Mol_PMB

I normally model in 7mm scale, here's a few of my road vehicles, mostly IXO as a basis:

Weathering is now just about complete, though I'll take a second look when this has fully dried. One's very tatty, the other two aren't so bad. I will replace the wheelsets (and weather the new ones), but I'm waiting on some parts. I've weathered the interiors so I don't need to load them, but in due course I probably will make some loads.

Super, many thanks for the detailed views of the wagonry. The side of the brakevan looks very presentable (and even has shaded numbering!) but the roof is in a terrible state!

I've been working on adding the different brakes to one of the corrugated wagons. Some of the triangulated underframe wagons had a 4-shoe brake with the brakes mounted outboard of the wheels. I do like little variations in my fleet. Here are some images showing the arrangement; these are in the public domain from Ernie on Flickr, but there are clearer shots on the IRRS archive. I added the brake shoes from spare bits in a Parkside kit, having previously drilled them carefully with a 0.5mm drill bit. Then I soldered up the cross-beams from brass wire and strip: These were then fitted into the small holes in the brake shoes: Which looks like this when it's the right way up: It's a bit simplified, but once painted and weathered I'm sure it will look fine.

Many thanks! Here’s a slightly closer view of the 6-wheeler: And some tenders: I would probably have taken more photos but I was distracted by the arrival of this: Which incidentally is a bit of a livery variation itself. For most of the supertrain livery era, loco numbers were low down on the bodyside behind the cab, presumably because the tablet catcher was on the cabside. There was a short period in the mid 1980s, after the tablet catchers were removed but before the white stripes were added to the livery. when some locos were repainted in supertrain with cabside numbers. This wasn’t common on the 001s, but there were a fair number of 141s with cabside numbers in supertrain livery. When the white stripe livery was introduced, the cabside became the standard place for the numbers on all classes.

Weathering stages on the corrugated wagons continue and should be complete tomorrow. Now that I've got the various kits to play with I should have enough parts to complete the alternative brake gear on one of them - a job for tomorrow. In the meantime I have started a project that may be familiar to many: an ex-GNR cement van. I've convinced myself by lots of scaling off photos that the van body of the GNR van is the same size as the BR vans - rather than the slightly shorter and wider Irish standard. That makes things easier! I'm using the Parkside PC08A kit as a basis, but I've swapped the solebars from a Parkside PC25 as they have the right sort of axlebox (but the wrong brakes). I needed to add extra V hangers anyway so that was no great problem, and the PC08A solebars have an alternative destiny... I've cut and sanded off the buffers and re-drilled at Irish spacing. I have some spare RCH buffers I can rob from a Cambrian chassis kit. The holes for the vents have been filled with a slice of plasticard and some filler which I'll deal with tomorrow once it's set hard. In the meantime I've added a load of little etched details to the sides, to replace the moulded bits that weren't quite right. These came from the Mainly Trains 'wagon detailing components' etch, the Cambrian etched tiebars, and the 51L 'Brake levers, V's and guides' etch BLGVB. I'll be using more parts off these later... Photo of a prototype from Jeremy Chapter on Flickr: I am considering getting some rivet transfers from Railtec to add the rivets/bolts around the edge of the doors. Many of these vans seem to have acquired strips across the roof, as in the photo above, but they weren't built with them and some survived to the end without. I'm quite tempted to model the one shown in Neil Smith's photo here, dated 1981. In this pair it's the H van that has the strips on the roof, not the GN van! The wheels supplied with this kit have a finer profile than the ones in the IRM corrugated wagon - the tyre width is 2.2mm rather than 2.8mm. This should mean there's no difficulty in setting them to 21mm gauge, except that I'll need to lengthen the axle. In fact the wheel profile matches that on the EM gauge wheelsets I bought. So I think I'll end up using some wheels of this type to replace the IRM ones in the corrugated wagons. Not the best photo but this shows the finer profile of the wheels in the Parkside kit compared to those in the IRM corrugated wagon: Anyway, more tomorrow.

Decades ago I tried to cut and shut some Triang Big Big Train Mk2 coaches into something resembling an Irish Mk2. I think that was about the end of my Irish O gauge project that never really got off the ground! These look much better...

