jhb171achill

Yes (and the C & L, a century ahead of their time, painted at least a couple of open wagons YELLOW for ballast trains!), the beige colour would have been current in 1900-05. Certainly after 1925, but possible as early as the mid 1910s, they became standard grey with white lettering. It would seem that they had black lettering when beige; I do not know whether the chassis was the same beige, or black. It was usual, as well known, for Irish companies to paint wagon chassis the same as the body colour, but there some exceptions. As for the lettering, I cannot be sure, but it is possible they only had the normal "M G W (number)". Most old photos of most maintenance vehicles I've ever seen tend to have "P W DEPT." rather than "Engineering" - and in a model I'd be more inclined to go for that - or, even, only use "M G W" and a number, pending anything more specific turning up. Sorry that's the best that I can do! I assume a ballast plough would be the same beige, or possibly the brown that some vans were then. It would not be green. I will have a poke about tonight and see if I can find anything else.

Correct - the pic was some time in the mid 30s - after 1940, any "shiny" engines would have been in the unlined black livery too. I would certainly think it's one of the 1924 stock. Hard to make out 100% though. I noticed a white patch on the smokebox door - anyone have any ideas as to what that might be? I don't. That would be a typo - very definitely 2nd!

Fifty years ago to the day, today, NIR operated the last ever steam train in service with a company-owned locomotive in Ireland. I was there to see it. Over thirty years earlier, also on the NCC, Senior spotted a gleaming maroon just-out-of-the-paint shop U2 hurrying itself along. Location unknown, but would appear to be either between Belfast and Whitehead, or more likely Belfast - Ballymena, as I think his earliest spin on the NCC was on the main line. I

I will still state that the most comfortable railcars are the old GNR / CIE AECs, providing we're talking original seats here, of course, and the modern NIR 4K and 3K types. And the worst by far were the MEDs and "Castle (Cattle) Class" or 450s of NIR. Ghastly things, both of 'em. Warb, is that an MIR kit for the 80 class? Very well made.

I am not known for my joy at seeing modern railcars, but I have to say from recent jaunts on the Cobh line over the last half-dozen years, they've grown on me a bit - and I did like the 2700s, strangely enough. The noise a 2600 makes going up the tunnel en route to Mallow is something else - so many suburban railcars don't ever get a chance to properly stretch their legs!

Nothing was scrapped in this way as Eoin says. If ever Fry scrapped anything, it would have been because he dropped it on the floor and it bent while he was building it! And given his levels of skill and care, that's unlikely.

Bianconi, Annaghmore, Cork City, Bessbrook, Giant's Causeway and Lucan were the ones I had in mind. I did not count Belfast (or Dublin, other than Lucan!) And not the LUAS either.... naturally, by Irish standards, all of these are narrow gauge too! I have an idea there was some sort of short-lived thing out in the wilds of Leitrim or Longford or somewhere - I remember reading of such a thing years and years ago. Must look it up.

3ft gauge. One of the few electric narrow gauge lines. Quiz question: how many narrow-gauge electric lines were there, including tramways? I can think of six.....

We’re up north today. A Giants Causeway tram awaits departure from Portrush station, and a strange vehicle is parked up at the depot nearby. This was a wagon for inspecting overhead wires. These pictures were taken in 1939.

It’s grey now. Last yellow / black / silver one was about 18 months ago.

Ah, that. I thought the comment referred to maybe hooks for holding the ropes of the tarpaulins. I have no idea what the above castings were. As you say, probably too small for grain, and I think in any case it’s almost certain that bulk grain wasn’t carried in vehicles like these.....

Ah, I was imagining you only had a very small space. You'll pack in a full terminus station on that size of board.

Which photo? I think I know what you're looking at but can you confirm....

The A and C class were all cream inside. 121s were very light grey as were any 141s I was ever in. I don't remember what B101s were like inside as I only ever had one footplate ride in one. I have pics of the inside of a C somewhere, but I will have to search. If and when I come across them I will post them. I have a notion that the very oldest ones, the B113 duo, had cream upper and mid brown lower, like the cab of a steam engine, but again I would have to do some considerable delving! The G class were light grey lower, cream upper, as at Downpatrick, as far as I remember. E class - I'm not sure, but the DCDR could help - I think light grey. Again, I've a photo SOMEwhere!

