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Folks Just had this delivered and even first glance prompts me to put pen to paper - or finger to keyboard. As one might expect, given the previous works of the authors, this is a masterpiece and will become a major reference work for ANYONE interested in Irish railways. The “green Bible”, covering all GSR locos is now well known and one of the most thumbed-through in my collection. Same with this new one: it is exceptionally and painstaking well-researched, using as many prime original reference sources as possible. The GSWR was, of course, Ireland’s biggest railway company, so it is only to be expected that its locomotive history would be complex. Undaunted, the authors have unearthed much detail which was hitherto little-known; the entire subject matter being of great interest to me, personally, given my grandfather’s entire working life in the Drawing Office at Inchicore, going back to the last quarter of the GSWR’s life. Since many GSWR locos lasted until the end of steam in CIE days in the early 1960s, it is of interest (indeed, essential) to anyone modelling Irish railways prior to 1963; a growing band of people, indeed - and not before time, given all the potential material available. This book will encourage more people to do so, hopefully (cue a RTR 400 class, D17 or “Maedb”, somewhere??). A truly excellent publication, which I’ll be spending quite a good few of the forthcoming days poring over! To the authors and publishers (Collon Press), very well done. An absolutely superb piece of work.

Tobin, I had a reasonable list many years ago. I was on the phone to the late Bob Clements and I asked him many questions, amongst which were a good few about liveries. I hastily scribbled down things like a number of what Bob said was the only loco of some class to be black, or he might say about another class “oh, there a good few of that class...” (or none.) Thus, the list was a good guide rather than a precise list, number by number. I have since mislaid the list, but not before identifying several small errors, for example, he insisted that no narrow gauge engines were ever black, but it seems that 6T was in its last years on the C & L, and one of the Passage tanks was at the very least an almost-black shade of grey from about 1956/7. What I’ve posted over the years is based partly on my recollections of what I was told by him, plus what I remember writing on that list, plus what two other individuals told me, who in their adolescent years had free reign to wander round Inchicore and Broadstone. My list, though, I appear to have mislaid, and two extremely thorough searches of my “stuff” in the last few years (one a few months ago) have regrettably failed to produce it. Was there anything in particular you had in mind?

I’ve yet to see this one, Edo, but I am aware through the networks of railway authors and publishers that just as IRM and the like are bringing more superb models into being, there are quite a few book projects in hand among a number of writers - some well known, some new to that game. Tis a great era in which to be interested in Irish railways.

A truly SUPERB job, Dhu Varren. Naturally, for anyone wanting to scratchbuild that unique vehicle, it can be seen in person at Downpatrick. Excellent attention to detail. It always struck me that panting that yoke in then-“Enterprise” livery was a 1980s incarnation of the GNR painting the Fintona tram in its most modern railcar livery, as then used on the “Enterprise” when it was first dieselised!

The first went north from Limerick The second went west from Limerick The third goes....? And the fourth.........?? There’s THAT one too! Should be the two out this year, though Covid has played havoc with the production of one of them.

Fascinating stuff, and very interesting research. Looking forward to seeing this develop! Happy Christmas!

Colin The three principal ones were built - Buncrana - Carndonagh, Letterkenny - Burtonport and Donegal - Killybegs. A little further south, several were proposed but not built: Ballyshannon - Sligo (several proposals), Ballina - Crossmolina - Belmullet, Owenduff between Mallaranny & Achill - Ballycroy - Belmullet, and probably more. Right across Ireland there were many, many railways which were proposed but never built, both in the 1830s-1860s initial phase, and the post-Famine late 1880s-90s following the establishment of the Congested Districts Board. I believe that there were several alternatives to the Letterkenny-Strabane and Letterkenny-Derry routes considered too, before the eventual routes were actually built.

Thanks, Edo, I'll pass that on! Enjoy! Follow-up now with publisher.....

