leslie10646

Spot on, David, while the Class WT was called a "Jeep" by one of the shed foremen because of their go-anywhere, do anything nature; the name was not commonly used by railway staff. In the 1960s when I began timing trains (and travelling with your esteemed Dad), we always referred to the WTs as simply "Tanks" or the longer "Mogul Tank" - for that is what they were - a tank version of the LMSNCC 1932-built Moguls. Of course there was another very numerous class of tank (only a few by 1960) on the GNR(I), but they were usually referred to by enthusiasts, at least, as "Glover Tanks", after the CME who introduced them. I never heard of the GNR Class V being called anything but "the Compounds" either in speech or in the literature, nor had I heard of the LQGs being called anything but "LQGs". The SG3s, thanks to their prodigious power most certainly were always referred to as "Big Ds". The ENGLISH often erroneously) refer to the 800s as "Queens" but my understanding of Irish history is that they ladies honoured were simply ladies in Irish history, or mythology. I won't go on about "Whippets", "Woolwich's" (again Anglice "Woolworths"), Kerry Bogies (Jon Beaumont will tell you?), "Cattle Engines"; "Bandon Tanks" (self-explanatory); "Scotch Engines" ......... Now the diseasels - known by enthusiasts as "Bullets" because of the silvery livery. To this day, you occasionally hear an older enthusiast say that there is a Bullet on the front! Sorry, Jon, but "Lambeg Man" is right about the Class 70s - I remember them often being referred to as "Hampshire Units". The fun we had?

Hi Kevin (and friends) My colleague, Richard McLachlan, is soon to digitise the TRA book. However, he is of the view that if you want drawings suitable for modelling that it will be of only modest use to you. It does not include dimensions. The IRRS drawings catalogue includes several books on GSR (and GSWR) coaches. These DO include dimensions and are much more useful to the modeller. I can attest to their quality - even though I hate to say nice things about Richard! Well, not too nice. I suggest that you use the contacts referred to in the on-line catalogue which you will find at - http://irishrailarchives.ie/index.php/archives/maps_drawings/ For those of you in Dublin, you can see many of these books if you approach Anthony McDonald at a Tuesday IRRS "Library Night" in the former Good Manager's offices at Heuston. Leslie

He has no shop and sells them through outlets like Hattons and Marks so how pray tell do you buy them from the man himself - Just Ask? Good point, George! I simply can't remember WHO I bought my 141s from! My 201 was a swap for wagons with Seamus of Toymaster, the CIE 071 from that well known gent the former Garda Commissioner and NIR 112 from Gareth. Isn't life strange? (to quote the Moody Blues). Hhmmmm

I hate to say it but the Kranz shot of B132 is very dark and gives no real idea of the true colour. Lance King's almost identical shot has been properly exposed and shows a much brighter grey. How do I know it's a better exposure? - you can make out the Midland 2-4-0 at the shed quite clearly - it's dark blob in the Kranz shot. No Photo Shopping, by the way, it's a direct scan from the Kodachrome (or Agfa - he used both) slide. Lance, God bless him, would not have known what software was! I'd upload it, but the file is too large!I

Hatton may be offering it to you, but if you buy it from Paddy who has taken all this work on himself and his team, it maximises his income. Dare I say it - we all owe him?

Cars for the ferry WERE indeed taken out onto the pier on flats for many years and craned onto the ship, as you say. Oliver Doyle had photos of it when he gave a talk on the Railways of Wexford to the IRRS in London a few weeks ago. If my memory serves, they were six wheel coach chassises with suitable decking - so two cars to a "wagon". The same process was used for a while with moving new cars from the Ford plant at Cork. I see that Oliver wrote a paper in IRRS Journal Volume 8, so I'll have a look when home and see if I can extract a picture.

If this post doesn't make sense it's because I've been driving all night from Holyhead and then sleeping most of the day away. The loco is not mine, of course, but was Judith Edge's kit of UTA No.22. Very similar to the BCDR one pictured above, except with coupling rods! Quite a bit of interest and we sold one of our personal kits there and then! I'll post full info within the next few days. The BCDR "version" looks eminently "do-able" and we hope to persuade the Edges to do it next. The new vehicle was, of course, the long-promised Y5 van. Again, I'll post piccies of it here of it in a few days - a lot of family things to do in the next few days and it IS Holy Week. Thanks to those who did call by - always nice to meet old friends. I even paid Fran and Pat for my A Class - no prizes to discover that mine is a SILVER one - I saw them when the were pretty new - at Bray, while on hols. Thanks to the Derek and the NDMRS for organising it. Leslie

I shouldn't get involved with discussions on Diseaseals, but as the Class 66 is a freight loco, every HP produced goes to pulling things - there's no provision for head end power? If memory serves, it was the provision of HEP which was the downfall of the 201s on the Enterprise and resulted in many of the failures. I assume that the new generator van has improved matters? You guys don't know how blessed you are with nice comfy trains, not the ghastly, rough riding (possibly dangerously so - they haven't got the "damping" right yet), hard-seated (Hungraian wooden seats were better in the 1970s) Jap Crap we are having foisted on us over here.

