dave182

So an update on my adventures with Das Clay. I've no patience is probably the biggest lesson here! I should have practiced on a small area first. All the preventable things thst could have happened, happened. So lessons learned... 1.Apply a layer of pva glue on the surface you are sticking the Das Clay to. 2. Work with small amounts of clay at a time, and build it up. A little water helps 3. Allow it to dry out gradually. My shelf layout is in a very warm room, and the clay drying quickly makes it want to warp up and crack, and shrink 4. It is actually a very forgiving medium to work with. You can re-wet it and you can work it some more. 6. Use a level clean surface if possible. I was recycling a piece of mdf board, and the drying clay had the effect of lifting a layer of the mdf where it may have been damaged from previous use So after a couple of days drying this was the sorry state my 'concrete' slab was in... Not deterred I sanded the whole thing down earlier today and wet the surface in a cool room, and this evening I took out the clay again and filled in all of the cracks and levelled the surface. It looks a whole lot better now. I'll leave it to dry again and sand it some more and see how it looks in a couple of days. I also ran a blade inside the rails in preparation for cutting out the channels for the wheels to run in.

Ok, 4 hours and 2 kilos of Das Clay later and we are here. So a wet surface and the scrim tape gave good adhesion to the mdf baseboard. I also noted Riverbank Railways Youtube short videos and left the clay a bit taller than the top of the rails so it can contract a bit, and I'll have a surface to sand. So despite the 'lumpy' look, it has actually quite a level finish. I'll leave it for now and take a look in 24 hours time to see how it is drying. I'll then need to score out the rails and let it dry some more before sanding and removing the side moulds. It was a very quick process, however I found it hard to blend each piece of clay I placed with the clay already in place. Lots of water helps. It also added two kilos to this piece of layout, so I might add some extra bracing under the board. But overall a quick and easy product to work with, and I'm encouraged to try it some for some other things like facades and walls.

Hi All I've a depot to surface over the weekend, and after seeing a couple of posts over Christmas of modellers using Das Clay, I thought I'd give it a go. I'm all set up but having done a bit more research I'm slightly concerned about the clay properties, specifically that it shrinks a good bit. Anyone got any experience or pointers with this? @David Holman has some excellent models using Das Clay and I don't think my surface area is much bigger than the areas he has paved on various layouts. I've previously had great success using pollyfilla with scrim tape as a base for adhesion to the base board, with no shrinking or cracking. Any help appreciated! Dave

What year was the mk3 push-pull stock introduced?

Thank you both for that information, very useful!

The 34 locomotives of the 201 class were delivered in 1994/95. 208 and 209 being delivered in NIR blue livery. A couple of questions so. Am I correct to believe they were offloaded in Dublin Port too? If so, what happened to these locomotives upon arrival? Did they go to Inchicore first or direct to NIR? Did they cross the border 'under their own steam', or were they hauled? Any info or images greatly appreciated! (Image credit- Eiretrains; Youtube; NIR 111 + 201 Class, Yankee Explorer, Knockmore)

Hi All A quick question, anyone know what length the temporary track panels used by Bord na Móna are? I’m guessing 40 to 50 foot. I’m sure they probably vary widely but is there any standards at all? I’m looking at modelling a couple of narrow gauge bogie bolster wagons with track panels on, and am just trying to get an indication Of the length they should be.

Not Blue and grey indeed, but exactly the type of photo I was after! As an aside, has this coach in this BREL livery ever been produced as a model?

Hi All Do any of you have pictures of ex BR stock, in BR livery, running on Irish Railways? I can only think of 2 instances where this might have happened. The first is ex-BR mk2 stock purchased by NIR in the 80s. I know for sure some of these made it to Dublin on occasion before they received NIR livery. The second is ex-BR Mk2a stock that Irish Rail purchased in the 90's. Did they travel by rail or truck from the port? Were they shunted around Inchicore for a bit? Out on the network on clearance trials maybe? And perhaps 1 more... the Mk3 BREL International coaches. Did they arrive in Ireland in their original livery? Any images greatly appreciated! Dave

Now gone. Thank you all for your interest.

