Mayner

And now to the loco body! The fret includes parts to assemble a member of the MGWR Ks/GSR/CIE 650 Class (G2) with round topped superheated boiler post 1918. The kit includes 3 alternative cab types and smokeboxes for superheated and saturated boilers. Cab interiors suitable for OO or 21mm gauges. The MGWR had a policy of renewing or replacing locos and rolling stock at a 25 year interval and commenced rebuilding the K Class with superheated boiler and canopy cabs in 1918, although the GSR CME Bazin appears to have been opposed to superheating smaller locos the rebuild programme continued at Broadstone after the Amalgamation. Although some locos retained their "flyaway" Attock style cabs the majority were rebuilt with low wrap around GNR/Stirling style cabs which were eventually replaced by cabs similar to the J15 and other GSWR classes possibly as a result of problems with enginemen hitting their heads on the low GNR style cabs. The locos with "Inchacore" style cabs were fitted with circular spectacle plates and retained laminated springs on the leading axle with distinctive hangers, the locos received rectangular spectacle plates and volute springs were fitted to the leading axle following or possibly during the Emergency. Running board/valence/buffer beam fret. Support valences while bending up running board valence sub-assembly Starting to look like a MGWR loco with deep valences! Running board overlay half etched to dress over running board assembly. Running board overlays temporarily bolted to running board subassembly, the overlay is dressed by hand around the curves with small diameter brass rod or dowel (artist paint brush handle) clips are to check fit before final assembly. The half etched brass is reasonably soft, I worked from the front buffer beam backwards making sure everything was in line, dressing the overlay over each arch before temporarily bolting down at the end. I soldered the overlay in place by tinning the running board with 145 solder and phosphoric flux using a 25Watt soldering iron with a large tip. I then cleaned the iron and slowly worked back heating the overlay. Running board fitted, now time for cab and splasher assembly! I decided to assemble the loco in MGWR condition with a canopy cab. Cab and splashers are fitted with tabs that are intended to slot into the running board. I 1st tacked one side of the cab to the spectacle plate, checking for square, there is a half etched rebate in the cab front to assist alignment. I dressed the cab sides & roof around the spectacle plate using the spectacle plate and brass bar as a template, funnily enough the fit was good same as the initial test assembly 4 years ago! Splashers fold up with the splasher tops level with the sides, the splasher tops are slightly over long and need to be carefully filed back when fitting to the running plate. Really starting to look like a loco, excess solder to be cleaned up with a scraper on running board, splasher/cab joints. The challenges of building an Irish Broad Gauge steam loco to run on OO gauge! Scrunched up inside valve gear, main frames and wheels in the completely wrong place. Ks/650 progress so far, next stage assemble and fit smokebox, boiler and firebox! I will leave the motor and gears until I fit the boiler, firebox, smokebox subassemblies. Funnily enough wheels apart steam locos are reduced to similar sub assemblies while going through the works.

Assembled brake gear, coupling rods, fitted reverser and guard irons to complete chassis assembly. I usually assemble the brake gear as removable sub-assemblies to simplify painting. The little miniature drill holder that fits in the pin vice (miniature hand drill) came as a freebie from Micro-Mark Tools and is an invaluable piece of the tool kit for holding small drills, (0.5mm for boring out brake blocks and hangers on the fret. I used 0.45mm handrail wire to pin the brake blocks to the hanger, the work surface is ceramic fiber board supplied by micromark. Loco and tender brake hangers, I opened up the holes in the hangers with a small tapered broach to clear 0.7mm brass wire/rod. Loco chassis with brake gear, guard irons and reversing lever fitted. Loco and tender chassis and brake gear sub assemblies. Coupling rods. The test assembly picked up a number of glitches in the chassis that will be rectified in the production artwork. Coupling rods need to be beefed up, packing pieces to aid brake gear assembly, some details engraved on the wrong side of the sheet.

Apart from the NCC Jinties and Woolwich its probably easier to scratch build than attempt to modify a model of a UK mainland loco into an Irish Prototype. Even the NCC Jeeps, Moguls & Castle Class 4-4-0s were quite different from the LMS engines, the LNWR crossed the DX with its Crew Special Tanks for the Greenore line, the DSER Webb 2-4-2T that passed into GSR stock was rebuilt by the DSER with large boiler, DSER style cab and boiler fittings. The Hornby T9 with 6 wheel tender is probably about the right size for 131 or 171, but would need new cab, smokebox, boiler fittings and tender superstructure. The T9 would be an expensive option, there are also reports of problems with gear mesh and mazac rot. A Triang L1 with a plasticard scratchbuilt body would probably be a less expensive option compared with trying to carve a modern rtr 4-4-0 into an Irish model and mighty actually last longer.

