Mol_PMB

I was wondering, has anyone researched the CIE sleeping cars, or built a model of one? I mean this kind of vehicle - the green one (photo from Ernie): I understand these were used as temporary staff accommodation which could be moved around to cattle fairs and other events where a normally quiet station would have a large influx of traffic and need more staff to deal with it. Most seem to have been converted from 6-wheel coaches, and carried numbers in the 2##A series. Also potentially of interest are the Permanent Way Department 'ballast vans' which again were staff accommodation, and one also appears in the photo above - the grey and red one. These were numbered in the 248xx or the 845x series and were less numerous, and looked less like carriages. Shall I have a look down this rabbit hole?

Looking superb already!

On the railtour on Saturday I'll wear my MOL T-shirt so you can recognise me. I answer to the names of Mol, Paul or PMB. Please say hello - it would be great to meet some other forum members face to face. I'll have the E class with me if you want to inspect it at close quarters. Cheers, Mol

Glazing added. It looks better on the photo plank in the spring sunshine! A few pics with a short train of equally grubby silver trucks.

Some foxy locos... https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/226676877681 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/226676869002 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/226676871357

Very nice - super photos! I was wondering whether 220 might appear on the Cork services and I'm pleased to see that it has done, just in time for my visit

Those will go very nicely with the IRM 'H' vans, and hopefully they'll sell well for you. The lettering and finish is excellent.

Some information on the G class at Tralee from Andrew Waldron, after I asked a related question on the Industrial Railway Society group. With relevance to John Langford's photos on Fenit Pier as reproduced in @jhb171achill's North Kerry book: A ship load of timber was due that day for McGowan's merchants in Tralee, loaded into open wagons and taken over the branch to Tralee by a G class Dtz shunter. McGowan hired the second Tralee Dtz, the one in reserve to shunt the wagons at his site, while the first Dtz went back to Fenit, for the second load. The last shipping order was the one after this consignment in 1969, then the curtain came down. I hadn't realised that Tralee had more than one G allocated, so I asked more about that, and Andrew responded: G Class Dtz locos, allocated to Tralee in the period 1965 to 1970 were G 611, G 613, G 614 and G 617. McGowan hired 617 in 1967, again in 1968, he hired 613 in 1969. I will dig some photos out and send to you off group. I'd already got my eyes on G611 after I found photos of that at Castleisland. Given that we also have photos of G602 and G616 at Fenit (outside the time period mentioned by Andrew) it seems that the majority of the Gs would have visited Fenit at one time or another. I'm beginning to wonder if a G class chassis etch would be worth doing to modern standards, and maybe a G601 cab to fit the Worsley Works model?

Thanks I look forward to showing it to you in person on Saturday!

I've been gradually working on the weathering on E410. It's so easy to overdo it and I fear I have ended up with something a bit more grubby than I was aiming for. It's not as bad as some of the prototypes though! It has moved on a bit since I took these photos, I have taken some of the weathering off and added more in different shades and places. I can't quite settle on the right look. A black one would have been much easier! The green on the transfers looks too bright in this lighting, that may tone down with some weathering, but it looks better in sunlight. Tomorrow I hope to fit the cab window glazing, then reassemble. That's about as much as I can do before the loco's trip to Cork and Fenit at the weekend. I think it looks a bit better now than in the photos above. If the weather stays sunny tomorrow I'll take the photo plank outside for some pictures. In due course I may revisit and refine the weathering. I haven't got a driver figure yet but I will need one. I also think there's some fine-tuning needed on the DCC motor control as the loco seems to almost come to a stop and then lurch forward a little. But it feels like I'm very nearly there. The instructions are almost complete too. Once I've finished them off I'll add them to this thread and then you can see what you're letting yourself in for if anyone wants to build one for themselves. I still plan to build a second loco in black livery, and I have the parts to do so. But I have an embarassingly large queue of other things to make...

Perhaps Stuart can instead look at the Industrial angle; some of the Irish broad gauge industrials had near-identical counterparts on the big island. But first, get that C class rolling! Perfect for north and south, plus layouts based in Manchester docks or central Leicester!

It would have rolled over into the bog and sunk without trace!

Ah, does that mean we can all start frothing about the IRM narrow gauge project?

Haven't you got yours yet? Must be stuck in customs.

Nice! Do you have any photos of the trips that you could share here? I’m planning a Sunday trip from Cork to Fenit this weekend, but the last leg from Tralee will be by bus or on foot.

This takes me back a few decades! Begging to be rescued by @Darius43? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/286451562171?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=yppbTabUTsm&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=PWnBnL0RQpq&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

Moving on to the railtours, I have identified four so far. There are many photos of most of these because they were packed with gricers! So I won't attach links to them all but just pick a few. 5 June 1961, MGWR tank engine 560 (which was at the time the regular freight loco on the Fenit branch) hauled a railtour. The train was formed entirely of CIE-era stock: a tin van, two laminates and a buffet car: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53468560926/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53468878174/ 7th September 1963, G617 hauled a railtour to both Castleisland and Fenit. Whilst at Fenit it gave rides along the causeway to the pier, light engine. The train was formed of a tin van, a GSWR corridor third, and a Park Royal: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53511154971/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53511470444 https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54419865290 8 June 1964, the grand tour visited Fenit behind 186 (before it was preserved). The train was formed of a 6-wheel van, Bredin corridor first, old panelled diner, two 1497-series seconds, and a tin van. It was too long for the loop and G617 was on hand to help shunt the train. Finally (as far as I know) 186 visited again on 3 June 1972 whilst on a Limerick-Tralee (and branches) railtour. The set was formed of a 1449 series laminate, Park Royal, 1449 laminate, Cravens, and a tin van. The tin van was repositioned at the rear when the train reversed at Fenit. https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53511662404/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53510434637 I think that was the end for railtours to Fenit, unless anyone was lucky enough to blag themselves a trip on the weedspray trains!

