jhb171achill

I was thinking that too, Noel. Maybe a fictitious Dublin & Blessington halt at a roadside - simple type of thing. A tram loco, a 4-wheel railcar, a tram or two to pull and a couple of goods vans would do. Would anyone have any advice on a suitable four wheeled power bogie which could be easily amended to 21mm gauge, I wonder?

Looking good!

Unfortunately, Minister, that's exactly what it is going to be. I've seen bits of the plans and have spoken to several,of the design team, and thus I regretfully concur with all murrayec's comments. It will give a little history of the town, the castle estate (who once owned the. Casino house), Fry himself, a minimalistic bit of railway history, and the models. And it'll have a train set! Woohoo! For the likes of us here, worth looking at, but that's about it. For the kiddies wanting to see Thomas, an afternoon out. Long term financial viability.........dunno?

I’m not filled with confidence on that!

1964 completed above.... 1965 to follow.

Tenders were routinely swapped between locomotives of the same class. It’s important to note that when deciding what number to put on your locomotive, things like cab style, original or later smokebox, chimney type, wheel type and so on, and above all boiler type - will be the things that decide whether you have No. 124, 175, 133 or 200. Preserved 186 has a tender off something else entirely, and 184 was, I think, given an old style one for a film contract, having in more recent times had a bigger one. With the J15s being such a big class, the loco shown above, 119, could be represented by the new model, as you could say it was temporarily running with an older tender. Subject, of course, to minor modification to the smoke box door if one was persistent enough! The above photo would be in the 1950s rather than forties as the locomotive has lost its cast numberplates. The guards van is a GSWR one of a type very similar to the one recently released by Provincial Wagons. This, and the J15, indicates that it’s the down (northbound) Limerick goods entering Sligo, as neither southern guards vans nor, even more so, J15s, would be seen on the MGWR. The train will have taken some seven hours from Limerick, stopping at just about every halt and hole in the hedge along the way.

Exactly - that's precisely the reason why.

