Maitland

I picked up a fascinating booklet recently. It shows no publisher, ISBN number or publication date, though from internal evidence it's after 1994 and the author is Roddy King. Publication was "supported by the Electricity Supply Board". It gives a potted history of the Drumm train development, from information given by Brian Hogan, apparently the last survivor of the development team. Development started much earlier than the brief mentions it gets in normal histories, and the idea of battery vehicles was satirised in Dublin Opinion (what was that)?) in 1927. The GSR supported development enthusiastically, assisting in the conversion of a 4 wheeled inspection carriage with end windows into a battery- electric car - "Experimental Coach no 386 Drumm Patent". Trials from August 1929 proved the concept, and the Government supported the construction of two full- scale trains after commissioning an independent report. A few questions- who was (is?) Roddy King? Can the inspection carriage be identified? And what became of Dr Drumm after the collapse of the Drumm Battery Company when further development became impossible in the Emergency? He lived apparently till 1974. It's a real pity the battery design was forgotten. It seems to have several characteristics that might have been useful today. It doesn't flare like a lithium battery in an accident or through mis- charging (Though as with any powerful battery, a short circuit can set fire to anything flammable within range). It can withstand short circuits without damage. It's made of cheap and readily available materials. It can charge very fast, and source high currents without damage. Maintenance is simple. And it is obviously rugged - the sets lasted over 5 years after the demise of the company that made them.

Ramsey IOM. Of course, they'd have to reopen the line from Douglas via St Johns to get to it.

Thanks, the blueprints are useful as well, and the drawing is progressing at a moderate pace. I'm finding it impossible to reconcile different drawings completely, so I'm relying on stated dimensions wherever possible, and I'll make it clear what I've guessed when I post the result. Just to show progress so far:

I'd be grateful if someone with access to a better copy of the loco diagrams would tell me the dimensions circled below. Other dimensions I have from the GA.

That's all there is in the article. If you want me to send a better copy, I'll be happy to, just send me (personal message best) an email address that will take large attachments. Roger Crombleholme's County Donegal Railways Companion tells me there were 8 tranship trucks in all, with 6 open wagons for quarry traffic from Mountcharles and two covered van bodies, and mentions the decline of the quarry traffic but gives no dates for its termination. The quarry seems to be what is now the southern end of the McMonagle Stone works, and is decidedly not large on the National Townlands OS map.

From a Google search: I thought it was the W&L that was a GWR extension.... As for soft or hard C in Celtic, that was prompted by a reference in Sean O'Casey's autobiography, where he satirises the S pronunciation used by some at the time (he being a Nationalist and later James Connolly's general secretary). It's hard to work out why, as we're nearly all happy with the soft C in cycle or ceramic, and Celt being from Keltoi. But to be serious. I'm working on a drawing in original form with a view to maybe one day making a model, and what I can't work out from drawings or photographs is which side MGWR drivers were. Long shot, any photo of the backplate?

Interesting. I can't say the rebuild improved the appearance much, and if it didn't improve the performance either, well what a shame. If I build a model it will be as original, that front view gives me plenty to go on along with a couple of photos in Shepherd. Mind you, IIRC that 1948 assessment bellyached about the Woolwiches on the grounds that they didn't make full use of the Irish loading gauge. Duh.

I've added drawings of these from 1902 Locomotive Magazine to the Resources section. Rather disappointing that they weren't automatic braked; the Lancashire and Yorkshire had similar wagons, but vacuum fitted. It's also interesting that several railways in UK (including Ireland then) were producing high capacity stock around that time, but more than 50 years later the 1850s design of creaking clanking slow unbraked 10/15 tonners were still crawling round the networks.

Photo and article. Built as one of four A class in 1902, with two more in 1905, 129 was rebuilt with superheater and Belpaire firebox in 1918 (from the photo below it looks as though it was Belpaire already), and became GSR 546. For some reason it was withdrawn and then reinstated in 1933 (I wonder if it had supported Eoin O'Duffy?), and survived till 1959. I also wonder if Celtic was pronounced "Keltic" or "Seltic" in 1902.

One of my neighbours has the Leaving Gate Open warning in MGWR flavour. It looks a bit out of place in upland Derbyshire. But my favourite spoof sign was one I saw near a mooring on the Coventry Canal, which read, "Any person failing to close this gate will be fined five pounds". Since I didn't stop to open and shut it, I'm still trembling in anticipation of the demand arriving. And on a footpath just half a mile from here, there's a sign saying "THIS GATE MUST BE KEPT CLOSED AT ALL TIMES". Which makes me wonder why they bothered putting a gate there.

More from Locomotive Magazine 1902. The MGWR had just introduced the A class 4-4-0s, and they printed a partial general arrangement drawing and a photo. Sadly, both just side views so not quite enough for modelling, but I hope it's of interest. General arrangement first, if I can get the forum to swallow it...

Back in 2015 Mayner wrote I recently picked up a bound set of Locomotive Magazine for 1902 (which has practically unbound itself sometime in the last 100 years or so), and in one of the Railway Carriage and Wagon Review supplements, there is a writeup on the Strabane transfer facility. I wonder how long it was used. Paterson mentions post WW2 container flats, but these were completely different. I can't help thinking they just missed the trick- making the transfer sideways would have allowed a difference in height between the NG and BG wagons, would have allowed a whole train to be transferred without much shunting, and would have allowed a storage platform between the systems so that both trains didn't have to be present at once. And not needed a turntable, but perhaps that was useful for other things too.

It's sort of "common knowledge", but the fullest treatment I've found is Maunsell Moguls, by Peter Swift (Ian Allen 2012: ISBN 978 0 7110 3400 6). You also get to learn about the ill- fated SECR River tanks (which fell off the track because the PW department couldn't be arsed keeping it safe, but the locos got blamed), and the Metropolitan K class 2-6-4Ts that worked well, but the reason for them disappeared when the LNER took over the outer reaches of that line.