There is a note on slip working in Shepherd's Midland and Great Western Railway of Ireland. Apparently in the summer 1918 timetable there was a slip at Inny Junction for the Cavan Branch. Shepherd comments that it was difficult to understand the economics of the slip in the timetable as it was necessary to send a light engine from Mullingar in advance of the Sligo passenger to pick up the Cavan coach. Slip working appears to have continued at Enfield up to 1926 into GSR days.

I managed to dig up my copy of Padriag O'Cuimin's paper on MGWR Carriage Stock. The "oul crate" was a very rare breed indeed a 6w brake composite with 1st & 2nd Class accommodation ideal for a mixed or 1 coach passenger train on a line with light passenger traffic According to MGWR Carriage Stock 36 a re-build of an earlier coach entered service in 1908 with seating for 8 1st and 24 2nd class passengers and electric lighting! The 2nds were presumably re-classified as 3rds and kept their upholstered seating when the MGWR abolished 2nd class in 1914. 36 appears to have started life as a 4 compartment 1-2nd composite and converted into a slip coach by converting one of the 2nd class compartments into a brake apartment with end and side lookouts, presumably in the absence of a luggage compartment bulky parcel and mail traffic would have been carried in a H Van or possibly one of the passenger compartments. Apparently very few passengers traveled on the mixed, there is a story of a passenger turning up at Limerick to ride the mixed. The lone passenger is escorted to the end of the platform by a porter, loco and coach arrive pipassenger and return to goods yard picks up the rest of the train, backs out past Check Cabin and departs for Foynes. H.C. Casserley photo of 36m at Adare

The oul crate of a thing was originally a "Slip Coach" used for direct Broadstone-Edenderry services. Slip coaches were uncoupled from non-stop trains (at speed!) to provide connections to branch lines and intermediate stations. The Edenderry coach would have been detatched from a train as it approached Enfield and allowed to coast to the platform where it would have been picked up by the Edenderry branch train, not sure when the practice stopped Edenderry lost its passenger service in the early 1930s. The Western Region seems to have been the last railway in the UK to use slip coaches.

The design work for the 52 Class kit is reasonably advanced with the option of building the loco with a saturated round topped boiler in GSWR/GSR or CIE condition including variations in cab and the option of large or small tenders. There was a number of major variations in boiler type within the class in GSR & CIE days. This posting is basically to canvas the level of interest in the loco with different boiler and smokebox designs. 1. raised roundtop firebox and waisted smokebox as in the photos of 1, 54 and 98 or 2. straight sided smoke box and flush round top firebox like 59 (The Tuam engine) similar in appearance to 60 Class 4-4-0 No 64. The 52 Class is likely to be challenging to build due to the small size of the loco and complex multi level running plate arrangement. At this stage I am looking at offering the kit as a set of etched parts (similar to Worsley Works) rather than a complete kit with castings, wheels gears and motor. The chassis and valences will be in 0.4mm nickle silver for strength the remainder of the loco in 0.4mm brass. No 54 GSWR/early GSR condition with type B tender No 1 GSR condition with type A tender. 98 early CIE condition with extended cab & type A tender. 98 still has GSWR style smokebox with double doors and raised round top firebox. 60 Class (D14) no 64 with straight sided smokebox and flush round topped boiler. The 60 Class were built concurrently with the 52 Class were slightly larger and more powerful and took over the principal expresses of the GSWR (Dublin-Cork& Killarney) while the 52 Class worked the secondary routes. Both classes became largely redundant following the introduction of the AEC railcars though members of both classes survived into the late 50s. The 52 appear to have worked lighter passenger trains over the ex-WLWR lines from Limerick to Waterford & Sligo, and between Kingsbridge and Waterford and branches and the North Wexford line.

