spray wagons have been paired with the larger sperry container wagon for brake force on its track recording missions across the network. Our weed spray pack features the three 42ft flat wagons with the distinctive weed spray tanks and a single CIE 20ft container used for storage of supplies. The tanks used were re-purposed from four wheeled tank wagons featuring the distinctive Bulleid triangulated underframes. This set is finished off with a 20ft container finished in a darker brown shade to reflect the darkened state of the prototype in service. As you can now expect from our models, the weed spray pack features a high level of detail and prototype fidelity to do these interesting prototypes justice! the diecast framed wagons feature sprung buffers, kinematic couplings with NEM pockets at correct height (and separate coupling bars provided for close coupling) as well as weighty tanks and container. We are still looking at producing the weed spray van, but as it is such a unique vehicle it is very hard to justify a RTR model. Thankfully there are models of this van already available in model form. The weed spray pack is now in stock and available for €150 for the three wagons. An essential pack for any layout based over the last 15 years of operation, this self contained short train is perfect for haulage behind your 141 or 071 models. Production is limited so make sure you place an order quickly for immediate dispatch here before they go! Place your order by clicking here. Cheers! Fran

Hi everyone, Hot on the heels of pack J selling out, our other slate grey pack, pack I, is now running low on numbers too. Don't miss out, order here: https://irishrailwaymodels.com/collections/cement-bubbles/products/cie-grey-cement-wagon-multi-pack-i Cheers! Fran

It has been cancelled due to a new Hornby model on the way.

We still have some containers left at least!

It's certainly something being considered among other things. We do have an interesting accessory coming soon that we're nearing production completion on that should be popular. A case of 'watch this space'

Hi everyone, They certainly seemed popular and we wouldnt rule out a rerun in the future for sure! Thanks to everyone who ordered!

They run across the IE network and have worked Enterprise trains previously on occasion.

We cannot disclose that information, but we sold a lot of them both!

Top is as delivered, one by the IMP is repainted by CIE in SuperTrain.

I like the sales pitch

Hi everyone, Some tantalizing pictures in from Murphy Models showing the various liveries with Supertrain to follow! Make sure you get your order in with us and support your Irish model railway manufacturers! https://irishrailwaymodels.com/collections/murphy-models-class-121-locomotive Enjoy! All pics are copyright of Murphy Models. Cheers! Fran

The craic starts when you compare a modern day 071 and an NIR 111. I'm convinced they sound slightly different due to the engine upgrades the 071s got, but I might be going mad (and I am slightly deaf to say the least, but maybe someone can confirm or deny this sound difference!) Cheers! Fran