Warbonnet

Our beautiful Mark 1 suburban coaches have reached decoration sample stage and are looking very nice indeed. The 56ft 11" Mark 1 suburban coaches have been high on the wishlists of many modellers for sometime and required a 21st century model of these distinctive carriages to match our forthcoming Class 31 locomotives. We were delighted to take on that challenge, and have given them the full Accurascale treatment, particularly when it comes to the interiors. As previewed with our recent announcement of the Accurascale Exclusive BR BTU Tool Van ADB 963952, the decorated samples for the subs have arrived and while they show how attractive the coaches look with a lick of paint, they also show there is room for some improvements. Firstly, the footboards will be corrected, with the samples using wavy parts that will have much better rigidity once on the final models that run on your layout. On the whole, we are very happy with the colour shade of the coach bodies, between BR Blue and Carmine they look excellent and faithful renditions of both liveries. However, the shade of brown used for the BR Blue coaches is incorrect, and will be a much darker shade on the finished models. There will also be improvements to the shade used on the battery boxes. Lots of lovely detail though, right? Interiors are also shaping up nicely, with the decorated samples showing the lengths we have gone to when producing accurate representations of these coaches. With fully painted interiors, etched luggage racks and printed detail such as route maps, all visible via the removable magnetic roof and fully lit, they promise to add something a bit special to the coaching stock on your layout. With the corrections now fed back to the factory production can now commence and a delivery date of Q4 2023 is envisaged. With a museum quality specification of full diecast chassis, next level interior detailing and lighting, beautifully smooth running characteristics, a wealth of detail both internally and externally and close coupling system these aim to set yet another benchmark when it comes to OO gauge coaching stock. Pre-order yours today, with each coach priced at £64.95 which represents excellent value for money considering the high specification, via your local stockist or direct via our website. Remember too that you get 10% off when you order two or more coaches and free postage and packaging via the Accurascale website, as well as loyalty bonus points off future purchases! Pre-order below: Pre-Order Your Mark 1 Sub Coaches Here! View the full article

Time for another progress report, and this time it's the first showing of the decorated samples of our lovely Southern Railway D1478 and D1479 Diagram Banana Vans in OO/4mm. We alluded to receiving decorated samples of these vans when we launched our latest "Accurascale Exclusive" model last week, which was the Departmental Ballast Cleaner Support Van, repurposed from a D1478 wagon. Now, we get to share the rest of the Banana Van range with you. Particular attention has been paid to the logos of the differing banana importers, and getting the torn and worn look of these labels spot on, just like the prototypes. Distressing has also been added to the roof area of the departmental 'Tadpole' vehicles, to reflect their later life condition complete with replacement and beaten planking. The roof distressing is a complex and expensive process of tampo design and printing, but we feel it just adds that extra bit of realism to the models. These models are now signed off for production and it is now underway, with our delivery schedule of Q3 2023 remaining on course. Prices are £84.95 per triple pack of individually numbered wagons, each with their own unique decoration and each feature market leading specification from diecast chassis, a wealth of separately applied details and brass bearings for axles to ensure silky smooth running. Remember too, that if you buy direct from our website you get 10% off when you buy two packs or more and free UK postage and packaging. Pre-order below, or via your local stockist. Pre-Order Your Banana Vans Here! View the full article

Hi everyone, Just 20% of these beauties left. Looks like they wont last much longer in stock, so if you want them now is the time to act. Around 10% of our costal tour double deckers left too, so make sure you don't miss out! Shop: https://irishrailwaymodels.com/collections/exclusive-irm-buses/availability_in-stock Cheers! Fran

Hi everyone, Time for a quick update on our NIR Mark 2b coach project, which is now rapidly progressing through production. Here you can see the body shells and interiors are being painted, in this case RPSI Green. Once this is complete then it is onto final assembly which will be completed at the end of June, ahead of delivery with customers of all NIR and RPSI packs in mid-August! These sets are completely sold out, but register your interest on our website by clicking on the notification email on each set you desire and should any go back on the website you will get an email prompt then. https://irishrailwaymodels.com/collections/mark-2-coaches Cheers! Fran