Looking through my old Irish photos I found one of 'my' boxes at Limerick in the early 2000s: Even back then, this was one of the older MOL boxes with the original livery. MOL is of course a compound acronym where the O is itself an acronym

I've got several locos needing renumbering or a change of logo to represent my favourite ones. They are: Bachmann 181 class Murphy 141 class IRM 001 class Firstly, I'd be interested to learn from anyone's experiences of removing numbering on these particular types of models. Which methods worked best - IPA, T-cut, fine abrasive, careful scraping? Which methods attacked the paint? Secondly, what's the best source of number transfers to suit Supertrain livery? Railtec seem to do sheets to suit particular loco classes, but not these ones. There are two distinct styles of number: Side numbers on these classes are larger, with a serif on the 1 and with black shading. Front numbers are usually smaller, sans-serif and unshaded (you wouldn't see the shading on an 001 class because it's applied to a black background, but it's also missing on the 141/181 classes). Also, some locos had S or SA suffixes which were smaller and unshaded. My photos of 158 and 014 illustrate the different number styles: For completeness, I should note that the first few 141/181 supertrain repaints in 1974 used the larger seriffed shaded numbers on the front too. Here's one of Ernie's photos showing 156 in the late 1970s: The following locos carried this style in the 1970s until their next repaint: 141, 156, 158, 160, 173, 175, 182 to 186, 188 to 190. There may have been a few more. And finally, not part of the question, a bit of inspiration for those cases where you can't quite get the old and new numbers to line up, or the sizes don't match, or the varnish doesn't protect them properly... (all my pics, and in IE days so well after my modelling time period) Cheers, Mol

I'm going to call this finished, for now at least: To add a bit of colour, I got the baby GMs out of their boxes for the first time. These both need some work (renumbering, weathering, DCC chips, probably regauging) but I want to finish off a few more wagons first. 149 is from the current Murphy Models batch, and is in late 1970s / early 1980s condition with tablet catchers: Factory-weathered 190 is from the first Bachmann batch, and is in mid-late 1980s condition without tablet catchers, but with SA suffix to its numbers and electrification flashes:

I think that's a breakdown train van, that runs with the crane. Presumably they were operated by the loco department which only owned tins of dark grey and red paints?

Like the middle one here (my photo):

Lovely work! I look forward to seeing this develop.

Many thanks for your thoughts and experiences. I suspect this was a fairly rare livery - applied for a short time and only to those wagons that happened to need repainting. It's applied to 2-plank dropside wagons, but when you see whole trains of them there are only a couple of red ones in the mix. I have also found a few more images, though some of these show different views of the same wagons and the livery isn't always clear. This is faded red with black underframe, it appears to have been 24477 but has been renumbered 360A without a repaint. It's the same type (converted from cattle wagon) and same lettering layout as 24514 we saw previously: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53570644103 Just in the corner of the photo, this is the steel underframe type 24051-24100, in red with black underframe. And again in the distance, same train: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53511304476 https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53510410237 This is probably 24076, we saw it in the previous post from a different angle, but the same location: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53511469593 This appears to be 1970s all over bauxite: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53509338094 This one clearly has different chassis and body colour, but it's not red. Bit of a mystery: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53509335364 Finally, although this is also a 2-plank dropside it's a different type of wagon with taller sides and it's in the 1950s snail era. The whole thing (including underframe) is a reddish colour: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53570466216 https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53570823079 https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53570499236 https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53511622074 Cambrian kit C077 might be a good starting point for a model. It is 17'0" over headstocks (very close) with 9'6" wheelbase (not quite right). Rapido made one in RTR but it's sold out:

Weathering continues. It's a slow process as I have to do one side at a time, and let it dry throroughly before applying the next layer. I'd say I'm about half way there with them. One is particularly heavily weathered, the other two are more moderate. At the moment it's all too contrasty, but a dark wash and a light spray of dirt will blend it back together. I bought a couple of EM gauge wagon wheelsets which have a finer profile than the OO ones. I think if I swap them into the corrugated wagons, I'll be able to get the 19.2mm BTB without the wheels rubbing on the W irons. Of course the EM axles are the wrong length... I wonder whether IRM could be persuaded to sell replacement 21mm gauge wheelsets? In other news, some wagon kits have arrived, and there will be much swapping of parts to achieve the desired results! I have a Parkside PC08A, PC25 and PC65, a Cambrian C107, and C105, plus a selection of spare buffers and brake gear parts. I'm hoping these can be mixed up to produce a GNR ex-cement van, a CIE palvan, and two NIR ex-Courtaulds wagons. More on them once the corrugated opens are finished.

The vegetation on the photo plank is now almost complete. All the bushes and shrubs are in place, though I may still add a bit more localised texture to the grassy areas, and trim the edges. I am working on a fence for the top of the cutting but at present the holes are marked with cocktail sticks while I prepare the fenceposts. I also plan to fit a plain grey backscene so you don't have to look at all the mess behind!

This photo from Ernie dated 1978 shows a couple of the PWD 2-plank dropsides, one in unpainted wood and the other which I think is dirty bright red because it has a grey underframe. It could just be bauxite, but the lettering style matches the bright red ones. Inconclusive, but at least this shows the type of wagon that was red. Here's a closer look at the unpainted one, also on a grey underframe. At least I assume it's unpainted rather that a creamy yellow?

