leslie10646

Just to complete the DSER Coach Type F10 story - according to Shepherd - Nos.5 and 6 were withdrawn in 1926 and 1925 respectively, but Nos 8 and 9 with down-graded to thirds in 1928 and 1931 (no withdrawal dates); No.15 appears to have remained a first until withdrawal in 1959 and No.16 was demoted to third in 1929 - again no withdrawal date stated. A glance down the withdrawal dates stated in Shepherd's book suggested that few DSER six wheelers made it to the 1950s. Leslie

You can't live without one when you're my age, especially under these modern low wattage bulbs. Now, when I was a young man, the lights actually lit up the room .............

I received my BUILT Gardner from George a couple of days ago. Now, I'm operating on my back-up "distance" specs, as the "proper" ones broke in Switzerland, but even "at a distance" it's a very fine model indeed and I heartily recommend it to lovers of the GREAT Northern - even though it's a bus. I'd love to say that it's now in service, but it's upstairs in its box, amidst the chaos on my baseboards! Leslie

Two questions here: 1 Brown vans were almost entirely used on the NCC. I have seen one photo of a couple at GV St in mid sixties. So, I'm pretty sure the answer is that they would not have run on CIE metals. Of course, who klnows what might have happened on a pigeon special, if "NCC" pigeon fanciers ever sent their birds so far away? 2 No.15D was a Type F10, built at Grand Canal Street and was one of SIX (Source Shepherd, DSER History). 15 appears to have been the only one to remain a first. As for more photos - scour the photos in EVERY book covering Dublin - using a good magnifying glass. Good luck! Leslie

Yes, sad to hear of Leonard Nimoy's death - I enjoyed his dry depiction of the Spock character. Nimoy appearred in other films, but to get you wracking your brains - which notable (1950s?) Western had "Bones' in it on the "Baddie" side? Leslie

Returning to the model, for a moment. The late Drew Donaldson had a model of one of these 4-8-0Ts, built to his usual amazing standard and powered, of course, by a clockwork motor! I can't remember if it was ever used to bank trains out of "Kingsbridge" on the layout (it WAS uphill and the trains were scale length). My memory is that it was used to shunt the yard! I must look at my photos of Drew's collection which you can see at Cultra, to see if it survived to be displayed. Leslie

Folks I remember one of our number complaining about the cost of sound-fitted locos and I think I replied saying that you can't expect anything for nothing, or an equally undiplomatic reply. Well, I may have to eat my words. Rails of Sheffield are advertising a Hornby Class 37 with sound for about €100! Or a lot less than a hundred nicker in my langauge! See - http://railsofsheffield.com/network-rail-class-37-97301-locomotive-with-tts-sound-r3289tts-JJJA25783.aspx So maybe "the Whole island WILL become full of noise" (to misquote fellow Ulsterman Kenneth Brannagh at the opening of the Olympics) and we'll see much cheaper sound-chipped Irish locos? Leslie

Watch it, Beaumont! I must admit I would have spelt it with a "t", but Patrick spells it ValenCia in the title of his book and he comes from that area - so he MUST be right? I would tell you how the immortal Drew spelt it, but the timetable on his famous line was all in Irish! Not to worry, Big Dave is sure to read this and put us BOTH right!

I met the great Bob at a Pangbourne College Founders' day twenty years ago, when my son was a pupil there. My wife, who is a professional home economist (we'd say COOK!) persuaded him that as she RE-ENGINEERED food, in the course of making a dish, she therefore was as much an engineer as him! They had a great bit of banter. A truly lovely and talented man, who will be missed, but remembered with great affection. He had his model (some enormous scale) working Brush 4 diesel with him - engineering in miniature if I ever saw it! Leslie

For any of you "in weeping exile" as the late Drew Donaldson used to say, next week's Southampton Exhibition has an Irish attraction. The 21mm "Valencia" will be at Barton Peveril College, Chestnut Avenue, Eastleigh, Hampshire on Saturday / Sunday 24/5 January. I can recommend the exhibition anyway, even without the sight of J15s in wind-swept Valencai Harbour! See - http://www.ukmodelshops.co.uk/events/10305-SouthamptonModelRailwaySociety_SouthamptonModelRailwayExhibition Leslie

As long as it's open by Valentine's Day when I have to take a group of forty through it (on Eurostar - I couldn't walk that far).