Our 56ft 11' Mark 1 Suburban coaches have now progressed to decoration stage, so look out for some tasty images showing them off in BR Blue and Carmine in the coming weeks. However, in the meantime we have a special treat; a look at our new Accurascale Exclusives model from the Mark 1 Sub range. Welcome to BR BTU Tool Vans ADB 963952! History The introduction of Diesel Multiple Units gathered pace during the 1960s, meaning much of the Mk1 non-gangway stock was phased out of traffic, but for some of the vehicles new uses were found, especially in freight flows and, later, as Departmental vehicles. With the introduction of Freightliner trains, British Rail and the Train Drivers’ Union, ASLEF (The Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen), were unable to come to an agreement over where Guards should be housed in these new fully fitted trains. Initially, containers were converted into ‘Caboose’ style accommodation but with the ride and safety severely compromised, it was decided to convert a number of redundant Mk1 Brake vehicles into Freightliner Guards’ Vans as a temporary measure until a more permanent solution could be found. The majority of these vehicles were converted from Mk1 non-gangway Brake Seconds, with 43 ex-Midland, Eastern and Scottish coaches being converted at Derby and Swindon works between June 1966 and October 1967, entering service on Freightliner flows in a plain grey livery. Once BR and ASLEF had reached an agreement for Guards to ride in the rear cab of the hauling locomotives, the Brake vans were once again surplus to requirements, with just seven vehicles being pressed into service as Departmental vans: DB 963904, 963906, 963925 and 963947 as Crane Runners and ADB 963943, 963952 and 963953 as BTU Tool Vans. ADB 963952 started life as Sc43326, one of the 1955 York built Brake Thirds built to Lot 30057 and once retired from the Scottish Region, was converted into a Freightliner Brake Van at Swindon in September 1967. Conversion to a BTU Tool Van took place at Doncaster in 1980 and the vehicle stayed in service until June 1988, when fire damage rendered the coach unusable and it was eventually cut up at Temple Mill Yard in June 1992. The Model Using photographs of the real ADB 963952 we have captured the eye-catching and distinctive departmental yellow livery synonymous with breakdown trains of the 1980s. We have also modelled the roof in "distressed" condition, capturing the patchy and marked condition Mark 1 coaches tended to accumulate in later life, particularly when removed from squadron service into departmental duties. Corrections on this first decorated sample are required, especially around the finish of the plated over windows, which will be executed more convincingly on the production models modellers will receive. The running boards will also be straight as an arrow, and not wavy like this sample! As with all our models, the specification list is extensive: Scale length of 227.67mm over headstocks, width of 36mm across body at waist. Minimum Radius 438mm (2nd radius set-track). No visible moulding ejection marks or pips. Die-cast metal chassis with plastic body. Accurate BREL BR1 bogies, with separate detailing where appropriate. Wheels RP25-110 profile for 00 gauge, set into blackened brass bearings. NEM standard coupling sockets, with mini-tension lock couplers with a kinematic close-coupling system. Body, interior and underframe are handed, therefore CAD should account for this with fitting being only possible in one axis. Scale width wire handrails, water pipes, passenger communication gear. Separately fitted door handles and lamp brackets. Headstock pipes and cabling included in accessory polybag for customer fitting. Fully detailed die-cast underframe with vacuum cylinders, battery boxes, dynamo and piping applied separately. To feature accurate ‘L’ shaped bracing struts on underframe. Easily removable roof, to allow access to interior for customer detailing. Accurate interior layouts, with detailed seating and luggage racks. (Decorated where appropriate) Interior bulkheads to feature picture frames, an important interior feature of this stock. Full guard’s compartment area detailing where appropriate, including use of etched metal detailing. Prism free flush glazing. Interior coach lighting with stay-alive capacitor, pick up from one bogie and a reed switch to control on/off via magnetic wand. Separately fitted roof vent types, set in correct locations. Delivery is slated for late Q3 2023 with the rest of the Mark 1 suburban range. Priced at £64.95, this converted coach is part of our "Accurascale Exclusives" range and will come in special presentation packaging. Grab yours by clicking here! View the full article

God, that eejit talks some nonsense!

As above, there were blue taras running into the early-mid 1990s, just absolutely filthy under the grime. Some were patched with large amounts of red oxide paint and the wagons were gradually turned out in this livery. So, the blue ones give you an operating scope of about 15-20 years from mid-late 1970s to mid 1990s... Cheers! Fran

Nice photo here. If you zoom in you can see that they're blue

Back in October we went bananas and announced our lovely range of Southern Railway D1478 and D1479 Diagram Banana Vans in OO/4mm scale. We have recently received decorated samples for this fleet of vans, so keep an eye out for their beauty shots in the coming weeks. However, these vans also gave us an opportunity to create a little "Accurascale Exclusive" model detailing these wagons in departmental use. So, as a little deco taster, and an all new exclusive model available direct from our website only, here is ballast cleaner support van DS50594, featuring some rather nifty decoration techniques to display the model in worn condition! History During the 1950s, British Rail’s Research Unit had revealed compacted track beds full of irregular stones, steam engine ash and often material from the construction of the line across the rail network, none of which helped to create satisfactory tamping operations, or for maintaining good track geometry as track speeds increased. The best way to rectify this was to remove at least nine inches of sub-track material and to replace it with regular sized 70mm railway ballast. To do this BR ordered a number of ballast cleaning machines to mechanise this process, these being initially built to two designs by the Swiss Matisa SA company. As the project developed Austrian firm Plasser & Theurer developed a larger self-propelled RM62 ballast cleaner unit and BR ordered 20 of these machines between 1966 and 1974 to work across the rail network. These ballast cleaning machines were formed into self-contained trains, and were typically formed with a 20T brakevan at the head, followed by the ballast cleaning unit, then a 12T type ‘tool’ van, a staff coach and, finally, a second 20T brakeman. The stock was sourced from existing end-of-life vehicles and this was how ex-D.1478 Banana Van S50594 came to be used in Departmental service. Modelled in its post-February 1972 condition, taken from a photograph supplied by Mike King, DS50594 was largely unaltered, albeit that the former codes have been painted out and Ballast Train legends and numbering applied. At this time, even the Yellow spot remained, with a faint trace of the Tare weight remaining. The Model First announced at GETS in October 2022, our D1478 and D1479 banana vans saw us enter the vast wagon area of the big four railways for the first time, offering a much needed 'missing link' for Southern Railway and BR modellers. Banana vans have been poorly served by the 'Ready to Run' market for many years and we were keen to step up to the mark. We also love a departmental wagon, and couldn't resist the opportunity to model these wagons in their later guise from the 1970s. Depicting this D1478 van in its later condition also allowed us to go one step further with our decoration of the model, presenting the van in its later worn condition with faded paint, torn labels and bleached and distressed roof, as per the real wagons! This is an intricate decoration process which we hope to add to more models in the future if popular. All you need to do is add some road dirt to take these vans one step beyond. This van is now available to pre-order via the Accurascale website only at a price of £29.95 and will of course feature special presentation packaging and documentation. It will arrive with our first run of banana vans in Q4 2023! Click Here To Pre-Order Your Ballast Cleaner Train Van View the full article