I thought it would be worth-while posting what is hopefully the final test build of this loco, before I release the production version. I have made a number of amendments to the design including adding (non-working) inside valve gear since producing the initial study model in 2014 . The masters for the detail castings are currently with the casters so all going well the production version will be available in early 2019. Loco & tender chassis fret. The fret is in 0.4mm nickle silver which solders easier and is stronger & less inclined to flex than the equivalent thickness of Brass The chassis is designed to allow the alternatives of simple fold up assembly as a rigid chassis in OO gauge, or in 21mm gauge with conventional etched L frame spacers as a rigid, sprung or beam compensated chassis. Loco chassis, valve gear sub assembly and rear frame spacer. Metal oragami the sub assembly basically folds, slots and pins together and super glue could be used to lock everything together by those so inclined The valve gear is based on the Beyer peacock of the MGWR D Class 2-4-0 supplied in the 1880, available information of the 650 K Class is basically limited to a MGWR/GSR weight diagram from the 1920s. Slide bar and valve gear assembly Designing the gear to fit a OO gauge loco was challenging, I chickened out of modelling dummy let alone working cranks which opens up the possibility of a motor driving on the driving axle so to speak. The slide bars are basically fold up assemblies that slot through the rear of the cylinders and into the motion bracket, the con-rods and Stephensons gear are aligned with pins which hopefully are not to noticeable when the loco is assembled and painted. Basic loco chassis I reamed out the bearing holes with a tapered reamer before fixing brass axle brushes. Bearing holes are normally etched undersized and the holes reamed out due to manufacturing tolerances in the photo engraving process and variations in bearing diameter. Chassis assembled with Romford wheels. Brakegear to be added Basic chassis from above. It will be interesting to see if the valve gear is noticeable in the assembled loco. Tender chassis fret with OO fold-up frame spacers. The tender is designed on the Sharman Bogie principal with the leading axles floating and weight of the tender carried by the loco drawbar and tender rear axle. I used an 18Watt soldering iron with a fine tip with DCC Concepts 145 degree solder for soldering the chassis and valve gear, I use 25 & 50 Watt irons and a variety of tips & solders for heavier work. Axle brushes soldered in place and fold lines and joints soldered at rear of tender. Basic loco and tender chassis. The build picked up a few blupers mainly half etching a some fold lines from the wrong side which are easily corrected before the loco goes into production. The next phase will be to fit the brake gear, test fit motor and gearbox before assembling running board and superstructure. At this stage I have not a final cost on the kit a lot depends on whether there is sufficient demand to release the loco as a complete kit with wheels gears and motor, or buyers are prepared to source the parts directly from the manufacturers in the UK. Kits of this nature are traditionally supplied without wheels gears and motors, while it would be feasible to supply the loco as a complete kit this would be likely to involve significant additional costs, (shipping & potential VAT liability on importation ) compared with the buyer sourcing the necessary components in the UK. Potentially I would require expressions of interest/orders for 20 complete kits to release the locos with wheels gears and motors, this would absorb some of the shipping and stocking costs, but potential higher VAT liability would remain for the buyer on importation.

I bought a Chinese assembled LGB Forney (American 0-4-4T) about 10 years ago, the most trouble free and reliable loco on my large scale roster . The main difference seems to be that the Chinese assembled locos had nylon rather than metal valve gear. Funnily enough I had problems with achieving reliable running with the smaller German built LGB locos I bought second hand on e-Bay. The chrome plated wheel tyres on two locos were pitted/spark eroded from running on track power. This only appears to happen to the plain tyre on the wheel set with traction tyres.

Branchlines produced a 17:1 Miniature gearbox kit with 1.5mm input & 2mm output shaft which may be an option of you cannot get the gear set to work. The business no longer has an active web presence but continues to trade through the magazines and at UK exhibitions. PO Box 4293, Westbury, Wiltshire BA13 9AA 01373 822231 The Branchlines gear box is fully enclosed moulded in nylon with brass worm and nylon gear wheel, so meshing should not be an issue. I bought a pair several years ago to re-build the chassis on a County Donegal railcar

The red coaches were built by Brian Fennell a talented modeller who built most of the locos and stock used on the Loughrea layout. Brian to a degree pioneered the modelling of Irish locos and stock on OO gauge in the 1970s when the majority of Irish modellers were content to model British, Continental or American outline. sScratchbuilding a number of 001 Class and a Supertrain modified from Triang-Hornby MK2 coaches. The 001 Class were fully scratchbuilt apart from wheels and motors, plasticard bodies, brass chassis with central motor and drive on all axles with a rubber band drive system similar to that used by Athearn at the time. http://www.modelrailways.ie/LoughRea.html