It has toilets at each end so isn't it more likely a corridor third? Or did the GSWR build some with internal corridors but no gangway? It's early one anyway, with an arc roof. A similar vehicle in this train: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54418615712 For bonus points, what's this one with a birdcage on the roof? Pictures not so clear though. https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54253198698/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54253211714/

Moving forward into the black and tan era, B141s became the preferred traction. On 29th August 1965, B162 hauled a train of 4 bogies (2 green, 2 BnT) including a former GSWR panelled corridor third and a 1900 series brake standard; no separate van. This features in two different photos in the books Irish Traction in Colour (Huntriss) p84 and Rails Through North Kerry (Beaumont/Carse) p114. The caption notes that the train returned empty to Tralee to form a second excursion. On 3rd September 1967, B156 hauled a train of 3 bogie coaches and a tin van, unusally with the tin van near the middle of the rake. The whole train was in BnT and included a Park Royal and other CIE-era stock. https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53510250437/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53570446236/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53570445691/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53508784679/ On 29th June 1969, B153 had a train of 3 bogie coaches and a tin van, all flush-sided and in BnT livery but mostly (all?) compartment stock: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53511462933/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53511296941/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53511296936/ On 9th August 1970, B143 hauled a train formed of 4 bogie coaches including a 1900 series brake standard and a Cravens number 1523. This train is pictured in Rails Through North Kerry (Beaumont/Carse) p112. On an undated occasion in the early 1970s, the train was formed of B169, three Cravens, a CIE compartment coach and a tin van: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53446885166/ And the final undated photo shows B151 at Fenit, we can only see the first two coaches one of which is a brake standard:

Inspired by some recent uploads to the IRRS Flickr archive, I thought I'd take another look at the summer Sunday excursion trains to Fenit. Normal passenger services had ceased between the wars and the branch was on the verge of total closure in the 1940s. But after the pier and freight services saw a resurgence in the 1950s, the passenger services came back, with the first one running on 21 June 1959. On busy days (fine weather for the beach) there could be three round trips daily. They only ran on summer Sundays and ceased around 1973. Still, that's a 15-year period of regular, if infrequent, passenger traffic. The 1967 working timetable (the oldest one I have) shows a 1015 Cork-Fenit arriving at 1330, then returning at 1815 to be back in Cork at 2135. This ran on Sundays from 18th June until 3rd September. I'll think about the railtours later - there were at least four. The photos of the 'green era' Sunday services I've found so far are as follows: 1959: Alan O'Rourke's book 'The North Kerry Line' p.241 shows an AEC set headed by 2606 on the Fenit branch in summer 1959 21 August 1960: At least two excursion trains came to Fenit, and the station was quite congested! One was a 6-piece AEC railcar set including 2601 from Castleisland. The other train from Cork was formed of C212 hauling 4 bogie coaches and a 6-wheel van. Fortunately a couple of IRRS members were there (on the train from Castleisland) to record the occasion and the shunt moves: http://www.mainevalleypost.com/2021/02/12/castleisland-railway-reminescenses-from-august-21-1960/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54253392935/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54253392940/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54252110532/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54252073152/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54253211714/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54253198678/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54253198698/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54252110497/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54253391920/ 22nd July 1962: C232 hauled the train from Cork with a tin van and 3 bogie coaches: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54419865335 https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54419669699 https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54418615712 https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54256976078/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54257001693 https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54419722693 I don't know the date of this one but it's likely to be early 1960s as well. A train of 4 bogies and 2 tin vans: Each of the loco-hauled trains includes at least one old panelled coach among CIE stock and Park Royals, plus some sort of brake van. That's all I've got for the green era, but I think it's enough to give a flavour of the trains; I'll do another post for the black and tan era.

Decals arrived today, and are already applied and varnished over. From John Peck of Precision decals this little custom sheet cost £4 including postage. Bargain! I thought while I was getting green decals I'd have some done for a Deutz as well. That was before Ciaran posted this photo and I realised that I've got the colouring of the diamond wrong. I based it on the black livery as until yesterday I didn't have a closeup photo of the cab back of a silver G. Doh! No-one but me will notice I'm sure... https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54419865730

But are they full of Accurascale products? How many packs of wagons did you buy?

You're right, an astute observation that such photos are unusual. Super to see the trains in the landscape rather than just close-up! It's great to see the whole train formation rather than just the loco (even if in some cases it is just a loco or loco+van). The 10-12 coach trains are impressive, some with lots of livery variation and others remarkably consistent. A few more nice ones: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54418626352 https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54419733333 https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54419680904 https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54419680949 https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54419680914 There's even a nice 'train in landscape' shot on the Fenit branch, with a typical Sunday excursion train in the early 1960s - a C class with a tin van and 3 assorted gangwayed bogie coaches: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/54419865335 I think the normal Cork-Tralee sets were used through to Fenit. They only ran in the summer so no need for a heating van. Very modellable...

Indeed. There are about 50 photos in and around Portadown in the latest upload, including this nice AEC set passing some of your GN vans (vac fitted versions): NMA_GNR_AEC_Portadown_04_Mar_1961 | [Photographer: Norman Mc… | Flickr

A question that's only marginally related to the tour, as I'm just looking at other things to do on my visit and wondering if I can fit in some loco haulage: Are all the Dublin-Cork direct services booked for 201+Mk4 or are some worked by ICRs? If it's a mix, is there any way to work out which is which from the timetables?