leslie10646

Dear Clare Man Just to encourage you and you are certainly getting there .... Ones I had made earlier (by a guy called Daniel Wu in Hong Kong, who had never seen a steam engine in his life, but had built about 20 DJH kits before tackling Terry's kits (as they were then) - he was very complimentary about the quality of the kits and it's great that Des is keeping this flag flying!). First, the engine of engines - No.171 (actually, my Engine of Engines is No.207, but she's somewhat late now!) - and a shed full, four of the locos were built by Daniel - two Class S, a QL and a SG2 - the others were built in England and are two T tanks and a SG. Like my railcars - a very lazy bunch they are, most having barely turned a wheel. However, the SG2 is being run in between Portadown and Richhill on the days I venture into the loft! Leslie

Ah, found the photos on the Mac, so here they are - This shows the AEC set with the two end cars of the BUT 9which is four cars, the intermediates being an open and a restaurant car. And "Full Frontal"!!!!! The full AEC set. The bad news is that the AEC has never turned a wheel, but has languished in the showcase, as the layout never got started! However, the BUT set has lapped David White's "Old Blarney a few times at Perth two years ago. Finally, a Class G1 panelled mahogany coach - 33lima got the mahogany quite brilliantly, I thought? Hope you like them - I certainly do! Leslie

Sneer, sneer, it's behind me in the showcase!!!! 33lima built it for me over ten years ago, you should see the BUT set he did for me....... And then there were the Mahogany coaches ......... I'm sure I put photos up on the site years ago? Ivor, I have some wagons for you? Leslie

Hall 5, NEC Birmingham Opening times: Saturday 0915 (Advance tickets only); 0945 - 1800 Sunday 0915 (Advance tickets only); 0945 - 1700 I will be running the Irish Railway Record Society stand - E05 - where you will find Irish books, recent and out of print; IRRS publications, including back-number Journals; AND Richard McLachlan's brilliant reproductions of the steam loco drawings from the IRRS Archive. You can even JOIN the Society - all Irish modellers should be members! There will also be a small display of models from our respective collections. While I will not be selling Provincial Wagons at Warley, if you wish to order wagons and pre-pay them, you can pick them up at the stand and save on postage. We are located beside Baile Cois Farraige (E04), so maybe I can persuade the boys to run some of my wagons? Also Dun Ut Riain (E03), which sounds Irish to my Northern ears - but I can find no reference to it on the Internet! Quite a little celtic enclave? Éirinn go Brách (even after today's showing against Australia!) We look forward to seeing you there. Leslie and Richard

David 4mm, of course! I trawled the Sprinks album myself this morning and there is not a sign of a bread container anywhere! Leslie

I assume someone has a list of CIE lorry numbers etc? The GNR did NOT have this type of truck. For those of you modelling God's Blue Railway, the full list of vehicles is to be found in Sam Simpson's brilliant book "Road Services of the GNR" which tells you the fleet number and even the civil registration number! In the case of the Company cars, it even tells you who drove them! Oliver Bulleid appears to have had a Chevrolet Bel Air as his Company Car when he was CME of CIE. It can be seen in a photo in the Turf Burner book. Ah, the trivia you can come up with ......

David You can tell that I'm in catch-up mode after the summer when I work for "real" pay. I have NEVER seen a picture of a bread container on the SLNCR, oddly enough as it was connected to Enniskillen which saw lots of them! I assume you have checked the SLNCR photo book by Neil Sprinks? But, heck, man, you're MODELLING - so on YOUR railway anything goes? I've still got supplies of both Stevenson's and Brewsters containers at the original prices - see my website. I assume you've got some SLNCR cattle wagons (also on my website - a very few left). Leslie

Nice lorry - wonder if they'd do a GNR one (not that the GN had this lorry?). Now, that Dublin bakery in the background of Richie's pic - Bolands (there's a name from Irish History Mr Dev) - obviously they never used the GN bakery container service, but would anyone be interested in a container in that red livery, suitably lettered? Just thinking out loud - but not averse to getting answers! Leslie

Nelson It's to encourage people like you who are "coming on" in the hobby, that I'm encouraged to keep going! I've seen your layout and you're miles ahead of me, at a quarter the age!!!! Keep it up. Leslie

Kieran (and others) NO! I would like to face My Maker having "produced" a complete train! HE, of course, is doubtless laughing at me at this moment. I am pursuing another resin body man on this one - that's for the SG3. Another partner in crime is pursuing doing a brass UG in modest numbers - as he plans to appear at Bangor, I would think he has an incentive to have "something to show" - NOT a working loco though - like "My Man", he's also got other agenda! He's too preoccupied with North Eastern railway (and other) COACHES. Regards Leslie

