jhb171achill

GSR vans were a different animal. The internally-framed ones had horizontal planking on the outside, and were possibly somewhat smaller, from memory - slightly shorter wheelbase, I think? The GSR's forerunners to the "H" vans had a similar frame but horizontal planking. Many were still about until the early 60s. The actual "H" vans starts appearing in the 1950s and as others have noted, thousands were built until the early to mid 1960s. But not to be confused with the GSR types. Some older (and lower, shorter or both) vans of ex-GSWR or Midland origin were still to be seen in the late 1950s. The brake wheels appeared in the 1960s. Yes, they'd get patched from time to time. I saw one in Kilkenny goods yard with planked doors, doubtless off an old GSR van. Come to think of it, I've a notion that wasn't a one-off.

I think “typical” is the least appropriate word I’ve ever heard to describe Limerick Junction!

Just to add this: wagons (only) had the logo applied by stencil (not used in any other way) from the mid 1950s until the “broken wheel” took over in 1963. This from one of Senior’s pictures....

Likewise, I agree. Many small manufacturers need our support, and even if an offering isn't truly perfect, best to be careful about just slagging them off. I had investigated these things too - if they were half decent I'd have half a dozen of the 2nd & 3rd class equivalents of the above. But they're very rough indeed - and I had been advised this by others. A pity, because as you say they have some nice stuff. I have an interest in various foreign railways too, and Shapeways do some items from these which would also have interested me, but even their illustrations show they're too coarse. I'll make no further comment on them, as I am conscious that to some they're OK, and it's a free world!

Tempus is busy fuggitting away, MM! Malahide and its little plastic cases calls my attention.............................

Thank you Patrick. I've nothing more for the moment! I've been able to get back into Malahide so I haven't as much time on my hands anyway. What I do have is loads and loads of old glass plate negs, these being my grandfather's. But few if any are of railway matters - long-gone aunts in Co. Offaly, farm animals on their family farm there and so on.... I need to get these scanned. There are hundreds. When I do get back to the railway stuff, there is some more of the stuff I've been trotting out over the last couple of months, and a handful of the rarest of all - anything I took myself that was even half-publishable! Then there's senior's colour stuff. Theses again were mostly family stuff, but there are several dozen decent colour shots worth showing. I will get around to it at SOME stage, hopefully! Glad you've enjoyed it - hopefully it's been some distraction to "Internment"............ I think I will rename my study "Long Kesh" instead of the "catacombs"...............!

The Cravens only ever carried two liveries - and even that was just two slight variations of the same one. If you start with black all over, then put tan / orange on both sides below window level, that's the basics. Until the early 1990s, the only other thing was a single 6-inch wide white line above window levels. After that, there was (a) an additional thinner white line below the windows, and (b) both a white AND an orange line above window level, but the earlier variation lived on with some coaches carrying well into the mid (maybe late) 1990s. The BR van pictured above was a separate variation - these got the white line below, but not the orange line above. The reason was that they are based on a British Mk. 1 design, which were lower in height than Irish stock - so there "wasn't room" for the extra orange line above! There is photographic evidence of at least one Craven carrying this variation, but almost certainly not for long. The livery on your loco is early 2000s era, by which time all Cravens in use had the orange line above, and second white line below the windows. Both of the vans pictured above were in use the same time as your loco, so you could find either at the end of a train.

A two coach train is perfect as an authentic model of a Ballina branch train in the 1990s / early 2000s. You also need a van to go on the back of it - either a "Dutch" van or a "BR" van. Get a few fertiliser / cement / 42ft flat wagons to go behind it when it's hauling freight instead.

Ah sure I travelled in a 2700 class railcar - and enjoyed it! (How many "Hail Marys" is that?) TALKING OF WHICH: Guy goes to confession. Guy: "Father, forgive me, for I have sinned" Priest: "Yeah, I saw it on IRM"....................

The two would have looked very different, as the UTA and NCC style of lining were totally different. I looked up that pic - interesting stuff!

I love it!!!!! Superb!

Superb little vans! Regarding roofs, none were painted black. Always brown exactly as you have them, though weathering turned them a dirty exhaust colour after a while! I saw a few newly painted and they looked just like that. If you were going to weather them, just give the roof a heavy dose of it rather than painting greyish. CIE were economical with liveries as were there predecessors - whatever colour one bit of a wagon was, the whole lot was!

Really! That's interesting.... by then the NG is of course closed. Do you have a copy of the pic? I had always wondered if all the Ballycastle locos got lined UTA livery but clearly not.

Perfect meticulous realism at Tara Junction again!

This is the stencil version used only on goods wagons from the mid or late 1950s until 1963.

Wow! That was quick!

I think it may have been 80, but whichever it was, the green on the Jeep was evidently something not unlike what’s on No. 30 in Cultra, or possibly a slightly darker version of the Isle of Man’s 1970s green. The mogul was some sort of olive green, possibly a bit like the Southern in England. The 4.4.0 was something different again, so it might well have been a “Brunswick” green - possibly similar to CIE green, even. It would have varied from what BR has due to (as far as I can tell) yellow lining.

Forty five years ago, the sun went down on a chapter in Irish railway history, when the last rural branch line with traditional mixed trains closed. And as the winter sun went down on a bitterly cold but bright afternoon, two days before the closure, I took these. So now the sun must go down on me posting daily pictures, as I need to get more scanned..... 1. Arrival at Loughrea, behind a “C”. A big disappointment that day - sure you can get an oul “C” class to Bray ANY day. I had hoped for a “G” - but it had been removed - for ever at this point - and sent to Tuam to shunt the sugar factory sidings during the winter’s beet “campaign”. (Where did they get that odd terminology for a beet harvest?). By the time the beet was finished a few months later, the “G” would now be homeless.... 2. The sun sets on the last train of the day, on the last branchline, with just two days to go. This is actually a mixed train but there happened to be no goods that day. 3. A goods van in the siding at Dunsandle, en route. Hope you’ve enjoyed the photos, folks.

The shade of green is unknown, yes, and I note that the mogul does not by this stage have “U T” on the tender. I had been told “some weeks” by Senior, who was told by the NCC’s Harold Houston, who of course was behind its introduction. Certainly the Jeep didn’t have it long.

It was a really nice job, Nelson. How is your layout going?

Yes - either that or the BTC directly - not BR, into whose stable it never went.

I think that what would become BR hadn't yet formalised a livery either, so they were all experimental. The other two painted green would not have had crests either; the Mogul had "U T" on its tender - I've seen a b & w pic of it. It must be assumed No. 5 did too. In any event, these liveries were repainted apparently after only some weeks, to standard UTA black lined in red & straw, At that stage only, the UTA crest as seen on the pic was added. I had forgotten about the 4.4.0, right enough.

Interesting where the depots were!

I have a copy of that somewhere, Derailed, yes! Thank you anyway!

I'm unaware of any 4.4.0s getting the green treatment.....? Must delve..............