Glenderg

Nice! I've even heard of someone using the filament of a light bulb to do the same thing. Not me, honest...

Popeye, that is very very impressive. Is the vacuum pipe scratchbuilt? The lamp brackets...!? even custom J hangers wow.. the brake gear underneath and the weathering is suitably sublime. It doesn't even look too short in the photo. R.

You're welcome Gerhard. Cootehill is a fabulous trackplan that captures pretty much everything in a rural terminus station, and would make a smashing layout. Thanks to Ciaran @ eiretrains for the link to the O'Dea photos, some magnificent shots.

This might keep you entertained for a half hour or so.... http://www.flickr.com/photos/irishswissernie/sets/72157626762714490/detail/

Good question Gerhard! Cattle pen is located to the south behind the goods shed. It looks like a loading bank for coal, where it would be shovelled in manually. I can't think of any other need for a mini-platform for locomotives only.....?:confused: Nice other shot here Richie.

Stunning work, love how well the backdrop blends with the buildings, would love to see this on the exhibition circuit.

Fred Dean Jnr's Flickr page is yer only man for trucks of that vintage.

Hope these help. R.

Bloody hell! More pics Eamonn, very tidy work.

Finbarr, I spent an hour rambling around the virtual trackbed of your desired location, and theres no doubt but even now it's one of the most scenic railway layouts on this island and would make for an excellent layout. Unique bridges, weird level changes, cast iron bridges across rivers, riverside track - all potentially excellent diorama material, and relatively easily achieved. I'm going to go against the advice up top and recommend that you steer well clear of narrow gauge and brass kits, after all you are a complete novice. This is your layout. It's not for exhibition, so lay the track in 00 off the shelf, and as you develop as a modeller and gain confidence you'll happily dip into the more specialist areas. But for the moment get out a sheet of A4 paper, mark it out in large 1 foot squares, and start scribbling your 16' x 6' space, with the chosen area in mind. Don't be so hung up on achieving a museum standard replica of CB& PR - As you said yourself your better at the Art than Maths, so allow some creative space. Perhaps the layout might be a large river side sweep of track terminating/running through a station like Bandon. If people can recognise the area straight off, even if it is fictitious, that should be more than enough to offset the desire for perfection against an enjoyable working model. Go the Ordnance Survey Site and check out the historical maps of the area http://maps.osi.ie/publicviewer/#V1,591271,743300,0,10 From a Permanent Way viewpoint, it's not very exciting operationally, so perhaps a bit of "creativity" is needed. As one of the lads said earlier, if you multiply your actual space by 76.2, you'll likely find you can fit bugger all in 16 feet. If you were to model Connolly Station for instance it runs to 36 feet, and that's just as far as the cast iron bridges over the river. Richie.

Superb Photograph

The original Mr.Lady Gaga, absolutely class, sorely missed.

I've one of them already weathered, a fiver to the most hungry. Typically weathered in a natural state by virtue of being made of proper mild steel without an ounce of nickel in it. The rust is real! Cost me £7.50 before the liathroidi had dropped, so this has "antique" both depreciated and appreciated in value. It's a one time only offer for a rusty as hell short ass right hand point with plastic point motor assembly fairly fecked. No working point motor either. Not much chance of point blades meeting correctly, but you "pay your monies, ya take your choice". Bargain of the century. another 14 also available in equally crap state. guaranteed to annoy you. totally incompatible with dc/dcc/ac or even ac/dc. Best used on diorama for turf gauge layouts.

Hey hey it fits! That helix entrance is going to look so Gansta Victorian! Now that I see the sweep of track I understand the logic of blocking up that opening. Your landscaping skills will easily blend the two gradients together, something I was a bit worried about with the long run of stone cladding. I'll crack on with building the entrance then.... R.

Doc, Marty, Jennifer, and the Flux Capacitor?

A rendezvous with history! Very Churchillian!

Fair play to ye for getting the photos, severe dedication Wanderer, always impressive. On the livery though, I have but this to add....

Meet in Marks' around the end of every month/week, at the American Kits box, then nip round to Ned's for a swift one? Sound like my kinda support group

Great news. I've never done a brass loco and am really looking forward to it. Would be nice to see how the other lads are gonna tackle it, particularly the non-soldering types. Any idea when the deposit is likely to be needed, it's just that I have a few trocaire boxes that need to be handed back and..... Richie.

Instead of "Tarquin", I meant to edit that to read perhaps "Fiachra and Seomra" or other such turf-meets-internet-type names. For example - "As long as Doddy keeps the jeep porked up on de kurb, fiachra can run in a get his traynes. Take the platinum dorling, and keep away from the leisure suited fellows." R

Don't tell me I'm the only plonker who wants a Kit?

Gerhard, There was a post some time ago, which if memory serves me correctly, stated that there was no fixed rule of vacuum/hand braked versus colour grey/bauxite. Or at least there were enough variations on the rule to prove there was no rule. Anything goes. http://irishrailwaymodeller.com/showthread.php/1257-GSR-CIE-Wagon-Liveries?p=20961&viewfull=1#post20961 Richie.

I'd be surprised if anyone has ever bought any hornby stuff from Toymaster on Jervis Street to be honest. They've been away with the fairies pricewise for years in that particular shop. I think it's customer base is more blazer & jeans Dad/Yummy Mummy and son Tarquin on his birthday, rather than discerning modellers like yourself. On the upside, all of their Revell paints are totally underpriced, so if you want to stock up on enamels it's a goldmine. Full stock too. Didn't even know there was a Hamleys in Dundrum!

Tasty work Anto. Cutting the station is a brave but worthwhile move. Most Stations with a passing loop directly in front of the station would have had a second platform to take advantage of loading/discharging passengers for through trains. Most of the MGWR lines out wesht have that configuration, but it's hard to gauge which line is the "running" line as they converge some distance away from the station. Visually, I'd put the SB where the 071 is in the last few photos. It seems just right.