Mayner

My Honda CRV is just about eligible to vote, 200k on the clock and still going strong.

Might be worth listing the items on E-Bay or the RM Web classified, there still seems to be a lot of interest in old whitemetal kits in the UK. http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/70333-what-have-you-done-with-your-keyser-kit/page-9 The steam tram, panniers and trams should be snapped up. Airfix body and Kemilway Chassis is probably for the Standard Class 4 2-6-0 may be more difficult to shift as Bachmann have released a nice rtr version of this loco.

Funnily enough the group that built the Malahide & Dromin Junction layout in the late 60s whittled down oversized broom handles for their cement bubbles. Eamonn I like your drive for the inspection car, not sure if its still available Branchlines did very nice compact gearbox that would take the hassle out of meshing the gears and wear would be less critical on those un-brushed bearings. Setting up power pickups would be fairly difficult so a Blackbeetle may be the best solution

Originally each province was more or less a law onto itself until the Colonial Government intervened in the 1870s, most of the early lines were in the South Island linking the local port with the hinterland. I think the first line was in Southland Standard Gauge weird Crampton locos and wooden rails. The Canterbury Provincial Government built North and South from Christchurch and built about 80 miles of 5'3" before the Provincial Goverments were abolished in the1870s. The track was re-gauged and locos and stock exported to South Australia. A couple of years ago I came across a siding laid in the old Canterbury Provincial Government double headed rail & chairs a p.w. mans equivalent of finding the lost arc The frugal Scottish settlers in Otago went for the new 3'6" gauge with Fairlie loco, one class were 0-6-4 back tanks complete with Inchacore style cab, bunker and outside framed trailing bogie.

Nothing compared with yer-man who turned up in Anasaul during the Emergency and asked the local Garda "ven is der next train to Dralee?

The minimum radius depends on track standards 3' seems to be about the minimum for OO wheel track standards, in S4 you pretty much have to work to scaled down prototype radius Templot starts blinking if you go below 4' Diesels and bogie stock are fairly forgiving but bogie and outside cylinder steam locos can be a challenge because of reduced side play in chassis and tighter clearances.

I'didnt do nuttin Mister! Got to hand it to Richie bringing the North Inner City to life. All you need is an RTE camera crew interviewing the local "community activists"or the late great Tony Gregory

I have been kicking around ideas for a layout for a good few years, but always seem to have moved just as I got things started. I have reasonable space in a convert garage 18X10 for a layout in OO or N, but a bit tight for anything other than a small terminus to fiddle yard effort in 21mm gauge. Having dabbled I American modelling I wanted something interesting to operate than watching trains go round and round or a loco shunting a small terminus. Although I prefer the Midland the Burma Road & North Kerry keep cropping up. If I was still working in N I would probably go for an American style walk around possibly multi-level scheme with several stations modelling the main line from Patrickswell through Newcastle to Abbeyfeale. Given space and time working in 4mm a remote county station with a simple track layout would be a better proposition, Barnagh fits the bill in terms of simplicity and remoteness with a few interesting twists that lifts it out of the ordinary. [attachment=:name] Barnagh was the highest point on the CIE system at the summit of a steeply graded (by Irish standards) sections from Newcastle West and Abbeyfeale. Train loadings were severely restricted over Barnagh a J15 was allowed 40 wagons from Limerick to Newcastle but 25 Westwards to the summit with similar restrictions on East bound trains from Abbeyfeale. The yard at Barnagh was designed so shunting could take place clear of the running line and allow loose coupled goods trains to be remarshaled if it as necessary to divide a heavy goods train and "double the hill" if a banking locomotive was not available. Curiously the A, B & C Class diesels were similarly restricted to 25 wagons but this was eased with the introduction of the 30T brake vans in the 1960s. Run-aways were a potential problem and all loose coupled goods were required to stop and "pin down" the brakes on at least 10 wagons (more in bad weather) before descending the hill in either direction. The North Kerry line seems to have been reasonably busy up to the Emergency with 3 Limerick-Tralee, 1 Limerick-Abbeyfeale return passenger trains, a daily goods, plus overloads and specials. Through trains were worked by J15s with ex WLWR & GSWR 4-4-2T & 0-4-4T on the Abbeyfeale service. Most passenger trains on secondary lines conveyed urgent van traffic, the Abbeyfeale passenger train may have acted as an overload for the daily goods moving traffic between Newcastle and Abbeyfeale and saving on the cost of having a banker and loco crew available in Newcastle. Next step might be to look at some of the bigger stations on the North Kerry

Great looking uncluttered railway room & viaduct Interestingly the Lyttleton-Christchurch line was originally built to the Irish 5'3" gauge. I suppose you could end up with pairs of 141s working the coalies to an from t ort while the DXBs are serviced and re-fuelled at Middleton Yard.