Imahilus, here’s a suggestion. You want it small, dock setting and shunting-orientated. 1. Sea (harbour wall) 2. Sidings set in concrete or cobblestones on the quayside, for bringing wagons alongside unloading ships. 3. Loco shed for dock shunting loco? 4. Siding into some sort of small warehouse (a different / additional type of traffic?) 5. Run round loop. 6. Platform road. 7. A platform - could be short passenger platform to allow, say, a two-car railcar set to shuttle back and forth, or a goods platform with warehouse. 8. Line disappears through archway or tunnel mouth (like Cork) to go to / from a simple fiddle yard.

Brilliant! I was there for a month or so, and I learned it back then, though I've forgotten most now. It's a surprisingly easy language to learn, and pronunciation is easy. Good for when you wanted to say "I would like to see round the steam engine shed. Would you like some European cigarettes?"..... Anyway, I'm off topic...

You're the only other person I've ever come across who knows a few words of Bahasa Indonesia. Ada dimana kereta api? I even had a name picked for the layout based on a rural station on the south line - Gunung Merapi ("Fire Mountain"), after the well-known local volcano of that name, which two weeks after I was there destroyed the local rice economy completely by spewing a two-foot-deep layer of pumice and ash all over the surrounding countryside after it blew its top for the first time in many years! That was 1980; since then it has bubbled and smouldered a bit now and again.

Having an interest in Indonesian railways, I often thought of doing a small layout, believe it not, with a few of these on a Surabaya - Jogjakarta "main line". where a very similar-looking Japanese design hurried express passenger trains along back in the day. If a German class 52 could be had in that scale too, it wouldn't be unlike the PJKA's D52 class... Alas, not to be.

Referring to the ITG's 2004 guide, the following information may be of use. As built, the 121s all had the GM 8-567CR engine. Those changed, which don't seem to be all of them, are as follows. In this case, the replacements are: A = GM 8-B645E B = GM 8-567CR All 835RPM, all 950 HP. I have listed below the details; in the absence of an "A" or a "B", it may be assumed that they had their original engine until any swops took place with ex-"C" classes, and 141s or 181s. "ST" = Stopped - actual official withdrawal could come up to sixteen years later, or a month later - but for the modeller, the last date they were seen out and about is more relevant. "SC" = Scrapped at Inchicore. Loco ST SC Engine 121 1995* 03 122 2001 02 123 2002 ?? B Used for a year after stopping as Inchicore pilot 124 B Retained for preservation 125 1986* 02 126 1995 02 A 127 2002 03 A 128 2003 03 129 2003 03 B 130 2001 02 131 2001 03 B 132 1994* 02 See note below re. push/pull 133 2003 03 A 134 B Preserved RPSI 135 2003 03 A Note re 132: Mention has been made elsewhere about the fact that 121 haulage was used on push-pulls in the Dublin area, as the "C"s (OK, 201s!) were beginning to approach their end lives. According to this resource, 132 was the only 121 fitted for PP, but later it had this removed "due to excessive engine noise". * These three were stopped on the dates shown as a result of fire damage in the engines. They lay around for years, still technically "on the books" as they were being stripped for spares for the others. No. 125, for example, was stopped in March '86, but not officially withdrawn and scrapped until 2002. Withdrawal dates for the C / B201 / 201 class were as follows: 201 Blown up by bomb 1973 All the others 1984 (4), 1985 (4), and 1986 (25). Several had been "stopped" earlier, in 1981-3, but not scrapped. Thus, it is possible their engines remained inside them - so overall, it would seem that in relation to the removing of their engines for use in the 121 class, it's overwhelmingly 1984-6, maybe a year or two later at most.

Light grey with black buffers and black bogies. The background to the vehicle number is a black strip, and there are yellow lines for visibility just above the bogies on the main frame. In traffic, a liberal coat of weathered brake dust!

If they don't, I have heard that they are very amenable to making up batches of something that a customer is looking for. If you decide to "go British" (or American), there is loads and loads of N scale stuff. For example, you could go all-LMS (I know, too close to being NCC for a good GNR man!), and you'd have lots of choices of engines, carriages and rolling stock.

You're very welcome, Arbhin, and you will find help here with all sorts of things.

The bulk of the 201s were withdrawn in 1984/5/6, so presumably shortly after that.

Unfortunately not, but I've a few other bits and pieces...!

This is the last GNR for a while. I haven’t a date but I think it’s not long after the railcars were introduced. PW work is in progress at Malahide, and a service train is being allowed across at slow speed.