Hi everyone, Check out the weathering job our warranty man Tony did on one of our lovely blue Tara Mines wagons. It really captures the look of these wagons as they were in service during the 1980s and 1990s and brings out all the detail. behind the bright blue paint finish of the prototypes. Many of us would love a filthy blue Tara in our lives, and you can enjoy this excitement to your life by picking up some packs of our blue Taras via our website and get the weathering materials out. These Taras are quite cheap too, making them an even more enticing prospect of just €63.96 per twin pack, and 10% off when you buy two packs or more! This limited time offer ends very soon, so make sure you grab them now: https://irishrailwaymodels.com/collections/tara-mines/availability_in-stock Cheers! Fran

Our Accurascale family grows ever stronger as Alex Carpenter has joined us in the role of Project Manager (Special Projects and Reproductions). Alex will be familiar to many within the hobby through his business "ABC Workshops", set up by Alex at the tender age of 14 to detail and weather models to a professional standard in 4mm and 7mm. Alex has also written numerous articles on detailing and improving existing ready-to-run (RTR) models for "Rail Express Modeller", further demonstrating his excellent eye for detail and wish to push RTR models to the next level. In 2011 Alex began working with Bachmann Europe on their annual catalogue and from 2019 joined the company full time as a a Researcher and Design Engineer, a role which he held until joining us last month. A long time member of Derby club, Mickleover MRG since 1998, Alex has been heavily involved in organising the Derby roundhouse show and overseeing MMRG Exclusives, limited edition models for the club. Away from the model railway scene, Alex also holds interest in the real railway, and there have been some big developments recently in this area. As part of the 125 group, Alex has taken the plunge into real train ownership, realising a life long ambition with the purchase of a HST powercar! 43025 has been secured for preservation and recently moved to Ruddington to being its new life after finishing its career in squadron service on the mainline. The plan for 43025 is to restore it to mainline operating condition so while Alex will be working on producing museum quality models for you to enjoy by day, he will also be working to restore 43025 to her former glory for you to enjoy on railtours and galas at the weekend! Speaking about joining Accurascale, Alex expressed his excitement about the job ahead; “I’m very pleased to have been invited to be a part of ‘The A Team’, and I’m genuinely excited to start on a new chapter in my working life with them doing what I love. "The industry has changed significantly in the last few years, and I firmly believe Accurascale has changed the UK market for the better, bringing modellers and enthusiasts high quality well presented models at reasonable prices, whilst also actively pushing the boundaries of what is physically possible in a model regardless of what has gone before. Price doesn’t mean compromise. "For me it’s also about the presentation and launch of a model and not just the work that goes into it behind the scenes, breathing fresh air into key things like packaging, paperwork, accessories and even social media. Another big one for me is being able to buy an entire rake of wagons off the shelf, all with different running numbers and variations, a novelty which simply didn’t exist in the UK market before. "The use of high quality DCC sound and speakers as a factory fit, to the same standard that was previously only achievable via the aftermarket has also become a major game changer. All of these things have now become the standard by which other manufacturers are measured by, and I’m excited to be let loose on some new projects large and small.. or is that small or far away..! Here’s to the future.” Accurascale Managing Director Stephen McCarron outlined his excitement on adding Alex to the team; "As accurascale continues it’s drive to bring innovation, fidelity and fair pricing to the market, we are delighted to welcome our newest team member, Alex, to help us maintain and exceed our high standards of delivery and customer experience. "With extensive industry and ‘real’ train experience, we’re excited to showcase what Alex brings to accurascale in the months and years ahead! He is already working on some very interesting projects which we know will delight and excite the hobby as they come on stream in the coming years." Look out for some exciting and interesting models from Alex in Accurascale boxes very soon! View the full article

Hi everyone, Less than 30% of these left, so if you want them, go get them! Cheers! Fran

Hi everyone, Thanks for all the pre-orders which continue to flow in, very positive. These were probably part of the last truly interesting era of coaching stock on the network, and we would dearly like to add to that range in time should these be a successful model sales wise. So, support it and you never know; more coaches from this era and we will seriously look at doing a top of the line heat van too. Which steam heat van would you like to see though? Cheers! Fran

Hi everyone, Thanks for everyone who has placed a pre-order so far, these have been unbelievably popular! We’ve had these under way in one form or another for a long time, but of course circumstances and covid put pay to best plans and that. Thank you to everyone who came by our stand at the excellent Wexford Model Railway show over the weekend to check out the first 3D print of the CAD. Eamonn very kindly let me pose it on the wonderful “Bog Road” too, check it out! Roll on the tooling sample! Cheers! Fran

