jhb171achill

I think that one’s GSR….

In that pic, I look like I've stuck my finger into a live electrical plug......... Thanks, Leslie, for the (non-live) plug, and many thanks for your usual expert job of organising these events. Unfortunately the book isn't QUITE ready yet, but it's with the publisher as we speak. The delay was due to computer difficulties in getting all the images together to send off. I am hoping it will be published in late spring. It will be called "Farewell to the Dunsandle Express" - a reference to graffiti written on the back of a seat in the carriage when I travelled on the line two weeks before it closed. Publisher will be Colourpoint Creative Blackstaff of Newtownards, Co Down. Despite being virtually ignored by enthusiasts until the mid-1960s (largely due to the late Padraig O'Cuimín's excellent book published in the late 60s by Transport Research Associates (of whom he was one), highlighting its uniqueness due to having G class locos on passenger trains), it had an interesting history, with some little-known facts, such as being the home for some 20 years of two ex-WLWR 2.4.0s..... It saw quite a few unusual types of locos in its time - you'd expect MGWR 0.6.0s and 2.4.0s of G2 and J18 / J19 classes, but apart from the WLWR locos, an "Achill Bogie" worked there for a time in the very early 50s. It saw a trial run by the Sligo railcar, but since this was unsuitable for mixed trains, that was the solitary visit of anything not steam until the G's took over in spring 1963.... It had cattle traffic until its last summer, though had the line remained, the cattle was gone anyway - but it also had mixed trains to the end, even though by then they rarely had more than the one coach. The train I travelled on, behind a C class, to my disgust (I wanted a G!), was technically mixed, but on its way both in and out, no goods wagons that day at all. Sure ye can get an oul C class out to Howth or Bray any oul day.............. Fun fact: during the troubles in the 1920s, Loughrea station was raided and an incoming consignment of timber was torched by members of the Irish Volunteers. They handed the stationmaster a receipt for the consignment!!! We'll probably have a book launch for it which I will mention here nearer the time. Probably in the Spa Hotel in Loughrea, but we'll see. IRM readers will be offered a pass out of our self-imposed asylum for the day!!

Can we pay in cowrie shells?

Indeed. Now that you mention it, Senior used to mention my grandfather poring over coal consumption and other related figures back in the day. While technically this has more to do with the mechanical engineering side than the role of a chief draughtsman, his early career was on the engineering side. When locos were new, or rebuilt or had various modifications made (e.g. a new TYPE of boiler), he often went out on trial runs. Why a draughtsman would get involved with that is beyond me. He drove and fired during a general strike in the mid-1910s, I’m very ashamed to say, and received £5 for his efforts. I am aware that in the 1915-18 period, he was very much involved in engineering matters, but Senior never knew the details, so I certainly don’t. But there it is.

I'd say No. 4 probably the best of those. To some, not as photogenic as some blue things, but in company use up to 1970 - and Leslie still has spoil wagons.....!

As far as I am aware, and certainly in the case of the 800 runs I mentioned above, Edgar Bredin and my grandfather, plus several others with various responsibilities for timetabling, loco allocation, and engineering matters (plus my dad, as a youth!), perhaps a dozen in total, travelled in a first class saloon, and apparently had nothing more than stopwatches and notebooks. Bridges had already been inspected prior to that, by persons and methods not recorded anywhere I am aware of. I don't believe such a thing ever existed anywhere in Ireland, unless the GNR had one at any time.

I don't believe that there was - if so, my grandfather, who would have been very familiar with such things, never mentioned anything about it.... my late father did mention something, though, about fellas with stop watches on trial runs of 800 to Portlaoise in 1939, on which he hitched a lift....

One observation - it seems that within the terminal there are no run round facilities, and the only means of crossing from one platform to another is via the green crossover at the top. This would mean that a train entering the terminus would have to leave the same platform (whichever it is) running "wrong line"; thus reversing. Would it not be better to have a connectiuon between one platform road and the other within the station for operational purposes?

“Knockloughrim” means “the hill of the stony ridge”. Possible fodder for a Patrick-pun-based back story? We will listen, stony-faced….

Outstanding, as always.

By an extremely long way, these and tin vans are by far the biggest gaps. Imagine trying to model anywhere west of the Shannon - or several other places too - without an ICR. Not possible. Many today simply don’t realise how the AEC cars absolutely monopolised many main line services for some fifteen years or more - and not just on main lines. Cork-Bantry, latterly, had a virtually 100% diet of such things, as had Tramore, of all places, and even Belfast - Clones. As for tin vans, equally essential and over an even longer period.