Well done with the van - looks the part and as Kieran says, nice details. Leslie

Well done Mark and Co. Sorry I hadn't heard of this reward on Sunday, or I'd have congratulated you in person when we were chatting at Warley. One up on the Brits! (oops, I AM one of those!!!). Leslie

AND they sell, for Mark had cleared out of the NIR 071s he took with him to Warley

To all intents and purposes, this van is the same size as the ex-GN Bagged Cement van which I have sold about 450 of! Same wheelbase and body size. There the similarity ends - the chassis and brake gear are different, the roof flatter and it has "plain" corner strapping - the cement van had a slopping corner strapping on the sides. The corrugated iron ends aren't necessarily wrong, if you simply repainted one of the RTR vans, as I believe Inchicore often used whatever they had to hand and if they were out of sheet steel but had corrugated ....... There's a good pic of one on page 71 of Locomotives and Rolling Stick 2nd Edition. All that said, this van is on my radar, with proper chassis, if you can wait a year. Leslie

I just want to record my sadness that "The Model Shop" has disappeared from the Belfast streets. The original shop was a matter of a hundred yards from the front door of "Inst", where I received my secondary education and their front window was compulsory viewing. In those days, it was the place to choose that special kit to ask for for Christmas (the Revell "Missouri" one year) or another tank kit - yes Panzers then too Glenderg!. Once Hornby went two rail, the shop was one source of some of my railway bits. A department store nearby had a good model section and they got a some of my (meagre) trade too. But, the very existence of the Model Shop kept my modelling interest alive, so it's sad to see it "disappear". Getting my Provincial Wagons into the shop some years ago completed a circle begun fifty years previously. I hope Gareth and Co find their feet in the new guise and that we soon see a flow of the good things we know they can produce.

Ah, no, Blaine, that's the beauty of the Kickstarter idea - you have to pay UP FRONT - no pay, no get Not do sure I want the A Class - two of John Hazelton's ones already - but ....... It might offer Paddy a way to get a single-ended yankie out sooner? Paddy, you can have the Euros from me tomorrow (for a grey one!), if you launch one of these schemes. Can't say fairer than that and I'm a steam man. Mind you - what about a J15 / 101 Class? Leslie

Well spotted, Minister. A very nice shot - probably on the Ring? You'll find lots of shots of early charabancs in "Transport In Ireland 1880 - 1910" (Patrick Flanagan). Many were associated with the railway hotels, both to deliver clients to the hotel from the railhead, or take them on tours, like the Antrim Coast Road, Connemara or The Ring. There's a particularly nice shot of one (really a bus) in Ernie Shepherd's MGWR book page 74. Very much part of the early railway scene.

Yep, Ivor, and Steve was driving it around himself. I've just supplied him with your "AEC Owner's Manual" (which you did for my "proper" AEC set), so he can work out how to remove the Triang motor bogie and replace it with a Black Beetle! Maybe you'll appear at Bangor?

Right, I've got the photographic evidence of an NCC loco and coaches working through to Dublin in GNR days. I'll try and get permission for the photo to be displayed. On 26 June 1949, No.93 (Class W Mogul) ran a special for The Pioneers from Magherafelt to Dublin. Charlie Friel has in his possession two photos of her at Dundalk! Quite an exploit, for she would have had to run round the Antrim branch tender first before reversal at Lisburn. In fact she may have been worked tender first the whole way from Magherafelt to there! One of you guys, who is a member of the IRRS in Dublin, can take yourself into the Library, go to the "Holy of Holies" in the reference section where you'll find the working notices for the GNR for 1949 - there's sure to be a full timetable for the train there! Funny none of we oldies thought of Pioneer specials - there were still lots of them in the 1960s.

Ivor I'm sorry you missed it too, as I've been looking forward to meeting my premier coaching engineer for a long time! Some of your coaches are roaring round my loft in fine style twelve years on! Leslie

Nelson Thanks for putting the video up, as I can now aim Michael at it to see his wagons "in action" - better than any photo! Thanks, too, to Patrick Davey, for the super jigs to go with the film! Blaine, I think a lot of Bleach Green's problems were a single Class WT which was very sick for some reason. Personally, I found the layout (first time I'd seen it in the flesh) very evocative. Well worth the £200 odd it cost to come over to see it! Congrats all round. Leslie

Just in case any of you can afford it - you can probably save a few Euros by bringing your own Saffron kilt (of course, our esteemed member, The former Commisioner of the Garda will have one from his days running The Force). For the Scottish trips, Belmond tell you where to hire a kilt! Presumably you can hire 'em in Dublin as well? Enough cynicism for one night, I'm off to bed!

Ah, now there you've got it - another loco hauled train to photograph!