Commodious. Comfortable. Quirky and quintessentially Irish, the Park Royal coaches represent the maximum use of our generous loading gauge and an iconic piece of Irish coaching stock. It was about time it was represented faithfully in OO/4mm. A project that has been in-hand for a while now, we're delighted to bring you the news of the IRM CIE Park Royal coaches, representing these icons from the 1950s which served CIE and later Irish Rail well into the 1990s. Check out our extensive history of these unique coaches over a tipple below... HISTORY On July 1, 1948 the Irish Government asked Sir James Milne, last General Manager of the United Kingdom’s Great Western Railway, to investigate the state of internal transport in Ireland and his report, published later that year, suggested that diesel traction alone would not be the answer to Córas Iompair Éireann’s problems. Deemed inadequate to meet the needs of the population, Milne’s report highlighted that the average age of CIÉ’s coaching stock was 47 years old, with 155 vehicles being over 60 years old and that a large proportion of the vehicles had not had a general repair for over 10 years, with some not being overhauled since 1929. Milne noted that, as at January 1, 1948, coaching stock (exclusive of the Drumm Battery trains), amounted to 1325 vehicles and of these, 1251 were broad gauge, with 369 bogie passenger carriages and 394 non-bogie passenger carriages, while other coaching vehicles amounted to 29 bogie vehicles and 459 non-bogie vehicles. Six-wheel stock was prevalent and of the 763 passenger vehicles, 155 still had no heating, and two even had no form of artificial lighting. There were only 34 coaches of what could be considered as modern design and all these vehicles were at least 11 years old. Something needed to change. On January 1, 1950, Córas Iompair Éireann was nationalised and within a couple of years the board of CIÉ had approved a capital expenditure programme of almost £1 million on new coaching stock under the direction of Oliver Bulleid. In September 1949 Bulleid had retired from his role as Chief Mechanical Engineer of British Railways Southern Region and was well placed to assist with the CIÉ’s move towards modernisation, having been one of three further technical assessors to Sir James Milne during his reporting phase. Bullied became a consulting mechanical engineer to CIÉ at the invitation of T. C. Courtney, the new chairman of CIE, and succeeded to the post of Chief Mechanical Engineer in February 1950, becoming the architect of the major construction programme that saw almost 500 new coaching stock vehicles entering service over the following 14 year period. The bulk of these new vehicles were constructed of a steel-clad, wooden framed body, mounted on a steel underframe, but there were notable exceptions to this method of construction; the first of these being two sets of coaches that were supplied by Park Royal during 1955 and 1956, in which the timber framing of the body was replaced by a metal frame, and was mounted on an all-welded triangulated 61’ 6” underframe, running on Commonwealth bogies. These underframes were made in the United Kingdom, by the Wolverhampton firm of John Thompson Pressings Ltd. Supplied in component form, the use of prefabricated components supplied by Park Royal allowed for volume construction using a semi-skilled workforce and a single bodyshell type was used for both suburban and main line use, to diagrams 176 and 177 respectively, but with different interior layouts. The body was built integral with the frame and bus pillars (unsurprisingly, given Park Royals coach building credentials) gave support, with the roof being carried on closely spaced hoopsticks, three to a bay. The bodyside was only as thick as it needed to be to carry the window frames and was sealed inside, before plywood lining panels were fitted direct to the frames. Lateral support came from two channel sectioned, externally fitted waist rails on each side, giving the Park Royals their distinctive external appearance. The coaches made full use of the Irish loading gauge, being 61’ 6” inches long and 10’ 2” wide, this width reducing by 8” at each end, necessary to maintain gauging on curves. Due to their aluminium and steel construction, they only weighed 26 tons tare for the D176 suburban and 27¼ tons tare for the D177 main line type. Initially, two seating layouts were offered; the D176 suburban seating 82 passengers in a 2+3 arrangement, with 6 seats in each vestibule area, and the D177 main line seating 70 passengers in a similar 2+3 arrangement, but with toilet facilities at each vestibule end. Initially both diagrams were supplied with inward opening ‘bus’ type doors, however these proved unpopular and confusing to the passengers and so the coaches were fitted with conventional outside opening doors as they next passed through Inchicore, the door window position being lowered in the process. This work was carried out by 1958 and there were no more changes to the coaches until the Train Lighting conversions during 1972, the Park Royal’s lighting initially being generated on-board via dynamo and battery. There were, eventually, several variants in service, with two main conversions giving rise to ‘Snack Cars’, and then Brake Standards. Six main line vehicles were converted to ‘Snack Cars’ in 1968, with one vestibule end incorporating a small counter and serving area and the seating reduced to 56, before being either reconverted to main line standards or Brake Standards in 1984. In all, eight vehicles were converted to Brake Standards at this time, being drawn from Snack Car, suburban and