1964 Over the winter of 1963/4, despite rumours that a few CIE steam engines might be taken out of retirement (as some remained in working order), this did not materialise, and for the first time all beet was diesel. Steam engines were now mostly scrapped, but a few were sporadically parked up around the system. Thirty five locos were variously set aside, in some cases intended for preservation, in others as a sort of "strategic reserve" (to be disbanded a couple of years later), and in the case of a few, used as stationary boilers to supply steam in Inchicore Works. These were as follows: Amiens Street: J15 151, J15 132 and GNR 4.4.0 197. All three to be retained. Cork: J15s 118 & 251, to be scrapped. Limerick Jct.: 106, 125*, 130*, 164, 186* (all J15) & 351. * to be retained, others scrapped. Thurles: 104, 124, 195, 262 - all to be retained. Rosslare Harbour: 249, 461 - the latter to be retained. Dundalk: 255, 132N, 204N - all for scrap. Mullingar: 131N, 172, 599 - all for scrap, though 131 would live to be plinthed at Dundalk, and then operate again via the RPSI. Anything that went to Mullingar rarely emerged again! Sutton Tram Shed: 198, 261 - both to be retained. Mallow: 109, 116 - both for scrap. Sligo: 574, to be scrapped. Athlone: 159N, 593, 603 - latter two to be kept, 159N scrapped. Waterford: J15s 179 & 183, both to be retained. Inchicore: 80N, 111, 187, and the last Bandon Tank 463 - all to be scrapped. Why didn't they keep 463! What saved 131N was the plan to use it on the RCTS / SLS / IRRS grand last finale steam tour of Ireland the following spring! Of the above fleet, seventeen locomotives were in working order. Of the others, while officially in stock, theyw were also officially withdrawn from duty, and they varied from not operable to almost operable. Over the winter, 251 would be used in Cork to heat carriages in the early mornings before they set out, while 132, 151 and 197 were used for static steam generation in Inchicore. Thurles still saw a little steam over the winter, though, as the Sugar Company's No. 3, now preserved at Downpatrick, occasionally replaced the CSET's diesel. Elsewhere, even the CSET's nine Orenstein & Koppel locomotives were silent during the beet season. Instead, "A" and B101 classes dominated the beet traffic. By degrees, over the coming years, the 121 and 141 classes would also be involved. AEC sets were now gradually making their way to Dublin, but the Waterford line still featured them on the main line on some services. But the future of main line trains was now "A" and "Yanks". This would remain the general pattern into the 21st century, with the later additions of the 181s and 071s. December 1963 had still seen Dublin turn out a entirely wooden 7-coach set for a special to Waterford haled by B163.Just as Cork had retained a good stock of the old six-wheelers, last used in early 1963 on the Youghal line, both Dublin and Cork still had quite a few old wooden coaches, some still non-corridor. These would gain the black'n'tan livery and remain in traffic round Dublin at peak summer times for another ten years. Trains of bewildering composition still cropped up in the capital. Christmas Eve 1963 saw the following trains leave Kingsbridge, as well as normal trains both of AEC railcars and 141-hauled stock: 20:00 Night Mail: B150, 3 x Laminate, 4w tin van, 6w tin van, horsebox, 5 fitted wagons. Plus its auxiliary - B158, two PO Sorting Vans, TPO, tin van, 2 x bogie vans (for mail), 6-wheel TPO No. 1M - a REAL relic! - 2 tin vans, another bogie van, one wagon, and yet another tin van! The 17:45 to Limerick was a major test for a single GM, as B168 had to cope with no less than ten bogies and a tin van, so crammed that over 100 passengers were standing. I wouldn't like to see B168's armpits after that.... And the "Flying Snail" was to be history! First introduced by the Dublin United Tramways Company in 1941, adopted by CIE in 1945, and retained after CIE's nationalisation in 1950, this venerable symbol would be henceforth replaced by - a broken wheel! The classic station colour scheme of green and cream would also be replaced by a new and very clean looking station livery of black, white and two shades of grey. As the new year of 1964 saw these bold new moves on CIE, north in UTA land it was all doom and gloom. William Craig, Stormont's Todd Andrews, remarked that railways would soon be as out of date as the stage coach, as the clouds gathered; rumours abounded that the Derry Road was about to go. Yet York Road still kept its steam fleet going - one each of classes W and WT (NCC) and S and UG (GNR) received attention. A cameo: we now have: UTA: Goods: Steam. WT on NCC< old GNR types plus NCC W class on the GN. Passenger: MED sets on the Bangor line, AEC & BUT sets on the GNR main line, with some steam on the Derry line augmenting AEC cars. MPD sets on the ex-NCC sections. CIE: 121 & 141 classes absolutely monopolising passenger services everywhere, but AEC sets still to be seen on the Midland, DSER and Waterford lines. C class pilot / short goods, A class on most goods, though "yanks" would share this. B101 on almost totally goods, "down south", but also on all traffic on the Cork - Rosslare, a line which didn't seem to see much A, and no C action. This route seemed to be almost entirely the preserve of 121 and B101 locos, with an occasional 141. CIE Suburban: Cork area: Anything. Dublin: AEC cars, some C hauled. CIE Branches: Ballina: C class common enough here. Also A, 121, 141. Loughrea: G or occasionally C, especially when the G was away shunting Tuam during the beet season! By the early months of 1964, the 07:00 Ballymena - Antrim local was changed from steam operation (from Ballymena shed) to a single unit MPD car, which was now based at Ballymena as a "pilot engine" - remember, the UTA had no diesel locos apart from a couple of shunters in Belfast. This brought to an end the last REGULAR steam train on the NCC in its winter timetables. From