leslie10646

At no noticeable extra cost, I've done a bit of research in the IRRS Journal. No.800 ran the 1540 (Sat only) Kingsbridge to Cork in the summer of 1956 band 1957 (I am pretty sure a 400 Class was used on occasion)and worked her last passenger train - an extra - at Christmas 1958. I acknowledge the posthumous help of that lovely man David Murray in finding this out (IRRS Journal Vol 9 Page 270). Leslie

I suppose I'd better let you see what the whole wagon looks like? The chassis has been specially made to reflect its parentage - an earlier CIE container chassis. which, as every schoolboy (girl) knows had a different brake arrangement on each side - as you can see in this piccie of Big and Little Brother. We hope that you like it! Leslie

Well spotted, Des. Actually, there is a source for MODEL Sugar Beet, see:- http://www.modelscenerysupplies.co.uk/truck-load-sugar-beet-oo-juweela How many stray beets do you think I should sell with each kit, Des? All part of the service. Leslie PS JB, NO rats on offer!

Ah, Richie, you discovered the same photo as we did! And, yes, you'll get the bracing in the kit.

To slightly misquote Crosby Stills and Nash - "It's getting to the point, where YOU are no fun any more….." I knew I should not have shown any of the corrugations! Next question - what song am I quoting? When they sang it (their first ever performance in public) at Woodstock, it brought the house down (in a manner of speaking, as they were singing in a field, of course!). Leslie

Will be on show at Raheny. Leslie Provincial Wagons

Time to put up a photo the Ballast Flat complete with the Railtec Transfers applied (very badly by me). Steve has done a neat job as a single transfer suffices for the Work's Plate (complete with the wagon's number) and the usual stencilled number. I'll have a supply of the kit at Raheny for just 22 Euros. Feel free to reserve one by PM or via my website. I have only had twenty made to date, so grab it while you can. A useful little wagon, whether for use with a pile of sleeps, or ballast; or, as I show here, delivering a new Landcover to a farmer ..... Leslie

Harry, I understood from Ron Pocklington that John was simply an enthusiastic photographer, rather than the official one. That said, between John and Ron they recorded the progress of the locomotive from the day they arrived right through to the trials on the Cork Main Line. I might add that John photographed Ron beside the boiler - the most significant part of the engine which existed when they turned up; the tanks had also been made - looked like progress, but wasn't - no work had been done on the actual ENGINE, which John and, more importantly Ron, set about designing and then building! It's a remarkable story. Leslie

Yes, Frank that's an interesting model - DOES IT GO? David, yours looks super too. Brass built locos look the Bees Knees - it always seems a pity to paint them! I had my last loco photographed before being "adulterated"! Leslie

John Click was with Bulleid at Brighton. Later he was working at the Testing Centre at Rugby when Bulleid asked Roland Bond for the loan of a couple of guys to TEST the TB. The full story has been told to me by Ron Pocklington who was the other guy sent to Ireland. When he and John Click arrived in Dublin they found that they had been sent to test a non-existent loco! The pair of them first had to build the thing! Full story was told by me in a talk entitled "The Third Man" (given to RPSI in Belfast and IRRS in London). - it's time I came to Dublin and gave the talk at Heuston? Leslie

It looks like I've been banished to the corridor (Stand W) - BUT I notice that you can't get in or out without passing my stand! Do call by and see (buy!) my latest four kits - two are brand new and deliveries are filling up my local post office! The prototypes of the next two will be on display. Guesses on a postcard, as the BBC used to say! Next to me - come and admire my pal Richard's superb coach-building skills. He will have books of drawings from the IRRS Archive - now including GSR and MGWR prototypes Leslie Provincial Wagons

From little Acorns grow mighty Oaks! Good luck with your next step upwards. Leslie

Good luck with the Launch and, of course, sales. Looking forward to selling it to the exiles over here. Pity it won't be in time for the Warley Exhibition! Leslie

The little Ballast wagon is thanks to Patrick Dillane in Ireland's Other Island - across the Atlantic - who spotted a photo on the Internet of the wagon with an Austin 1800 on it, sitting in a siding somewhere. I sent the photo, and a little suggestion to Michael who sent me a photo of the finished KIT about two weeks later. Happy Days. Leslie

Oh, it's the chassis Michael created for the corrugated wagon and I guess he has reused his Master on the successive wagons. Same logic as the IRM guys will use on their Ballasts and Bubbles, except that this is a resin kit of course.