Ambulance vehicles; the latter conversions being the creation of two Ambulance vehicles from existing suburban coaches, to convey invalided pilgrims to Knock Shrine in County Mayo. Two suburban vehicles also found use on the Waterford & Tramore Railway, one having bus seating installed to act as a 93 seat trailer, the other (No. 1408), being converted for use as a Driving Vehicle Trailer on the branch until 1960. During the 1980s, appearances began to change, and the distinction between suburban and main line versions became blurred in some instances. Many of the coaches lost the circular window at the vestibule ends, with the remaining windows sometimes being reduced in size. On other vehicles, the water pipes on toilet equipped coaches were sometimes arranged in different configurations as pipes were renewed, and passenger communication gear was adapted, or removed entirely from the vehicle ends. The Park Royal coaches continued in service until the early-1990s, before being barred from certain routes due to their construction, with the last few Park Royal carriages being withdrawn following the delivery of the first Japanese 2600 Class DMUs in 1994. During their period in traffic, Bulleid’s coaches carried a full gamut of liveries; the 40 D176 suburbans carrying the lighter standard overall mid-green livery, with the thinner eau-de-nil stripe carried below the windows, on the waist channelling. Vehicle ends were observed as being the same colour but were prone to extreme discolouration by weathering, and so it is difficult to ascertain whether, in the later years of mid-green application, the body ends were green, repainted black, or just merely filthy. The ten D177 mainline vehicles initially appeared in unpainted Aluminium, with red class designations and running numbers between 1955 and 1958, before this impractical arrangement was covered with the application of mid-green, with lined Eau-de-Nil class designations. In 1962 the mid-green scheme was replaced with black upper panels, roof and body ends, and deep orange (or golden brown/tan) lower panels with a 6” white band between the windows and the roof. In 1987, under Iarnród Éireann, the 6” band was dropped and replaced with two 3” white bands, either side of the black panel, although it was possible that some Park Royals carried a single white band, reduced to 3”. The Model This first run of Park Royal coaches concentrates on the D.176 suburban variants throughout their service life, but also includes a couple of ex-D.177 Snack Car vehicles. We will, in time, also add the D.177 mainline versions to the range, along with BSO conversions and the two Knock Ambulance cars; AM14 and AM15. With an unrivalled specification list such as a wealth of separately applied parts, both plastic and etched metal, with also fully detailed Irish commonwealth bogies for the first time in ready-to-run format, detail variations, wire handrails, bespoke detailed interiors depending on coach type, full interior lighting with stay alive powerpack for flicker free lighting and a die cast underframe to ensure smooth running, they offer unbeatable value at just €69.99 per coach, with our usual 10% off when you buy two coaches or more! We are delighted to time the announcement of these beautiful coaches with the Wexford Model Railway Show this weekend, where we will have a 3D print of the final CAD on view. In the meantime, you can place your pre-order with no money down now via our website for a delivery date of Q2 2024. Expect to see a fully finished sample over the summer too! Pre-order here below: PRE-ORDER YOUR PARK ROYAL COACHES HERE (Despite their widespread service, and longevity of service, good clear photographs of individual Park Royal coaches are rare, and so Irish Railway Models are grateful for the photographic contributions from the Irish Rail Record Society, Jonathan Allen, Colin ‘Ernie’ Brack, Neil Smith and Noel Dodd. Thanks must also go to John Beaumont for his valuable knowledge on livery issues, as well as Peter Rigney, but the final mention must go to Robert Gardiner and the volunteers at the Downpatrick and County Down Railway, who accommodated us on several survey visits.) Key Statistics Highly-detailed 00 gauge model, 1:76.2 scale on 16.5mm track Scale length of 246mm over body, width of 40.67mm across body Operation over a minimum radius of 438mm (2nd radius set-track) Die-cast metal chassis with plastic body. Accurate CIÉ Commonwealth bogies, with separate detailing where appropriate, that allows for the option of re-gauging to Irish Broad Gauge (21mm). Brake blocks aligned with wheels, allowing for the option of moving outwards for Irish Broad Gauge. 12mm wheels are blackened RP25-110 profile for 00 gauge, set on 2mm axles, 28mm over pin-points and with 14.4mm back-to-back measurement. NEM standard coupling sockets, with mini-tension lock couplers with a kinematic close-coupling system. Scale width wire handrails, water pipes, passenger communication gear. Headstock pipes and cabling included in accessory polybag for customer fitting, along with Kosan Gas Tank for the Snack Car. Fully detailed die-cast underframe with vacuum cylinders, battery boxes, dynamo and piping applied separately. Accurate interior layouts, with detailed seating and decorated where appropriate. Full guard’s compartment and kitchen/snack bar area detailing where appropriate, including use of etched metal detailing. Prism free flush glazing. Interior coach lighting with stay-alive capacitor, pick up from both bogies and a reed switch to control on/off via magnetic wand. Separate roof vent types, set in correct locations. View the full article