A closer look at the new 6w 1st, a lot more leg room than 3rd class. I need to level up the buffers!, sort out interior partitions, seating and a permanent set of wheels for this coach before it reaches the paint shop. I am toying with the idea of Digham or B&B couplers for my broad gauge stock as the Kadee couplers fitted to the J15 look a bit ridiculous! I seem to have been building 101 or J15 Class locos for nearly as long as the GSWR , another 5 years or so and I might just beat the record (1866-1903) but no where close in terms of sheer numbers 5-119 locos. 197 has been around in one form or other since 1986, was rebuilt into its present form 7-8 years later, 191 was completed in 1994-5 and won a prize for best kit built loco in my then local model railway club competition, I picked up (rescued) a part built J15 kit at a swap meet at some stage around 2000 and have two un-built kits in stock for the past 10 years. The loco that started it all 197 in GSWR/GSR condition ready to leave Loughrea with a mixed. The coaches were based on the SSM GSWR 6wheelers possibly with scratchbuilt bodies to resemble Midland stock the oil rather than gas lighting was a signature of older MGWR stock. This loco has a sprung chassis and a bit of a racer with an open frame Anchorage DS10 motor & 40:1 gearing 191 arriving at Loughrea with a cattle special. This loco is more of a plodder with a Mashima can motor and 80:1 gearing ideal for goods trains. 19 is similar in detail to the majority of the class with non-superheated round topped firebox as running in CIE days, 197 although a slightly more modern loco built in 1899 is basically running in GSWR/GSR condition with double smoke box door and slope fronted smokebox a classical GSWR feature. I hope to add a few more detail variations including a superheated loco with belpair firebox like 186 when I complete the next 3 locos. I would like to standardise mechanically possibly with the motor mounted in the tender with a drive shaft to the trailing or driving axle in order to add as much weight as possible in the boiler and firebox to haul heavier/longer trains.

Reclaiming the office as a den/layout room again, some vacuuming and track cleaning 6T worked the 1st Mixed in at least a year into Keadue this afternoon, put her train away and is once again in the shed waiting to work tomorrows train to the broad gauge at Boyle, Dromod or Sligo depending on how far you stretch imagination. 6T on shed ex T&D coaches on carriage shed road. The coal stage is a new feature assembled from stripwood sleepers, I assembled it about a year ago but did not fancy its chances with Beeze living in the room. Somehow or other the carriage shed survived the GSR edict to remove all carriage sheds on the C&L perhaps, Kingsbridge did not realise that the tramway extended beyond Arigna. Keadue Ground Frame. Hopefully there are enough levers to control the points and signals at Keadue. There were similar uncovered frames at Ballinamore and Drumshanbo. The mixed has set out 4 wagons at Keadue, a covered probably sundries and an open by the goods shed and a pair of convertible wagons on the loading/cattle bank. The Leyland Comet flat bed handles local deliveries. There appear to have been serious proposals to standard gauge (5'3") the C&L in the early 1920s possbily a very late revival of the Ulster & Connaght in connection with a new(all-Red) shipping route from the United Kingdom to Canada via Greenore & Belmullet! And so it came to pass a Broad Gauge train however humble passing through Keadue . A GSWR train at Keadue?. I assembled the GSWR Lav 1st to keep the Bk3rd company, now I will have to think about a 3rd 6 wheeler. I originally assembled the J15 around 30 years ago, before re-building the loco in its current iteration about 7-8 years later, I will have to replace the missing tender spring. Going away a fairly typical pre-post amalgamation branch line or cross country passenger train. I am tempted to back date to the Mid-1920 seldom modeled railways still the dominant mode of transport, shorter more frequent trains than post 1939, larger more modern locos and stock emerging, simplified liveries compared with early 1900s. Re-working the ruins so to speak Branchlines Clogher Valley Horsebox. I made a hash of the original assembly about 25 years ago, tidy up and re-paint as part of a CVR train, I still have to build a CVR loco & 4w passenger brake van.

There is a very good wiring diagram/schematic on the Cobalt-CDU-2 owners manual https://www.dccconcepts.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/M-Owners-Manual-CDU-2.pdf The Gaugemaster PM-10 point motor appear to be based on the Peco PL10 motor with screw terminals added !