Used to be one of my favourite spots watching a B141 and a couple of laminates threading its way across from Glanmire Road onto the old Cork & Youghal formation. Really captures the atmosphere of the area.

The W&H was a bit like Walthers in the States both a manufacturer and distributor the catalogue listed most of the kits and bits available in the UK. The catalogue used to be available from both Southern Model Railways & Monch Place. Kieran McGowan used to get a bit of free advertising by stamping everything sold from Monch Place

Looks suspiciously like Mallow beet factory sidings.

Id say the sergeant is a Roscommon man held back from promotion for 30 years after summoning the Commissioner & Minister of Justiceor after hours drinking. By right should also have an Inspector from the HSA & someone from the RSC and a gaggle of Senior Civil Servants arguing over Jurisdiction. Always happens in cases like this

Tralee Mail Train GSWR 6 wheeler in black and tan, tin and bogie vans in green & silver

First couple of sets brought in RTR from the UK in 93, floor, bodyside and roof jigs supplied by BREL and remaining main line and push-pull sets built at Inchacore. I think the coach body shells were basically scratchbuilt at Inchacore with bogies and other fittings supplied in kit form.

It hardly seems 30 years since the MK3 were introduced. 1st batch under construction September 84

171 under overhaul at Shildon Restoration I like the sack barrow in GNR Blue.

Apparently allowed on the Continent probably ok for lifting along the centre line of the crane, but don't attempt to slew unless the outriggers are fully extended otherwise http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cz22Wty5Rks. If it clipped I would imagine a steam railway crane would take the track panel with it if it overturned. It doesn't take much in the way of lad to overturn, usually an outrigger that's not fully extended or blocked.

I would imagine the "silver" livery was inspired by American streamliners with stainless steel stock, like the black and tan of the 1960s & current greens CIE was trying to make a brake from the negative pubic image of the old railway with dirty clapped out locos and rolling stock. Its interesting that the factory paint finish on the Metrovicks & BRCW Sulzers seem to have got into a worse state than the Inchacore built coaching stock.

I have tried to finish a couple of vans in the 1950s silver livery. The coaches livery was described as unpainted aluminium probably aluminium with a clear protective lacquer. The heating van was the original study model for the kit complete with 3D battery box and gangways. I used a bright aluminium automotive aerosol the finish is reasonable despite a few false starts. Looking at Des Cockham's Irish Broad Gauge Carriages the vans seem to have been an in all over silver when introduced into service . The weathering on the heating van should be interesting the combination of rain, boiler exhaust, diesel and muck thrown up from the track, the luggage vans do not appear to have got as bad as the heating vans.

Lenz seem to have been the first to come up with their USP System which uses a capacitor to get around problems with poor power pick up dirty track I have fitted a Bachmann large scale 2-6-0 & a rail truck with USP decoders. They will both run faultlessly outdoors even when other locos are running erratically or have stopped when the rail becomes tarnished in humid conditions. The capacitor has other benefits the most noticeable I have never had to clean the wheels on the 2-6-0 and the plating on the tyres is still good after 4 years the plating is completely eroded on my other Bachmann large scale locos. The trick with reversing on the sheet of paper works, you have to learn to drive the 2-6-0 takes about 10" to stop from full speed when it runs onto a dead section & the capacitor will stay charged and the loco is controllable with only one rail connected to the power.

The photo is a bit of a shocker although they killed few passengers CIEs employee safety record was nothing to write home about. Apart from the public wandering about the guy that looks like an Inspector and his side kick seem to be standing dangerously close to that wire rope if its under tension, at least the crane is clipped to the rails a practice long outlawed in the UK. Interestingly one of the figures seems to be wearing a hard hat and another high-vis shoulder panels. Apart from letting Sean Citizen have a wander around th guys p

Scrap steel around £100 tonne from scrap merchants small amount of copper and other non-ferrous metal slightly better priced. Not much profit out of say £3500 per coach when you take out cost of labour, cutting, transportation and disposal of a lot of non recyclable insulation plastic.

Nice tasty job of the Park Royal

I like the stone walls and hedgerows really looks like an Irish layout