Hi everyone, Just to point out, there is a wee typo on the box of the Galway Hotel Shuttle bus. On the box it says "Cork Shuttle". This is incorrect, the bus inside is in Galway condition. Apologies for this, and totally my fault. Cheers! Fran

Hi everyone, The bank holiday weekend is here, and to celebrate we have some excellent IRM news coming your way. First up is a weekend only sale, with our lovely magnesite wagons now just €99.99 per triple pack, reduced from €124.99! These are at this amazing sale price both online and at the Wexford show from now until midnight on Monday. Oh, and 10% when you buy two packs or more still applies, as does free postage and packaging around Ireland! Order here: https://irishrailwaymodels.com/collections/magnesite-wagons Cheers! Fran

Hi everyone, Wow, we've sold 50% of the entire run in just over 24 hours! Thank you to everyone who has ordered so far. Dispatch began today and will continue tomorrow. Ordered yours yet? https://irishrailwaymodels.com/collections/exclusive-irm-buses/availability_in-stock Cheers! Fran

Accurascale today announce that they are to sponsor Pete Waterman and the Railnuts teams Making Tracks III ‘OO’ gauge layout bound for Chester Cathedral this summer. Pete Waterman and the Railnuts team are creating a third layout in the Making Tracks series, promising to be bigger and better than ever before, basing the layout on Milton Keynes station on the WCML. The all-new 64ft long layout will feature 18ft long platforms and Bi-directional running lines just like the real thing. Making Tracks started as a celebration of Thomas Brassey – a civil engineer responsible for building much of the world’s railways in the 19th century who has a dedicated chapel within Chester Cathedral. It aimed to raise funds for the upkeep of this beautiful cathedral and has successfully done so over the past two years. Making Tracks was also aimed at bringing new people into the hobby and with around 50,000 visitors to the exhibition each year to date its proving to do just that. This year the team are going big and building a replica of Milton Keynes station, such an ambitious project needs as much support as possible from the industry its designed help, so Accurascale have jumped at the chance to support such an ambitious and captivating project. Pete Waterman said “It’s very important with rising costs to have trade support, it shows us that the trade care about what we’re trying to achieve. Accurascale might be a new name in the model railway world, but they have achieved so much success in the past few years, so we are delighted to have them on board to help with Making Tracks 3.” Stephen McCarron, Managing Director of Accurascale, is equally delighted about getting involved with Making Tracks 3 “It’s an honour and a privilege to help raise money for such a worthy cause, bring an ambitious project to thousands of people who can be inspired by the efforts of the Making Tracks team, and it is particularly exciting to see our own models at work on this astounding layout. Once we were able to get involved, we jumped at the chance and we cant wait to see it in its completed state this summer.” The layout will be on display at Chester Cathedral from July 26th until September 2nd later in the year, all are welcome and you may even get to have a go! Look up for updates on the Railnuts, Accurascale and Key Model World social media pages for insights and updates. View the full article

Our latest Britbus Irish bus commission takes a break from the Olympian tooling and looks at a rather attractive liveried alternative in the funky (well, for the 1980s!) MCW Metrorider. This time we focus on the only Metrorider ever to work for Bus Éireann, MB8. Former Dublin Bus MCW Metrorider MB8 was the only such bus to enter the Bus Éireann fleet. After beginning its life as a Dublin Bus "Local Link" bus, it transferred to Bus Éireann in the mid 1990s. It first operated a "Hotel Shuttle" service in Galway, before moving to Cork and operating the Cork City "Shuttle Service" before being withdrawn and sold onto private operator Barry's of Cork and finally leaving the road in 2005. Our model represents it in both Galway and Cork condition. Our model recreates the specific branding as worn in Cork and Galway, and includes flush glazing, diecast construction with a fully detailed interior and a wealth of separately applied plastic detail. Working from photographs of the real bus, we were able to include unique details such as the use of euro and original registration plates on each end of the bus, and the various lettering panels from the real thing. Scaled at 1/76, it is the perfect size for OO layouts, and belongs in any Irish model bus collection. Each model comes in special presentation packaging, with mounted display case and a limited edition certificate. Two options are available, the "Hotel Shuttle" for Galway and the "Shuttle Bus" for Cork, both limited to just 252 pieces each with limited edition certificates. If there are any left we will have some for sale at the Wexford Model Railway Show this weekend. And no, this is not the Wexford show announcement, that comes on Sunday! See you there. Priced at just €39.95 each, these buses are now in stock and we can be ordered for immediate dispatch by clicking the link below: ORDER YOUR BUS RIGHT HERE! (We would like to thank Derek Farrelly and Darren Hall for their invaluable assistance in the making of this model) View the full article