Post 9/11 some of the American railroads including BNSF & AMTRAK encourage railfans to register with their citizens safety programmes to report suspicious activity https://pass.amtrak.com/index.aspx. Railfans sometimes use their cellphones to report trains with defective equipment to train control or the dispatcher using the railroads emergency phone number, I know of at least one instance where a freight trains were stopped because of a calls from a railfan reporting running gear defects that could potentially result in derailments, that would not be noticeable to the train crew or picked up by a hot box detector.

Is the part burnt out van still at the end of the siding in the Boston Yard?

I completed and tested the wye at Utah Junction today taking advantage of a couple of drydays! General view of wye, I need to look at how I will finish this area from a landscaping perspective as very little grows here being under the tree canopy. The Utah extension very tempting temporary buffer stop as I have basically used up all my track material and surplus timber! The east leg of the wye is basically laid with 12-18" offcuts of rail which gives me enough material to extend a spur on to a retaining wall at another station. I may turn this area into a patio with river pebble or bark ground cover as its a nice spot on a hot sunny day. Hopefully the extension will eventually meander over towards a coal or silver mine near the swing set some day, possibly through a raised bed with dwarf conifers and a few full sized citrus. Test train on the wye the neck is just long enough for a large loco and one freight car. The main purpose of the wye at this stage is for turning locos working over the 4% grade between the wye and the fiddle/staging yard in the garden shed. Due to the steep grade it is necessary with most trains either to use a helper locomotive or divide the train and "double the hill" to return a train to staging. Large locos like the K27s can manage 12-14 cars on the 2% grades on the main circuit 6-7 over the 4%, smaller locos like 2-8-0s & 4-6-0s struggle on the grade with 3 cars, the wye is an attempt to turn the grade into a feature of regular operation.

The vacuum on Irish & British steam locomotives was created by an "ejector" part of the drivers brake valve, that used steam to suck the air out of the brake system to create & maintain a vacuum. Generally on vacuum fitted locos there is an external pipe to exhaust steam from the ejector in the cab to the smokebox. The ejector pipework may be on the opposite side of 106 to the photograph. http://mikes.railhistory.railfan.net/r143.html

Possibly a reservoir and piping in connection with the automatic vacuum braking system. The BNCR most likely fitted the locos with automatic vacuum brakes and enclosed cabs after the takeover of the Ballymena & Lane railway. The Bachmann Big Haulier chassis is reasonably priced for G Gauge and extremely useful for scratchbuilding, will you be using track or on board battery power?

Certainly working in the large scales outdoors brings on a lot of challenges not faced in-doors in N or OO like U.V. damage to plastic sleepers and designing a suitable track support system to cope with weather and soil conditions. Its been raining more or less continuously for the past 4-5 weeks, so took advantage of a couple of dryish afternoons to carry out track maintenance/renewals and install the east leg of the wye track. 1st the easy bit renovating the turnout form the main line to the east leg of the wye. Basically replacing the head blocks (long sleepers which support the switch stand or turnout machine), connect up and adjust the switch stand & fit the rail joiners or fish plates. I reversed the head block when I originally installed the turnout as it was originally part of a crossover and would have been in the 6' between the running lines not a very safe place. Switch stands are still used in the United States and this part of the world on turnouts that are not interlocked with the signal system, on running lines switch stands are locked by padlock with master key held by train crews and maintenaners. The action of the Sunset Valley switch stand is similar to the real thing with a locking bar, one of the jobs was to repair the indicator as children and un familiar operators often try to change the switch by twisting the indicator. Good indication of the type of tools necessary for trackwork, it was necessary to replace one of the slide plates under the blades, the rails & soleplates were spiked to the head blocks, soleplates then soldered to the stock rails. East leg of the wye and switch temporarily pinned in place to work out the best position for the turnout. The connection is on the inside of a curve of approx 8' radius, the wye track curves away on a minium 5' radius. Rails on main line cut in situ with a junior hacksaw (with a new blade) and turnout plated in place. The ties on the AMS track appear to be in good condition on this partially shaded section despite 120 years use, 2004 date of manufacture moulded on tie bases. I will add a tapered timber on the inside of the turnout and trellis strip to act as a ballast support on the inside of the turnout. 464 tests connection. Switch installed and ready for traffic. The mould on the switch is quite noticable it was originally installed in on a section of the railway which gets very little sunlight in winter as a result of recent tree growth. Due to the greater momentum and mass finely detailed large scale models are probably more suceptible than small scale or more basic models. Soldered joints failed on caboose balcony, used combination of Micro-mark and Tamiya clamps to hold everything in steady while I re-soldered joints, once primed I will finish with an "Appliance White" aerosol and seal with a clear sealer