Hydey, yes still available.

Free to a good home, assortment of OO gauge wagons and a 5 stall loco shed made of plasticard. If you are hand with plasticard you might be able to make something fom it! 2-stall long shed is 75cm long. First picture shows the depot in happier times!

Hi All So we're moving house which is going to be a dose! I have two baseboards with frames in reasonable shape, I only put them up two years ago. All measurements approx. 1. 10' x 3'3" plywood top, 38" height 2. 4' x 3'3" mdf top, 38" height 2. Mdf sheets 4x2s and a 6x2. Also big pile of off cuts of various shapes and sizes. I'm based in Rathfarnham if anyone wants to come and take a look some evening. Free to a good home. Might suit a club or someone like myself who is always tinkling with dioramas and so on. I can possible deliver with a bit of imagination and help if you are near to Dublin. Drop me a message if interested. Hope the pictures below make sense! Thanks for looking, Dave

Hi All I've made a mess of a set of glazing for a mk3 hornby coach over the weekend. Looks like superglue fumes have reacted with it and it's gone cloudy. Is there anything I can do to salvage? I see some guys on youtube (martys matchbox makeovers for example) buffing and waxing plastic glazing with varying degrees of success. Any pointers or tips?

Thanks a bunch guys for all that information. A bit of browsing to be done over the weekend!

Hi All Quick question to the European modellers on the forum. Where are you buying your European outline models? I'm looking for a couple of short european shunter locomotives for an industrial layout. Any good European or UK based websites? Thanks in advance Dave

Hi All Quick question to the European modellers on the forum. Where are you buying your European outline models? I'm looking for a couple of short european shunter locomotives for an industrial layout. Any good European or UK based websites? Thanks in advance Dave

Thanks Mogul and Skinner 75. I wonder if the ore is shipped out from Drogheda using road vehicles, successfully, will it put this rail flow at risk long term? I suspect not, as access the Drogheda Port is challenging. The rail line down to the old cement works could be reinstated I suppose, making for an interesting short trip working: Navan to Drogheda Port 3 times daily!

I spotted a large heavy-lift crane barge today down in Dublin Port. It appeared to be getting ready to move a large ro-ro ramp. Unfortuntely I was driving and unable to take a picture. After a spot of googling, I understand that Dublin Port are redeveloping the Alexandra Basin area of the port, including the jetty and infrastructure used to load ore from the Tara Mines tippler. I've since heard that Tara Mines traffic is to cease for a number of months. Is this true? What's the plan? Anyone know more about this?

Hi All Did Ireland have any Roundhouses back in the days of Steam? I believe there may have been one at Broadstone? I don't think I've ever seen one in model form on an Irish themed layout.

http://droghedamuseum.blogspot.com/2015/09/pic-of-day-23-september-2015.html?m=1 Here is a fascinating picture I came across by chance. It's an aerial image of the old rail connected cement factory, on the banks of the Boyne River in Drogheda. You can clearly see cement bubbles and rakes of 2-axle vans along the bottom of the image, and the oil unloading terminal up the hill beside the large storage tank. This would make a superb feature on any layout modelling the 60's and 70's era. When did this rail flow end, and move to the new plant at Platin?

079 obviously had the kadee’s fitted, whilst the 20’ flat had an old dapol tension lock on it!

I'm delighted to see this layout progess the way it has! Well done! I know there was a lot of frustration around space, and the OO/n gauge debate, but it's great that you have stuck with it, and more importantly that you are enjoying the hobby and the challenges once more. Keep up the good work!

Without getting into politics, has the new man at IE, Jim Meade, given any indications or opinions relating to rail freight and its long term viability? If The Port of Waterford becomes disconnected from the network, it doesn't bode well for any future Foynes development. What ever happened to the biomass power plant that was being built on the Asahi site outside Ballina? That was going to generate a fright flow at one stage.

Hi Eoin This is it all laid out. Mostly resin, with lovely brass etches of the shaker screens and handrails. Also some whitemetal parts for buffers and underframe detail. To the right hand side you can see 2 clear plastic sheets with moulded windows, which is very clever!