Friends With Regret ....... The modeller who has so expertly mastered and built my range of handmade models has informed me that he no longer wishes to produce new wagons for me, as it is simply not profitable to him, at current prices. He has a long list of projects of his own to pursue and I cannot blame him for spending his time on rolling stock closer to his own interests! He has recently turned seventy, so who can blame him for concentrating his efforts on his home railway - the pre-grouping Southern (of England!). Those of us who have Michael's wagons running on our layouts owe him (and Joice, who assisted him) a considerable debt of gratitude for wagons which would not have seen the light of day without him. He has produced about 400 for me, to say nothing of an even higher number of bread and beer containers. As a result, there will be a long delay in both the introduction of any new handmade wagons and the production of any further samples of the existing wagons in the range. I hope to be able to get "kits of parts" of the existing models and to have these built elsewhere. I expect future Ready to Run handmade scale models to cost AT LEAST 50% more, depending on my success at finding a replacement builder! I have a few wagons left at the old prices, but when they are gone, they are gone! I DO have SOME bread containers at the prices shown and a VERY few Guinness containers - they may soon be collectors' pieces! I'll keep you informed and will update my website with stock levels as appropriate. Also on my success or otherwise in finding a successor to Michael - believe me I'm looking! I need wagons for (the barely started) Portadown Jct - upstairs in the loft! The first casualty is the proposed spoil wagon kit - my regrets to the owners of Bleach Green and others who had favoured me with a substantial order book! OBVIOUSLY, this has no effect on my "Dapol" repainted wagons, which are still listed on the website! Especially sorry to Paddy, who asked me to "do something" to produce wagons for his superb (I nearly forgot myself and said lovely - they're NOT steam engines!) diesel models. LESLIE

Well done, Patrick - a real work of art, even got the "bashed to bits" look of the top of these wagons! We could never have done that in resin!

UPDATE First thanks for all the input. You guys will all be cross with me, as we've decided to do the UTA Spoil wagon next, mainly because Colm Flanagan and Co want twenty for a "Muck" train on Bleach Green - I suggested forty, so he could cross a loaded and an unloaded train and give us all an epic photo! I don't think anyone managed that with "the real thing"! Even offered to loan my two WTs to top and tail one of the sets! After that, the original corrugated Bulleid wagon. My man sees it as a good challenge to get it as close as possible to the prototype - especially the corrugations inside and out. However, don't hold your breath - we're talking 2014. I hope to maybe have a prototype wagon by Bangor exhibition next year. If any of you want the spoil wagon, an indication of that fact, plus the number that you want would help! I can't hold you to it, but some idea always helps encourage the modeller to get the job done! e-mail me on lesliemcallister@aol.com Thanks Leslie Thanks

This reply covers anything I do which is handmade. I ALWAYS offer about 10 different running numbers, so trains can look right! Thank you all for your replies. Time to close the thread and let me count up the popular items! Now, guys, don't hold your breath - we get out about two new wagons a year - so the first of these may be ready for next year's Bangor exhibition - that is a year from now. I would be interested in knowing how many of you would accept kits, providing they were easy to assemble? This reduces the time delay, as my modeller isn't tied up sticking things together, painting them and applying lettering! Thanks Leslie

Richie I considered this ages ago, when I first rebadged Dapol wagons - especially as I have loads of BR containers about the place. The problem is, none of them will go INSIDE the Dapol (or indeed Bachmann, if memory serves) opens - the sides of the opens are not to scale and so are too thick! It would need a handmade open with thin sides - maybe one day. Leslie

Hi Hunslet Fear not, the spoil wagon KIT is due to be next up! Leslie

Yes, that one appeared on my radar when I found myself looking at a "preserved" one dumped behind the loco shed at Whitehead. So, at least there is a proto Leslie

Folks Rails of Sheffield have put a price on Paddy's latest 071s up today, plus the new coaches, including the Galway ones. Still a few items on their obsolete list. Leslie

Folks The system has just rejected a long reply, which took me half an hour to write, so this will be short. The above trio suggested by Kirley and many others, are probably high on my list. However, top marks to the guys who suggested the ubiquitous "H" Vans - now why hadn't I thought of those? So keep the ideas rolling in, please. There'll be something else I would never have thought of! I'll see what I can do about the three pack idea, which I used with my cattle wagons until the price of the larger boxes rocketed - I do save postage and I DO pass it on! Very many thanks for the simply terrific response. Leslie

Folks While chatting to Paddy Murphy, he asked me to produce wagons for his immaculate diesels (to encourage sales, of course) - but what? I plan a skeleton container flat to take a 20ft container, like the lovely Bell one which is available, the Bulleid corrugated wagon (single and double height, both of which were used for the beet traffic) and possibly a cement bubble. Votes for these and further ideas appreciated by PM, e-mail or reply to string. Prices? Flat around £20 sterling, Bubble might get within £30 sterling, corrugated wagon in the £20 league. All in resin, as my handmade wagons are, painted and lettered. No comments, no wagons - it's very simple, but I have tried my best for Paddy! Thanks again for great Bangor support. Leslie