Almost packed for my second run to my staging post pre Holyhead Boat at 3am Thursday. Amazing how many wagons you can get into a Smart Car - 300 if I believe my stock spreadsheet. To the young men at IRM - almost as young as we were when we founded the RPSI - congrats on the Yellow Perils. I guarantee that my new vehicle has NO working interior lights, NO working tail lights (although you could fit them - tempting?); can be built for 16.5 up to 21mm gauge. Noel commented on the number of 21mm folk out there - I believe I have supplied to over a dozen modellers using 21mm track. There must be quite a few, as the Scale Four Society makes a W irons/axlebox etch with specially lengthened spacer. Ask Richard McLachlan on Saturday at Bangor how to "stretch" my kits to the correct gauge. I look forward to seeing some of you at the weekend. If there's a particular kit which you want, e-mail me, or send a PM and I'll set it aside for you. Leslie

Just home from Wakefield and thanks, Eoin, we had a great show - signed up a new IRRS member (massive Brownie Points from our bosses in Dublin!); sold a fair few of Richard's ever more numerous and amazing drawings and had great craic with a load of friends in the modelling world. You'd be amazed at the folk with an interest in Irish railways who pop up all over the place. Thanks to the good people of the Scale Four Society in the North, who ran a fine show and were very hospitable. Just over two days now to pack up ready for the boat early on Thursday morning to Dublin, en route for The Black North. Haven't even had time to see if we're still in Europe, or whether Leo has erected a Wall yet!!!!

Just to say that while my Provincial Wagons is shown as Irish goods models, I'll be breaking new ground with - My first passenger vehicle kit (they carried a notice which said, quite clearly - "Not to run in Goods Trains"!!!!) A new Irish loco (not mine - just making it visible to the Home audience, close to where it was built!!!!). I'll be taking orders for the producers, whom I met at Scalforum North this weekend Of course, I'll have my old favourites like Bulleid Corrugated opens and H vans (mentioned in another thread), Brown vans, and a new run of the Spoil Wagon. I look forward to seeing you there - you'll find me in the Atrium sandwiched between Nelson building kits and Richard bashing brass (and showing off his brilliant drawings from the IRRS Archive. I look forward to seeing some of you there! Leslie

Please thank Richard for the issue of brass sheet a few weeks back, though unfortunately I have not had a chance to cut something out of it yet, but I do have a plan!..... With pleasure, Eoin! L

A real treat for any of you living within an hour or so from London. This Thursday, 4 April, “Classic Irish Steam” by Ciarán Cooney IRRS Photographic Archivist, Ciarán Cooney, has skilfully restored the classic photos of Bob Clements, Denis Morris and J Macartney Robbins. Enjoy stirring shots of 400s, 500s and 800s hard at work annostalgic photos of rarely-seen places like Clara Midland and Inny Junction. Then high-wheeled J5s on the Midland doing everything from cattle trains to excursions, and 2-4-0’s in the west,with much more to come such as the SL&NCR, the GNR(I), the B&CDR, and NCC moguls, mogul tanks and 4-4-0’s. This is a veritable feast of classic Irish steam with memorable and classic photos from the cameras of the great IRRS photographers of the past. It is similar to a show Ciarán gave to the RPSI in Belfast where it received the highest acclaim. Don’t miss it this time round. 19.00 in the Function Room, Calthorpe Arms, Grays Inn Road, LONDON WC1X 8JR Fine ales, food available from our excellent landlord, Adrian. Hope to see some of you there - be sure to say ""Hallo"! Leslie

Richard McLachlan and I will be manning (personning in these PC days?) a Irish Railway Record Society stand at Wakefield this weekend. So, if you live "up North" in the Big Island, you might come along and have a look. Focus will be on Richard's superb books of drawings - everything from Irish track standards, through buildings, wagons, coaches to enough information to build a 12 inches to the foot model of quite a few Irish locos. All carefully digitised from the Society's archive in Dublin. We always have a screen going with photographs from the Society's collections - presently from the late Lance King and John Dewing and the very much alive Conrad Natzio. I will have a selection of Provincial Wagons kits in a box "under the table" in case you can be tempted! Hope to see a few of you hardy Northerners there. Fuller details of the Show here - https://www.scalefour.org/scalefournorth/2019/ Leslie

Oh dear, very embarrassing - I was on the train! The St Ciaran was the first ever RPSI Two Day tour - now known as the International Tour. Give me time to find the 1968 logbooks and I'll give you the exact time!