The Worsley Works and Comet follow similar design principals. Building Coaches the Comet way gives a good idea of what's involved in assembling a coach from Worsley Works parts https://www.wizardmodels.ltd/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/bctcw.pdf my article on the Worsley Works website covers some of the challenges in assembling their Park Royal & Laminate coaches http://www.worsleyworks.co.uk/NG/NG_NIL_Art1.htm. A prospective buyer would need to allow another £10-20 plus per coach to cover the cost of wheels, bearings, castings, seats, door and pull handles, plasticard for partitions and floor and glazing plus couplers of choice. Wizard Models & Markits probably the best choice for OO wheels and bearings, brass wire, Dart Castings/MJT for whitemetal castings.

The Worsley Works kits basically include underframe (floor, solebars, bufferbeams), sides and end etches with the builder to provide wheels, bogies, roof, detail castings, partitions, seating. I understand that the GSWR 6 wheeler kits include a roof and a basic Clermiston underframe (axleguards with a pivot arrangement to go round curves). Roof and tumbledown curves have to be formed as the parts are supplied flat, solder assembly is necessary as there is no provision for glue together slot and tab assembly. On the plus side some MGWR castings are available through Dart Castings (my patterns) no suitable spring casting is currently available for the MGWR 6w coaches. Some MGWR coaches are on the JM Design long term wish list(I need the coaches for my own layout) including 6w 3, lavatory 2nd, brake 3rd and TPO.

T The re-painting of the servicable B101 Class locos may have been carried out to control/limit water damage to the electrical and control equipment as body corrosion appears to have become a significant problem with the class by the mid 1970s. The class no doubt got the Supertrain treatment as they were classed as main line locos rather than shunting locomotives. The most striking thing was the great variety in the shade of orange between individual locos on the sound bank, some had faded to something like a hot pink, while very little fading was noticable on locos that were placed late on the bank like 103 & 106 the last of the Irish BRCW Sulzers in service B106 worked a Sulzer Farewell special from Connolly to Bray and back in February 1978, the loco was withdrawn from service shortly afterwards when it failed as a result of a minor electrical fault while making up a transfer goods at the North Wall.

Interestingly the "golden brown" on the B101s on the sound barrier that had received a repaint in Supertrain livery faded more than the locos that remained in black and tan. By the late 70s was quite a variation in fading between loco on the sound bank, with the all black and black & tan Sulzers in the best cosmetic condition. It was surprising that the majority of the B101s were re-painted into the Supertrain colours, they were pretty much restricted to goods, p.w. work and the weed killer following the re-powering of the Metrovicks by the early 1970s. CIE appears to have considered re-powering the B101s with GM power units, but this was rejected in favour of purchasing the 071s. Apparently body corrosion and the need to re-bogie the locos to a Co Co arrangement (probably to provide similar power output to a remotored A Class) seem to have been deciding factors not to re-power the class. Although B106 appears to have received an overhaul, its possible CIE carried out the minimum work necessary (incl a low spec reapaint) to keep the Class in operation through a short term loco shortage following a work to rule at Inchacore Works in the early 70s. At least two B101s were laid up following fire damage/mechanical problems in the late 1960s. CIE overhauled one of the Inchacore Sulzers and its remaining BUT railcar set around the same time, but they never re-entered service

West Cork brings back memories of family holidays as a teenager and there seldom seemed to be a wet day, but Wales is another story I will never forget my 1st Summer holiday in North Wales in 1980, I arrived at Blaenau Ffestiniog Old Station http://www.2d53.co.uk/blaenauffestiniog/Old Station.htm intending to catch the bus to the temporary Festiniog terminus at Tanygrisiau https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tanygrisiau_departure_ME.jpg nothing I had experienced in the West Cork could have prepared me for Blaenau on a wet day. Spent a lot of time in the area down the years but never experienced that sheer intensity of rain on that 1st day. The rest of the week was dry and sunny exploring the narrow gauge lines by train the highlight at the time was a journey on the Welshpool which appeared to have more in common with the Irish than Welsh narrow gauge lines, the train along the Cambrian main line was in a smartly turned out 3 car cross country DMU with curtains on the windows in contrast to the rather spartan 2 cars sets used on the Coast and Conway Valley lines. T