If ONLY!! It’s a thing of great beauty from Brazil; a number of these were built in 1936/7 for the Paulista Railway in São Paula State for heavy goods trains up-country. (Actually, the Lough Swilly built 25 of them for their proposed extension to Youghal and Armagh. They were carefully hidden in a tunnel near Portadown where they remain to this day......)

A very Happy Christmas and new year to all here.

I saw a “pair” heading the up midday Westport at Claremorris one day, mid-70s. Both were still black’n’tan. At first glance I thought I had spotted a previously unseen variation of 141 livery. The “tan” was only on the front! Sides plain black. However, as it slowed to enter the station I realised it was normal black’n’tan - plus filth! The other loco in the pair was spotless, though by the mid 70s the paint was fading and long overdue a repaint.....

Good pics..... My recollections suggest that MOSTLY, things were kept very clean - certainly cleaner than on British Rail, as many cross-channel visitors often remarked - in the 1960s to 1970s, and passenger-carrying stock to this day. Wagons seems to have started going downhill badly, almost to 1950s level of dishevelment, in the 1990s. But locos, and - peculiarly, perhaps - NON passenger-carrying stock (mail vans, full brakes, tin vans, genny vans - were often in a MUCH more filthy state at any stage, comparted with their companion vehicle containing seats....... A rake of spotless carriages could often be topped and tailed by a couple of FILTHY gennies, tin vans or Dutch vans.........

..........added note - was looking last night at a pic of the set made up for the North Wexford service in Waterford station about 1963 - a dirty silver tin van, a green ex-GSWR wooden-bodied bogie coach, and a black'n'tan tin van.........

His new wife can hardly complain if he gets a huge layout based on Pearse Station...... and Eoin Murray might expect an order for an 8-coach DART!

Superb work - the result, as always, will be amazing! Happy Christmas to all here!

Indeed - "tin vans" in all of their variations are as essential to any 1960s passenger train as the actual locomotive is. Small point, though - the six-wheelers were delivered 1964/5, so were black'n'tan from new. The very first PO vans, heating vans and luggage vans (all being 4-wheeled) were initially silver, but later ones were green from new, and many of the tatty old "silver" ones were also repainted green, but obviously repainted black'n'tan from late 1962 onwards. Thus - and this is of interest to owners of either grey or black'n'tan 121s, it was commonplace to see a mail train in the 1962-6 period with maybe three "tin vans", one in each livery, albeit in the case of the silver, really just a coat of 100% weathering.

Ah! THAT thing. I cannot be certain on this, but i believe that at one stage anyway it was used for providing power to PW and maintenance gangs who were out'n'about.

Clements loved the Midland! I had several long conversations with him about it right up until a few months before he died. He was, as one would expect, probably the greatest authority on this system ever to have lived. His encyclopaedic knowledge of Midland (and other) engines lives on, through the work of Michael McMahon and Jeremy (unrelated) Clements in their GSR "bible". I cannot open this link above - mentioned in first few posts. Can anyone copy the pic here? "Anyone know what this is at York Road, NCC 3099? https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/50736845218/in/photostream/"

If I ever find it, Ken, you'll be the first to get it! For the livery freaks like me, it was also to be the same lined blue/green that the trio of 800s were. Senior believed that five were planned, and they would have been used at least on the DSER section. But we will never know.

I must try to find an outline I had for the proposed 820 class 4.6.2T proposed but never built by the GSR. I don't know what I've done with it. My grandfather did an outline diagram of it - it was basically a tank engine version of the 800 class with a huge coal bunker at the back.

I wish Senior could have seen this develop.........! There would have been compliments about, and reminiscences about the horrors to be found when inspecting the SLNCR's track, culverts and bridges!

Which ones........where......

I must have got it just before demolition, then - it would have been 1969 or 70 when I was in it.

A thing of beauty! Was nice to see it just now - as said above, even better “in the flesh”!

So is Mr Riley in that group photo? Correct. "The King" was used so little she never lost her livery of brand-new delivery! In general, yes, the GSR did melt down nameplates - one must assume that the "King's" were thus disposed of when she was eventually scrapped.