One would make a fine 'gate guardian' at Cultra!

I stumbled across this web page http://www.nwrail.org.uk/nw2407d.htm which has a nice selection of Irish colour photos from 1969, the rather monochrome period when all the wagons were grey and many of the locos were black! Certainly plenty of grey H vans and their earlier cousins to be seen here, no outlandish colours at all: http://www.nwrail.org.uk/dp2159.jpg http://www.nwrail.org.uk/dp2141.jpg http://www.nwrail.org.uk/dp2131.jpg

Sorry for the delay. I'm home now, with access to my wagon spreadsheet and photo links. Dropside 24054 in the foreground, may be the bauxitey colour. Then one without sides in the brighter red with black/grey underframe. The third wagon is unpainted, and the last one 24401 is indeterminate colour. Note numbers painted on the ends. https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53527762385 Other photos of the same train showing more wagons also show more red wagons among them: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53527509543 https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53527331611 https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53527509538 Rear left, 24076 in red with black underframe. Right, 24078 in red with grey undreframe. Both appear to be bright red with white roundel, though a little faded: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53511462853 Perhaps the best shot of a 4-wheeler is this portrait of 24514 in bright red body and grey underframe, small PWD, white roundel: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53510417347 The 6-wheeler 24103 undergoing rebuild, with some parts in worn bauxitey red: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53511646909 And in service after completion of the rebuild, in bright red, black underframe, white roundel: https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53511646919 Please note, only IRRS members with access to the IRRS Flickr archive will be able to view these links. Mol

The B101 looks interesting. Is that the Studio Scale Models or the Silver Fox variant?

The PW department does seem to have painted some vehicles in a bauxitey red in the 'snail' era, including the van you have identified. In the same lifting train in 1960 there was also a 2-plank dropside in this livery, seen fairly well in these two images: Here's a closeup of the van. All these from Ernie on Flickr. In the IRRS archive the photo of 24103 under repair in 1969 shows it partly in this colour (but mostly fresh wood unpainted). The same wagon was photographed again in 1972 and had clearly been outshopped in bright red with roundel.

When I’m home from work I can post links to the photos I found. Note, they’re only visible to IRRS members so not all forum members will be able to see them.

I found this thread while searching to see if there was already any information on the PWD red livery (I didn't find anything). I appreciate this might not be directly relevant to your specifically narrow gauge question but it does fit the title of the thread. Anyway, in 'Irish Railways Today' published in 1967, the paragraph about Ballast Wagons reads: "The 1949 batch of 50 wagons have conventional steel frames, while the timber-framed wagons are conversions from cattle wagons. They are all finished in the red livery of the Permanent Way Dept." So, red, not grey. What sort of red? Well now I have joined the IRRS and have access to their photo archive, I know the answer. In the mid 1960s, the PWD painted their wagons bright red, like a loco bufferbeam. And unusually, it was only the body sides and ends that were red, the underframes appear to be dark grey or black. There was a white CIE roundel on the body as well as PWD and the number. Photos show dated late 1960s and early 1970s that this livery was certainly applied to: 2-plank dropsides 24054, 24076, 24078 (all from the steel-framed 1949 batch 24051-24100 as mentioned above) 1-plank 6-wheel dropsides 24103 (from the batch 24102 to 24112) One of the 24401 series with 2-plank ends but no sides fitted (this batch 24401 to 24450 were converted from cattle wagons as mentioned above) 2-plank dropside 24514 (this batch 24451 to 24515 were converted from cattle wagons as mentioned above) Not all PWD vehicles were painted red, of course. 1971 photos show that ballast plough brake 8452 was all over brown with roundel, while its mate 65M was tatty dark grey with snail, and 8167N was clean pale grey with roundel. The pre-CIE ballast hoppers between them were shades of rust and grey. (By 1975 the old plough brakes were all brown.) The 24401 and 24451 series wagons were introduced in 1964 and described as red in the book published in 1967, so they were probably painted red at the time of conversion in 1964. I wonder how long the red wagons lasted, and whether the livery was applied to any other types of PWD vehicle? Has anyone modelled a red wagon?

Not much progress on the plank itself today, but I've started propagating some more bushes. The dark green ones on the left will be more gorse,and will have the yellow flowers added as before. The small buff ones in the middle will represent some dead bits of gorse and will fill some gaps in and around the 'living' ones. The other green ones on the right will have some green flock leaves added, to represent some other sorts of bush. I've got a busy few days at work coming up, but hopefully I'll get these finished and planted later next week.