Our Mark 2c coaches have been a very popular addition to our range since we first announced them in February. Not surprising for a coach that has not been done before in OO Ready to Run format, but the other advantage is that the Mark 2c coaches got some very interesting liveries during their careers with BR, and here we have two of them newly added to our "Accurascale Exclusives" line of special edition models. Check them out below! Mk.2c QXA DB 977390 As ‘Sprinterisation’ started to bite from the mid 1980s, the Mk.2c fleet was increasingly sidelined with many examples withdrawn or sold abroad. This proved to be a boon for the departmental businesses which engorged themselves, primarily as brake force runners, and most retained their original livery until they were finally retired several years later. The First Opens, mostly declassified as Second Open coaches by 1984, seemed to be particularly popular and of the 18 built, seven became departmental coaches, while six were sold for use in Ireland/Northern Ireland. One of the most widely travelled of the BR survivors was DB 977390 (ex-M6410/M3164), which became a QXA brake force runner for the Civil Engineer’s Mobile Track Assessment fleet in early 1987 and usually operated with DB 977339, a former Mk.1 BSK, and either BR High Speed Track Recorder coach DB999550 or the London Underground’s own track recorder vehicle TRC 666. It was one of just two Mk.2c to gain the MTA red stripe embellishment on its standard blue/grey livery. It later moved to Crewe and became part of the depot’s electric locomotive test train, complete with plated bodyside windows. Incredibly it survived the disbanding of this formation and was acquired for preservation, eventually coming under the custodianship of Eastern Rail Services, who kindly allowed Accurascale to survey the almost completely intact BR-period interior of this vehicle as part of the Mk.2 project. It now resides at Great Yarmouth and will eventually be restored to its original external condition. Mk.2c QPA DB 977787 While most Mk.2c retained their blue/grey livery during their often short departmental service, one of the most colourful and long lasting vehicles was Civil Engineer/InterCity West Coast Staff & Tool Coach DB 977787, renumbered with few obvious external or internal differences from Brake Second Open M9453 in May 1992. One of three BSO to transfer to departmental use and one of just a handful of coaches to be repainted in the grey/yellow ‘Dutch’ livery, it also carried the lettering “InterCity Civil Engineer Preston”. It was initially based at Carnforth for use on the North West section of the WCML, although it was recorded at Doncaster by 1993. It later gained a generator, which involved significant reworking of the brake end gangways and the replacement of several windows with grilles. After spells at Carlisle Kingmoor, Carnforth and Derby Etches Park it was finally retired in the early 2000s. Stored at Throckmorton Airfield, Worcestershire, and then Dalton Transport & Storage, North Yorkshire, as part of the ill-fated Mk.2 Preservation Group project, the gas axe finally caught up with it during the mass clearout of the remaining vehicles from the latter location. It was cut up at CF Booth, Rotherham, in April 2022, but not before donating parts to help bring several other Eastern Rail Services’s Mk.2s back to service in due course. Both coaches will feature the same excellent specification of the main range Mark 2c coaches including: Highly-detailed OO Gauge / 1:76.2 Scale Models on 16.5mm track Extremely fine exterior rivet detail on roof and coach ends Separately-applied etched metal and high-fidelity plastic parts, including handrails, brake/steam heat pipes, ETH cabling and sockets, footsteps, dummy drophead knuckle coupler, and roof vents Prism Free Glazing Pre-painted etched metal water filler covers provided for customer to install Fully-detailed underframe with numerous separate parts, pipe runs and accurate differences between versions The most accurate B4 bogies ever produced, with provision for re-gauging to EM or P4 (18.83mm) gauges Blackened RP25.110 profile wheel-sets with 14.4mm back-to-back measurements, and 26mm over pinpoints Different buffers for retracted and non-retracted positions Accurate interiors with characteristic 'winged' headrests, separate metal interior handrails on the brake and corridor vehicles and fully-detailed guard's compartment Correct height NEM standard coupling sockets with mini tension lock couplers and kinematic close-coupling Easy conversion to Kadee-compatiable knuckle couplers Full lighting package, including magnet 'wand' controlled interior lighting 'Stay-Alive' capacitor in all coaches Minimum Radius 438mm (2nd Radius Set-track) Coach Length: 269mm These coaches are primed for production and will begin once the Mark 2b production run is complete. They will arrive in stock in Q4 2023 and are the same great price of just £59.95 each and 10% off when you order direct via the Accurascale website. You can spread the cost using our flexible payment terms over 6 months or less, depending on your requirements when ordering direct via our website. Just click on the basket at checkout and follow the simple steps. Remember, our Accurascale Exclusives series of models are open to all customers, and do not require the expense and hassle of joining a club to purchase. CLICK HERE TO PRE-ORDER YOUR ACCURASCALE EXCLUSIVE MARK 2c! View the full article

April 18th, 1998. 8:53am. The first of a brand new locomotive type, the Class 66 no. 66001, touches down on British soil for the first time. A first in a significant order of 250 machines for EWS, it began a revolution which would spread across the UK freight network, across a multitude of operators. It would go further too, across Europe and even all the way to Egypt with orders piling into EMD for their latest freight locomotive design. It is hard to believe that the Class 66 has been with us for a quarter of a century, plying its trade across the network hauling freight in a myriad of liveries and operators. The Class 66 would continue in production for British operators for 18 years, with the final locomotive, 66779, arriving in 2016 to operate for GBRf. With such a significant anniversary, we have decided to mark the event by releasing two Accurascale Exclusive models which bookend the class; 66001 and 66779. 66001 The arrival of 66001 on to British soil at 08:53 on the 18th of April 1998 heralded a new dawn for British rail freight, the first of several hundred locomotives of a type that would revolutionise Railfreight across the UK (and Europe). There were a few subtle differences between the first two and the rest of the production batch which have never been replicated before on a model. Firstly the lashing eyes to secure the locomotive to the ship were in a different position to later models. The horn grille was also mounted almost flush with the body. Visually 66001 looked more striking owing to its red grilles which were later changed to black. Our model will represent 66001 with the original red grilles. 66779 Drawing the production line to a close after 18 years and many hundreds of locomotives was 66779. This locomotive was specially finished in British Railways lined green it was to be named “Evening Star”. The loco also carried commemorative bells above the cab windows and a plaque denoting its significance in the Class 66 story. Its appearance reflected that of BR class 9F 92220, Evening Star which famously brought the curtain down for steam production for British Railways. In an unveiling ceremony at York on the 10th May 2016, GBRf CEO, John Smith promised the locomotive to the National Railway Museum when it reaches the end of its expected service life. Still carrying its special BR lined green livery it can be seen working across the country on all manner of GBRf workings. As this is a later Munchie built Class 66 our model will feature accurate detailing such as recess in cab fronts, different vents, large sandboxes and of course, the distinctive bell on the cab front as featured on the real 66779. Both models will be part of our first batch of Class 66 locomotives and see new tooling variations grown from the already extensive tooling suite we have taken over from Hattons. Delivery is slated for Q1 2024, with prices of £169.99 for DC/DCC ready and £259.99 DCC Sound fitted. Decorated samples are due with us in June, so keep an eye out for them. As ever with our Accurascale Exclusives range, both locomotives will come with special presentation packaging and are only available direct via our website. Click below to pre-order today! View the full article