Ernie You've set a good puzzle here with your post of 22 March. Just to prove that I'm Irish, I'll try and identify them in reverse order! The last photo of the five (J15 139) is definitely Kenmare, looking from the end of the line - the signal cabin at the far end with the little hut in front is the giveaway. It appears in a photo by the late Lance King with No.133. The other photo of 139 is almost certainly at one of the stations on the Kenmare branch, but which one? The third photo of an ex MGWR L(m?) Class 0-6-0 is NOT at Loughrea (which has a similar building), or Ballaghdareen, or Ballina, or Edenderry - all of which had very different station buildings - which, I think, leaves Ballinrobe? So, find my copy of The Baronial Lines and Hey Presto - several photos which show that distinctive station building behind the train, which has just arrived from Claremorris. The small building on the right of the photo in the distance is the signal box. Now, the photo of No.186 in 1968 - that was a puzzle as in those days I did every RPSI tour - but I didn't remember her going down the Cork line - which is where I thought this photo was taken. The answer is that this is the IRRS special, hauled by 186 on 29.9.68 when she ran Kingsbridge to Kilkenny. Believe it or not, she was deputising for 184 which was still on CIE's books, and had been used in the making of Darlin' Lily that year, but simply was in no condition to pull a train! She had to wait for her full restoration for the making of The First Great Train Robbery before she could do that (and how!). Can't help much further than that - I can't match the station building in the background with any station on the main line (the tour stopped at Sallins and Kildare), so it may be down the Carlow line? From Lance King's notebooks, I see that he took photos at Athy (not there), Mageney, Carlow, Muine Bheag, Gowran, on the way to Kilkenny; Milford and Carlow Beet siding on the return. I'm sure Mr Beaumont will have the answer! Finally - the photo of No.161 certainly looks like Patrickswell - there's a photo of the restored station building on the Net and it looks exactly like the building in the photo. Heavens - that's two hours gone - but an enjoyable bit of ferreting - I have six books open beside me now! Great collection, Ernie - keep spending money buying them! Leslie

Hi Phil and Andy Great to see Arigna getting new traffic. Sorry I wasn't there to see it - I was one of the specks in the helicopter shot of the Million marching to protest about this insane Brexit thing. Very good-humoured - interesting to see the Union Jack and the Green, White and Orange on the same flagpole carried by one marcher! If you guys who favour Europe and are UK voters haven't done so - sign the petition - over five million signatures, up one and a half million since i signed it on Friday. We gotta stay together!

Congratulations, Sean, that is truly remarkable - I wish that the late Drew Donaldson (who modelled CIE, but WITHOUT scenery) could see it. Of course, he would not be keen on the line of Paddy diesels in Glanmire shed. You'll have to get a gang of your mates on this site to bring their J15s, Woolwiches, CBSCR 4-6-0Ts and 800s (there are a few around?) to fill the shed throat with steam locos for an unrepeatable model photo shoot! Completely recreates a very well-known scene.

Well done. Nice to see one of Roger's kits built. As for the Black - well, White's Law applies - ie it's your layout and you run what you want on it!

No new Generator vans immediately - the single-ended Yankees pulled the little four wheel generator vans around for a while. Those converted Mk3 generator vans are a pretty recent addition to the Enterprise sets - within the last five years? After the four wheelers came the "Dutch" heating vans, built by both Verkspoor in the Netherlands and some by CIE themselves and then the BR Mark 1 full brakes converted into generator vans (the RPSI has one). The wheel has turned full circle, because in GB, steam engines on the main line trail a gennie van (often a Brake / 2nd) to provide heating etc. Health and Safety would not allow anything as dangerous as the steam loco providing heating steam itself via the steam pipes in the coaches - as it had done perfectly well for 150 years. Of course, on the preserved lines, we still have "proper" steam heating and the loco fireman couples up the steam pipe when he is attaching the vacuum brake bag. On the Bluebell Railway, we used to cease steam heating on 31 April and restart it on 1 October. If your Missus says she's cold in May - September - you now have the "official line" - NO heating in "Summer" - another way to save up for your new locos this year! Leslie

Six years (1961 - 67) would seem like an eternity on today's GB railways. I'm also delighted to see that 134 will be in the "as delivered" livery which I thought looked well. Noel is, of course, quite right about the awful British diesels delivered in the 1950s - look at some of the stuff created for the 1955 BR "Modernisation" Plan. However, if my memory serves me right the British electric motors were left in place on the A and C Class with the Yankee diesel engines acting as the generators?

Report post Posted 16 hours ago I think the plan was to extend from Kingscourt to ultimately reach Cookstown, if I'm not mistaken? Yes, that would seem logical - the old Derry Central seemed to have little sidings to military establishments all over the place - like those strange little lines which branch off Swiss main lines today and promptly disappear into a mountain! Think of it - if the Wee Man from near Salzburg had invaded Home, we could have had Woolwich moguls pulling trains of British tanks on low loaders on both sides of the Irish Sea. Gives a whole new meaning to Second Front?