jhb171achill

I would hope so, but you'd normally think a coherent, specific and publicised reason to build would come before the actual build!

Outstanding work, not just on 171, but the other two as well!

Yes, that tramway was hand worked. It certainly IS incredible! Built for the Great Southern & Western Railway, could get from Dublin to Cork in five hours...... Livery was a dark green, possibly not unlike what it carries on display in Cork station nowadays - at first. In later years a very dark olive green, same as 90 at Downpatrick. Black and white lining originally, but it possibly got the elaborate lining seen on 90 before it was withdrawn. It would not have carried the much paler green it was displayed in for very many years, as far as I am aware. For anyone wanting to model that era, the passenger stock carried a variety of colours to denote 1st, 2nd & 3rd class. I think I have the details somewhere. By the late 1860s anyway, the GSWR seem to have standardised on an exceptionally dark maroon / brown colour (like the lower panels on preserved coach 836 at Downpatrick), which in traffic, and weathered, looked almost black. Goods stock at that time was also an extremely dark shade of grey, more or less black; much darker than "normal wagon grey".

Absolutely fantastic to see this. In answer to your question, despite much rumour, not a solitary DEFINITE use has yet been mentioned from any official channels. The track facilities so far at Foynes itself have no coherent loading / unloading facilities. More informed persons than I suggest that the port is entirely unsuitable for container traffic, so one presumes we are looking some sort of as-yet unknown mineral traffic. It's a most unusual case - a railway being rebuilt and reopened for either (a) no apparent reason, or (b) some purpose which for some apparently inexplicable reason has been kept under wraps by all concerned. They've certainly done a great job on it anyway.

Exactly. For anyone making a model, I am led to believe this loco was green, probably a factory finish.

If you don't have it, I would highly recommend it. You've got me fishing out my copy for another read!

A rare beast! I have a copy myself from years ago and it is a truly EXCELLENT book - about a much-ignored system. I often thought the Ballymena & Larne Rly would make a top-class subject for modelling the 3ft gauge.

Would you have an update on what's currently available?

Was thinking just generally, but yes, that would be nice - or the carriage livery maybe better with the board pale green bands above and below the windows, on the same dark green background - that would actually look very well, I think!

Excellent! I've several of JM Design "tin vans" and they are superb. Inclined to get one of the above after seeing yours.

Outstanding work! Well done! Was considering the “slosh” version myself, but it’s clearly very well worth the effort in doing it this way….

But, Leslie, this is the 04:12 empty beer from Glarryford to Greensboro, North Caralaaanaa…..

Quite often they didn’t have them on the ends, only the sides. Others had front and sides but not back. They were off-white, too, never pure white.

You beat me to it! Yes, looks like that. Double smokebox doors so possibly 1915-35 period? It has that look about it but could also be outside that period.

Which, of course, means that a coach newly painted green in, say, summer 1961, could very well remain thus until the early months of 1969! However, management were very keen to introduce what was a very modern new livery as soon as possible, so as far as I’m aware, nothing remained green quite this late. In addition, I’m aware of at least some coaches which were newly painted green 1958-60 becoming BnT after just five years or so.

Green ones lasted well into the 1960s. As late as 1967, I’ve seen photos showing a tatty-looking green coach still as yet unpainted in BnT. Bear in mind CIE had a huge carriage fleet then. As late as 1965 there was still a single GNR coach in use which remained GNR brown. More than a few ex-GNR coaches skipped the green entirely in 1958 and remained in GNR livery until repainted BnT in the 1960s.

Me too. The official description, “golden brown”, and more so, the short-lived IRN/IRRS abbreviation to “brown”, even at the time I thought was described thus by someone with a white stick!

You’ve just reminded me - senior recalled as a teen in the early 1930s, watching a cattle train from the west passing through Ashtown or somewhere like that, then right out in the country. To a city boy like him, the smell was overwhelming….

True, of the many. But I suppose one’s better than none… I remember them new…

That tender needs a big top-up! Any specials to Mayo?

There’s one at Downpatrick!

22253 brought the historic team home. Should it be repainted red and green and named “Sam”?

Idiots. Even the people who pay a grand for an NIR 201 wouldn’t cough that up! €250 is my final offer…..

ICR in pre-1955 CIE lined dark green, with snails?

Good to see the grey colour on 560 clean for once!