jhb171achill

In theory, yes, but a locomotive that size would be woefully uneconomic to operate on a line like that. In addition it is only being cosmetically restored: a full return to working order would cost many hundreds of thousands of euros, with possible a complete new boiler involved.

Jim is organising work parties most weekends, if any is interested. There is a nice hotel 2 minutes walk from the site - Peacockes - who will offer a decent overnight rate. I'm planning to go myself in the next few weeks.

You’re looking at 1975/6.

Always plain grey up to about 1971. For the last few years (by which time few were left) all brown. ”Wasp stripes” on ducket ftom sbout 1964/5, thus being plain grey before. ”Flying snail” until c. 1963/4, with “roundel” gradually replacing this during the 1960s, and continuing into the post-1971 “brown years”.

I checked Ernie's book and while there are several obscure carriages that at first glance might fit the bill, closer inspection tends to discourage comparison....

True, and the beading isn't totally right either, but the windows are. If this thing turns out to be narrow-gauge, the only possible explanation would be a very heavily amended one like that - I just throw it in as a very outside possibility. My money's on Macroom!

Did a bit more delving. My initial thoughts on it being an "oddball" were based on the fact that windows with curved tops and square-cornered bottom corners were the stuff of the MGWR and, on some stock, CBSCR. The side curvature and beading is most in-MGWR-like. The height of the windows, and the side curvature are not very West Cork-like, either. The W & T don't appear to have had carriages of this window design - the above vehicle has comparatively wide window panes for an old coach. That COULD suggest a Tramore vehicle, but none of them as far as I am aware had curved tops and square (ouch!) bottoms, nor did they have any sort of beading or ventilators like the yoke above. I tried to find decent shots of Macroom coaches this evening to compare, but there's so little to be seen on that line. However, the beading certainly reminds me of a photo I've seen somewhere in the past, as does the side profile, and the ventilators above the doors appear to be of that type. In the absence of anything else, I'll stick with my initial hunch that it's from the Cork & Macroom Direct Railway. I would be interested to know more. I should add that all of the above is on the presumption that it is clearly of the 5'3" gauge. What width is it? Is there and end view of it? If it turns out that it's narrow gauge, we've another issue entirely on our hands; with Cork & Muskerry Railway being the most likely contender. I'm not sure it IS narrow-gauge, though.

I don’t think it’s W & T - windows different.

The one on the left is of Waterford, Limerick & Western design, while the one on the right (green) is classic GSWR of 1910-20 period. However........ That holiday home one is a VERY different animal! Looking at that second pic you’ve put up, I am inclined to think it’s a Macroom coach. If so, it will only be the second known to still exist. VERY rare, VERY interesting.

VERY interesting. The design of this does not correspond with anything I’m aware of, though the flat sides vaguely suggest the Cork & Macroom Railway, or if narrow gauge, Cork & Muskerry. What length and width is it?

The one at Cultra is of a later build, I think?

I remember seeing an old laminate-era dining car in use as a passenger coach on a Dundalk - Connolly local in the early 1980s....

The one with the two IR logos! There was that one coach. Something suggests there may have been two coaches with that on them, but I am not sure. Certainly no more. It was short-lived too. Claremorris to Ballina, Waterford to Rosslare, Rosslare - Limerick and Limerick - Nenagh often, if not USUALLY had a train consisting of a single coach plus genny van. Latterly this was a Craven, though in the 1970s / early 80s it could be a Park Royal or an old laminate. It would not have been a snack car though as none of those services had one. The shortest consist WITH a snack car was probably the snack car, plus genny van, plus maybe four or five other coaches. It would not be worthwhile putting a snack car on a service with less, unless it was closed up as such and only used for extra passenger accommodation.

"This type of video file isn't supported"............no vid............?

The “eval ITG” (deliberately misrepresenting-spelt) came about as a humorous skit. This followed the appearance a few years ago of a Facebook page whose aim was to discredit the DCDR. At one point the ITG were described within this as “evil”. The FB page was mis-spelt, with poor grammar too. This led to banter between various people who knew the story, privately making fun of this FB page, along the lines of “Iff them Eval IT’G typeS do& nOT Restire theStesm Engin, We Will @proTEST....” etc etc.....! ......all written in that style!

Small point on the “transitional”. Being transitional, there were exceptions! I saw one loco (141 I think but can’t recall) with the new “set of points” on the sides and ONE end but not the other.

Indeed, Very probably (I can’t recall) though a very small number of Cravens made it past 1990 also in their original livery.

I’ve an idea that the last “pre-tippex” carriage was about 1993-4.

It went round the ends just a little bit, maybe 6 inches or so.

Mine is "Dugort Harbour".... Dugort is a real village on the north shore of Achill Island, where there was a one-time and short lived proposal to extend the mgwrs Achill branch to. Such a line would have been commercially about the biggest flop possible in railway history; highly scenic, though! The village has a population of about 30 people...... I chose this because my initial idea was to build something like a scaled-down Achill terminus, or scaled-up Westport Quay. However, the absence of kits, let alone RTRs, of MGWR coaches of any type, and the absence of anything which could be kitbashed, put me off. Thus, I kept the name, but now it's a somewhat run-down looking remote terminus extension somewhere in West Cork or Kerry, as there have been RTR J15s, courtesy of Roderick Bruce, and kits of GSWR six-wheelers, courtesy of Des Sullivan. Thanks to Mayner, a G2 has joined the gathering, in case Midland 6-wheel kits ever appear. I picked up two Woolwiches a couple of years ago which will join once chipped, and accurately filthied. So what I have under way now will be based operationally on somewhere like Baltimore, Kenmare or Valencia Harbour. The name will stick, though; many childhood memories playing on the Golden Strand beach at Dugort.....

I'll take four luggage vans and four hot water bottles....

Another few worth looking at, where the narrow and 5'3 were adjacent but separate would be Ballymoney and Skibbereen, and the dual gauge transshipment sheds at Dromod, Ennis and perhaps Ballymena.

Check out Larne Harbour for track ideas - the station had both gauges for the BNCR and the B & L narrow gauge....

I forgot to say earlier - there's a font you can download called "bunchlo" which is the best available equivalent to the font the GSR used for the bilingual station nameboards. CIE just used plain Roman script, with black letters on a white background. All of those old black signs with "white"* letters were done by the GSR. (* In model form, use cream, as the white - if it ever truly WAS "white" - was discoloured by CIE days to an extent that would make actual white on a layout look unrealistic).

The NCC had no lining - plain black. The UTA livery was very attractive with its lining, crest and red coupling rod.