Exciting news! Our Rotem 22000 class railcars have been a big hit since we announced them at the MRSI show last October with 25% of the production run already sold on pre-order. Our first ever railcar, and the first prototypically accurate Irish railcar ever made in Ready to Run format, the ICRs are now in tooling with excellent progress being made so far as these photos from the factory demonstrate: The first tooling sample will be with us over the summer, and we may look to organise an event to premiere it for the first time, so watch this space! In the meantime pre-orders have been coming thick and fast for what promises to be an exquisite model, the very first bespoke Irish Railcar in high quality, ready-to-run format. So, don't hang about. Delivery is on schedule for summer 2024 and a 3D print of the model will be on show at the Wexford Model Railway show on April 30th and May 1st 2023, so make sure you drop by to check it out. Remember, you can spread the costs across monthly installments at no extra cost using the the partial.ly system on our website to make it kinder to your wallet! Get your pre-order in today! CLICK HERE TO PRE-ORDER YOUR 22000 ICR! View the full article

IRM Sponsors The Suir Lee Knot Railtour! We're delighted to announce that once again we are teaming up with our friends at Táilte Tours and sponsoring the "Suir Lee Knot" Railtour on April 15th! Thanks to the kind co-operation of Iarnród Éireann, Táilte Tours first ever Cork-based railtour offers participants a rare chance to travel in a 2600 railcar set over the Limerick Junction-Waterford route; it is hoped to include stops to view the now-rare semaphore signaling installations at Clonmel along with the ITG base at Carrick-on-Suir where their restored 1956-built C Class diesel No.226 will be on display. For track bashers, we have requested that the train traverse the rarely used Tipperary Loop on the outbound leg. The train is wheelchair accessible. Dept Cork Kent Station 10:00 (back for 19:13) Pick up Mallow 10:23 (back for 18:43) The tour picks up at Limerick Junction too! This tour trekking across the line synonymous with our lovely Magnesite wagons is not to be missed. IRM spot prizes will be available to win on the day too, so an added bonus of joining in! Grab your tickets here: https://www.tailtetours.com/event-details/the-suir-lee-knot-railtour?fbclid=IwAR3gIcPRuoL9eyu4paNcH-lqBwsUsC854RuzsXUI8veNhJL892J7Gs5qj1M Cheers! Fran

Last week we saw the exciting announcement of our second production run of Class 37s, along with the news that the first locomotives are very close to arriving at our warehouse. Eight locomotives made up the announcement, but we did leave one out. Our Accurascale Exclusive of course! Continuing our theme of modern era 37s and paying tribute to over 60 years of hard work completed so far by these stalwart machines, it seemed only right to introduce a current era tractor to the line up. Something bright, different, something that stands out and is easily recognisable. There could only be one candidate; 37405 in the very colourful HN Rail livery! 37405 While Harry Needle is most closely associated with Class 20s, his eponymous railway company has now acquired 11 Class 37s as they have slowly come up for sale by Direct Rail Services. ETS-fitted 37405 was the first member of the Class 37/4 fleet to be divested by the Kingmoor-based operator, joining the second batch of locomotives for tender in February 2022, exactly one year after it was placed into store. Resurrected at Barrow Hill, it returned to the main line in November 2022 in an extraordinary shade of 'tango' orange that originally debuted on his former Class 20/3 machines in 2012. Now on hire to Colas Rail, it has principally been working infrastructure trains out of Shrewsbury Coleham depot with Network Rail's fleet of Class 97/3s. The configuration of this model matches our 'modernised' Class 37/4s from our first production run, complete with plated bodyside windows, LED tail lights, DRS multiple working socket, speedo cable and rectangular-style buffers. With the inclusion of the Heavy Tractor Group (HTG) limited edition model of their loco 37 714 (which you can pre-order here!) we will see a total of ten new Class 37s in run two with the addition of 37405. Like any Accurascale Exclusive model, 37405 will come in special presentation packaging with certificate and is only available direct via our website. Modellers can pre-order the locomotive, or any other Accurascale Exclusive model via the Accurascale website, without the need to purchase any club subscriptions or incur any additional fees, with a price of £169.99 for DC/DCC Ready and £259.99 our splendid "Accurathrash" set up. Delivery is Q1 2024! Pre-Order Your 37405 By Clicking Here! View the full article