Correct. In reality, they’re utterly unlike anything which CIE or any of its constituent companies ever possessed - they’re an exact equivalent of a BR “Blue Pullman” masquerading as a Donegal railcar, by slapping red and cream paint on it. They are indeed standard LMS designs. The dark green isn’t quite right, and the lining is far too wide. BUT: the positives. 1. Cheap way of a representation of steam era coaches, acceptable to many as a reasonable compromise, and alternative to complex scratch building. 2. Part of a “train set” with a “Woolwich” K class. 3. Biggest advantage of the lot; while I said the green isn’t quite right for CIE (though it’s not a million miles off), it actually IS a reasonable approximation to UTA Green - and being a successor to the LMS NCC, the UTA (and early NIR) did indeed have vehicles this design, brought over here when the AfD’s grandfathers bombed Belfast’s NCC carriage sidings in the 1940s. I travelled in them, with their musty-smelling upholstery, in the 1960s. (Provincial Leslie will recall them too, operating out of Londonwaterside station!). So scrape the CIE stuff off, add UTA stuff, and stick a “Jeep” up front (rtr, anyone?) and say ye go. Better still, buy the LMS ones, alter the lettering to NCC version, and model that MOST neglected Irish railway, the NCC! As an aside, the Derry Central, along with the Dungiven, Draperstown and Ballyclare branches, are perfect layout fodder….. As a further aside, I believe the last steam-era coach in passenger service was an ex-NCC 1926-built open third, latterly used as an intermediate, complete with old varnished wooden seat frames, in an MED railcar set as late as about 1981/2. I travelled in that a number of times, the last being in a state of pleasant inebriation after some sort of music festival…

I doubt very much if a C would have caused problems.

August 1965, and they were used for unloading boats. They were rail-borne, I believe on their own track. Dunno what gauge they were.

1000%

And there was me thinking the turf burner looked odd!

If I was an East German Bunker, I'd be perturbed at being compared to that ugly edifice, which to this day disgraces the area.........

"Promptly demolished" THAT? What narrow-minded buffoons. Not just Cavan, but Ireland in general, has no proper official interest in built heritage. Who remembers Wood Quay!

The signals there are presumably controlled by a Portacabin?

As a long-standing and happy owner of many Provincial kits, I’d be the first to say that Leslie’s contribution to Irish 00 scale models is every bit as huge as that of IRM. Years ago we had to be content with anything from a British Mk 1 coach painted black & tan, or a British or French diesel painted orange. Then along came St Patrick of Murphy, and others. No matter how finescale a rake of Cravens, Park Royals or anything else, seeing them swishing round a layout behind an orange-painted British Rail class 33 just doesn’t cut it. Similarly, an IRM “A” class wouldn’t look right hauling old BR Mk 1s, be they green or black & tan. Yet, less attention has been paid to wagons, by modellers and manufacturers alike (IRM in recent times being a very notable exception). As recent posts by Mol will starkly illustrate, Irish wagons were in almost all cases thoroughly unlike anything across the water, especially the smaller systems like the NCC, BCDR, DSER & CBSCR. THEIR designs were unlike anything else in Ireland, never mind the Neighbouring Island. Yet many a highly developed, accurate exhibition layout has perfect scenery, well-researched highly (historically) accurate locos, coaches and station layouts - then the goods comes through with LMS long-wheelbase cattle wagons (unlike anything which ever ran on a solitary railway here), GWR parcel vans, BR steel mineral wagons, and a standard BR brake van. Maybe some bright yellow private owners from Northamptonshire Spa-on-the-Wold to add colour. Illusion burst! But there was nothing else for those without the time to scratch build! So it was very refreshing when Provincial’s “proper” CIE cattle trucks appeared, as well as Bullied opens, and the standard types of goods vans used - with only detail variations - but the GNR, MGWR, GSWR and later GSR and CIE. Leslie also produced authentic brake vans, which while only two in number, were carefully chosen to represent the vast majority of Ireland’s railway mileage; covering (as they do), GSWR, GNR, plus successors GSR, CIE, UTA, and in the case of just two tatty, battered oul GNR examples, even early NIR ballast trains. If I thought you were truly “retiring”, Leslie, I’d wish you a very happy retirement - but I suspect you’ll still be tippin’ away at something for many moons to come! Keep ‘er lit!

A very valid point, which many - if not most - preservation bodies would do well to take on board.

Standard dark CIE green and pale green diagonal.

Yes. All or almost all navy blue at first. Petunia infiltrates quite soon, but remains minority. White much later, but never replaced the other colours, thus an all-white-roofed train as in unlikely though not impossible.

Interesting re the Bell containers. While available models all (I think?) have white roofs, these appeared later on. Originally, they were mostly the dark blue. I don’t remember seeing a “petunia” roof myself, but quite possible.

Yes, there was nothing much after 1931! The line spent over half its life with little or no traffic of any sort, and even less regular!