RedRich

I think the first thing that should be looked at is standardising everything. Is it one board per person, if so all boards need to be the same size. Track code 100 or 75. Operating system DC or DCC. Catenary is available from Dapol in 00, it won't be prototypically correct but is passable. The inner city stations like Connolly, Tara Street, Pearse, are overground. I think it would be good to keep it on the one level and south of the river. Platform length's at the Stations on the sea front, Booterstown, Blackrock, will take up a couple of boards. If two different people are doing Blackrock it will need to be seamless when boards are joined as the platfroms will need to be identical on both boards. Coastal railways are really good to look at. If I wanted to catch some Dart trains on camera myself I would rather be standing at a seafront Station as opposed to Killester, or Harmonstown. Dun Laoghaire is below street level and although it would make a beautiful layout it would be wrong for this kind of setup. Trains need to be able to arrive on scene and move on to the non scenic boards as an end to end type of setup or a rectangular, oval setup. The size of something like this needs to be looked at also when looking for somewhere to exhibit it. Draw up some plans, look at what will be the most suitable for everyone involved. Dave produces fantastic baseboards from the pictures I have seen. Eoin of course has his fantastic Dart models. We also have folk that are qualified in engineering and architecture, get them on board. Last but not least there are some fantastic modellers on here. If it is done right and kept simple it will work better and achieve the right result. It is a wonderful idea and it would be something to see in operation. I have no doubt it could be pulled off. Rich,

That's a huge transformation on the weedspray set Dave, it looks really good. I have to agree about the older weedspray coach also, I prefer it to the converted GSV van. Having said that it is probably the MK1 van that I will go for myself as it fit's more into the period I will be modelling. Smashing stuff. Rich,

Good idea Eoin, you could be onto something here. It happens a lot on the continent. Pearse Street would be a good starting point. Rich,

I can't believe that I missed this before. A great collection, thanks for the link John. Rich,

Most if not all models look a different shade in outdoor light as they do when indoors. Color doesn't scale down very well and the smaller the scale one models in, the harder it is. There is a slight difference in the shade of orange on the IE 141-181 models if you put them together. It is even more pronounced with a model of 077 in the IE livery when you put it next to the others. Not trying to take things too off topic, the shade of Inter City Executive on BR models is a color that none of the manufacturers of UK models rarely if ever get right, and Southern green is another one. I remember being on an IRRS tour of Inchicore one September, it could be 11 or 12 years ago. There was a freshly out shopped MK111 EGV that was waiting to be put back into traffic and a MK11 aircon Standard. Both of them were different shades of orange, even though they had been undergoing overhaul at the same time. Rich,

I see this is your first post Paul, you are a very welcome addition to the family, and I love your layout. Rich,

Superb modelling David. I am also following the blog, it is a very interesting subject, and a beautiful railway. Rich,

Welcome Maitland, the kit build looks great. Even though a lot of people leave the hobby for any amount of time, they always come back. I think it shows just how appealing and special the hobby is, and you joining the group is a great example of that. I look forward to more updates. Rich,

Anyone go to Connolly. Rich,

That's high praise Fran. I know your attention to detail is a priority when comparing a model to the prototype. I also think that Eoin picked the right member of the Dart classes to model. I can see some very scenically beautiful waterfront layouts appearing in the future of Booterstown, Blackrock, etc. You could also have MK11's on a run to Rosslare or Connolly. Bagged cement, Anhydrous trains for Shelton Abbey, RPSI trains, the possibilities are huge. Rich,

Those shot's look great Bren. The viewing height is spot on. The approach to the station looks amazing and spacious from those angles. I'll save the best until last, the station looks amazing, top work all round. Rich,

It will be very interesting to see Fran. I haven't seen a Dapol model up close and personal, but if it is on the same par as the Western it must be a hell of a good model. Strange seeing Hattons and Rails of Sheffield going up against each other in a battle of the twins, or Dapol and Bachmann for that matter. Personally myself I prefer them in the green livery. Rich,

Judging by the layout I'd say there is good food in that house. Rich,

I love it Ciaran, I am, and have been a regular visitor for years. I don't care how shabby 084 looks I love that livery. It's consigned to history now as there are no more IE orange locos left in the class. In the last 10 years some of the class have been outshopped in three liveries. 071 comes to mind for one. I also love the video, I have a soft spot for 112 having seen it countless times on beet duty crossing the Barrow Bridge from the inlaw's house. Rich,

From the photos Bren it appears to me that you are building the layout with a view to having an actual model of a real working railway. The one thing we all wish for is space, and unfortunately for a lot of us that is not a luxury that we can avail of. You are making the most of the space available to you, but it doesn't look cluttered like some large layouts can, and that is the reason why it is looking right. Some of the photos remind me of Sheffield in the 80's. There is the luxury of being able to run full length trains and shorter trains. When a train disappears off the scenic sections it can snake around the non scenic or viewing angles to appear again at a later time, and that will give you the opportunity to run the trains to a timetable, thus making it a lot more interesting. Running stock from different era's is a great way to keep things interesting also. You can have a steam era running session one day and a more modern era session another day without things not looking out of place. I am really enjoying watching the progress, and I know why Young Fran is a frequent visitor. It looks like a great layout to let a loco stretch it's legs, and better than any rolling road to run in a model. The ballasting should be fun, and I can see a few Superman poses when carrying out the work, not too unlike the last layout. Can't wait to see more updates. Rich,

Sounds good Eamonn, plenty of projects to keep you busy. Rich,

It's a contentious question Pat. The Jouef MK111's are based on loco hauled MK111's and therefore have three small roof pods on the ends of the coaches instead of the one larger square one found on HST hauled MK111's. The Lima models to my eye seem to capture the shape of the coaches better then the Hornby or Jouef ones. The Lima models are very poor in the area around the corridor connecters. The Hornby ones are better, but just by a little bit. If you can ignore the doors on all three models, then go for the Lima ones and get some flush glazing and new window surrounds from Southern Pride Models. Or if you really want to push the boat out get some laser glaze windows and etched window surrounds from Shawplan for the Lima coaches. If I was to do a Mk111 rake myself I would also tackle the doors. The Lima ones don't have the mould of the door opening lights, the Hornby ones do, and would need to be removed. The bogies aren't great on any of the models neither, the Lima ones being the poorest As for the MK11A models they are correct for certain periods. The IE ones had the silver top lights painted black at the end of their life, and also had the roofs painted black like the M11 aircons. I don't think that Bachmann handled the painting of the IE MK11A's too good as the orange doesn't wrap around the end's as it should. However I do think that the Bachmann models capture the shape really well. I can't wait to see their MK11F models. Rich,

Very nice, I remember when the Imp's first came to Waterford. Rich,

Lovely Eamonn. I also like the refurbished Dutch Van, and Ballast plough. Rich,

Cheers Eamonn, I love the pic on journal 161, Cravens, GSV, and 121's double headed. It doesn't get much better. Rich,

Sounds interesting Eamonn. I have heard about it before, but I've never seen any pictures of the liveries, what were they like. I would love to have seen them in the original livery that the Cravens carried. Rich,

Lovely Richie, I'll print them off at the weekend when I get some paper. Rich,

Very good advice re the magnetized heads as it really helps when re fitting the screws. Rich,

Tommy get some jewelers screwdrivers with a mix of flat head and philips type heads and they should do the trick, and also come in handy for other job's. McQuillians on Capel Street usually have a good selection from Draper amongst others. Draper used to do a set with an awl and tweezers included. You could also pick up a set in Maplins which is next to Smyths toy store, which is only a stones throw away. Rich,

I have a hold and fold myself and wouldn't be without it. Rich,