First take a Bulleid triangulated chassis: Add a corrugated body and you've got one of several thousand of these iconic wagons; Add a steel van body and you get an H van (two above, of different eras) Finally, (for the moment), add a crude wooden platform and you get a Ballast Flat, which as well as its "proper" use got used to carry cars, or farm machinery, to Backwoods Ireland in the 1960s/1970s. 50 of these wagons were built using the chassis from H vans. I'm waiting for the transfers to complete the job. All available at Raheny in a couple of weeks! Leslie

Our H Van as it would have appeared in broken wheel days. The body is a bit on the red side, but you will get the idea? The kit comes with BOTH Snail and Wheel, plus correct numbers - as you can see here. Leslie

Thanks, on Michael's behalf, for the kind comment. No, the idea's not to make YOU bankrupt, or the Great Southern Man for that matter, but to save me from same! You'll find me at Raheny, but it would be useful to know how many, then I'll put your name on them! e-mail me on - lesliemcallister@aol.com Thanks again. Leslie

My tenth kit is the 12 ton van introduced on CIE by Oliver Bulleid in 1953. The van is on his famous triangulated chassis, previously seen on my earlier open wagon. My kit is of the original unfitted van and comes with specially commissioned Flying Snail, or Broken Wheel Railtec Transfers (your choice depending on the era you are modelling, but both are included), plus correct numbers for this type of van. I will post a picture of the van in late 1960s livery shortly. Price £24 or €28 post paid Dare I suggest to my friends in Euroland - buy now while the Euro is strong! Hope you like it, I think Michael (aka "My Man") has done a terrific job. Leslie

Noel You can have both of them NOW, but you'll have to build them from my kits. mind you my beets are pre 1980s single height. See: http://www.provincialwagons.com Leslie

Folks With another of my hats on, I raise funds for the RPSI through an operation called The Syndicate. Amongst our stock are many IRRS Journals and our price is more like Richie's fiver a magazine and certainly not ten plus! e-mail me on lesliemcallister@aol.com stating your wants and we'll try and sort them out for you and profit the RPSI at the same time. BSGVS is right about the usefulness of IRN (I have a bound set), but I refer to The JOURNAL mostly as I have an electronic index to it! So it's easier to do research in it. Leslie

David, Thanks for that lead - with MY track, it sounds like the answer to a Maiden's Prayer? Alas, Noel, I have more than a few superbly hand-built locos but which simply don't run so well. Much surgery on-going! But this Stay-alive thing sounds just the job. Your point about really slow running is well made - with DCC and a slow acceleration / deceleration rate set - you should see how the engine runs at properly slow speeds - if it doesn't hit a bit of dirty track and stall! Hmm, it seems I've got another £500 to find to fit my locos properly! Leslie

Yeah, John, I'm making a habit of it!

Patrick I hope that Roderick & Rebecca will indeed do a "101" (J15) in the near future - I have no idea at what level of sales the cost of mastering a loco makes sense, but I can tell you that when I ordered a second U Class last Saturday it was No.82 - as my first was No.3 - you can all do the maths - and that's a pretty good sales record, in my book. While I personally have no particular interest in a 101 Class, it's an obvious "next" if they decide that the Irish market is worth the bother. I've no idea what the order book for the UG is, but SOME guys may opt for a second - they were used on passenger and goods. Certainly I have two of a couple of goods classes. Leslie PS Come on then Popeye - I am a dyed in the wool steam man but I have a model of every Irish diesel on my layout!!! AND still await another 70th present of one of Paddy's grey single ended yankees.

Right - could be a chassis for a 2-10-0? No, there's no room for a pony truck, so you're not building a DB Class 50 2-10-0. The extended frame at the rear has got me - what 0-10-0 had such an overhang at the rear? Nice bit of miniature engineering! Leslie