now on, NCC steam would be either / or irregular, or summer only. A rare visitor to the Larne line was a CIE covered van spotted en route to Larne from Drogheda. This was 1211M, an ex-Midland Great Western van. Even in Midland days, vans from the NCC and MGWR would rarely have visited each other's territories. At this stage, goods on the NCC could be steam operated, or worked by MPD cars, giving an appearance of a mixed train, though the cars were empty of passengers. Three of them equated to a small diesel loco in power terms. A single unit railcar was also reported working on the Bangor line at this time. By now, the "Enterprise" was a mixed bag. AEC railcar sets were being used by the UTA, and loco hauled stick when heavier. In early 1964 this was often in the hands of NCC 2.6.0 W class locos. These are, by the way, often referred to as "moguls", a are other 2.6.0s. It's worth pointing out that like in America, where a 2.10.0 is a "Consolidation", this term relates to our narrow gauge neighbouring island. No Irish railway company ever referred to 2.6.0s as "moguls", or to 2.6.2Ts as "prairies", etc. In fact, I am unaware of any nickname for a wheel arrangement on any line anywhere in Ireland - can anyone enlighten me if there were? "Jeep" doesn't count, as the nickname was not directed at the wheels, and moreover no other 2.6.4Ts in Ireland were ever called "Jeeps". Little did readers know in the early months of 1964 that the writing was very much on the wall for the Derry Road. IRN published a "Station Survey" article about Omagh in January. This gave a potted history of the station, which I know will be of interest to some here! The goods yard was reported to remain busy, but at Omagh it was on a cramped site, and thus the old Market Branch had remained in use, and would do until closure. Several transfers of freight took place between the two at different times of the day. These would propel in one direction, haul in the other. In January, the new Shelton Abbey factory was rail connected. For students of "black'n'tan" era liveries, it is worth noting that it was in January 1964 that the "all-black" variation appeared. Up to now, all locos were black and full-waist-height tan. It was quickly applied to locos of A, B101, C and E class locos - though both liveries were to be seen for most of the 1960s, the black version later in some cases getting yellow patches (A & C class only). The only relief to the all-black was the white flash above end cab windows. Buffer beams were red - though several unspecified examples were seen with orange buffer beams - short lived. A17 was among the first to be seen in the all-black. Of the steam engines lying about, Dundalk's allocation had now all been scrapped. In February, the IRRS had an excursion (or as they quaintly say, an "outing"; a somewhat creepy term in this day and age!) to Warrenpoint. Brand new kitchen car 2403 was part of the consist, the rest of which was an AEC railcar set. A note on carriage interiors is included for a number of types. Sevearl brand new (the last laminate) first class coaches were mentioned as having sage green carpets. The new Cravens finally emerged on test runs, and they were described as having either blue upholstery in some, and grey in others. Floors were grey linoleum. I well remember this! Four more tin vans - among the last - were under construction. These were of the 4 wheeled type, and had both boilers and guard's compartments. And the Bubbles were on the way! No, not from IRM Towers, but from Inchicore. They were the normal all-grey, but with the new CIE "broken wheel" on the side, in tan with white letters. Since cement traffic was busy, and the Croom branch was playing host to specials from Limerick to the Cork direction, one wonders if any bubbles ever traversed this little known line... February saw B1a 4.6.0 No. 800 heading north to Witham Street Museum in Belfast, where she would remain until her new home in Cultra was completed several decades later. With growing clouds over the GNR lines in the north, despite eight ex-GN locomotives having received attention at York Road, it was surmised that with fewer locomotives needed in future, heavy overhauls would cease on all but the WT class 2.6.4Ts. While some GN 0.6.0s would receive minor attention, this became the case over a short time. Several locos of various types were sold by the UTA for scrap, and two W class 2.6.0s, now unused, had their boilers and other spare parts removed as spares for the WT class. The old NCC Railcar No. 1, dating from 1934, received a full service and refurbishment. This car was being used for off-peak services to Antrim and Carrickfergus. In April, a special train took CIE officials up the NCC to Derry (Waterside). This was in preparation for the re-routing of Dublin - Donegal goods off the "Derry Road", in preparation for its closure. By Easter, the Warrenpoint line had strong excursion traffic, all steam, hauled for what the IRM correctly concluded would be its last fling. Finally, on 13th February, the UTA announced that it would close, along with the Derry Road; one of the greatest acts of official government vandalism in Irish railway history. The Stormont MP, William Craig, and some of his cohorts, with a delusional pro-road bias, and not the first clue about public transport administration, let alone how to serve the rural people who had voted for them, must bear responsibility for this. Today, the Derry Road at least would be busy, and the rail connection into Newry, rather than Bessbrook-at-the-top-of-the-hill, would be a boon. All night freight services were also to be stopped, and local internal UTA goods trains wouldn't be far behind. Craig was questioned in Stormont about providing an airport link at Aldergrove. He said he had investigated it, and it was unrealistic. Quite; when I was at school I recall an expression being used, "What do you expect from a pig, but a grunt!". The 03:15 Portadown - Omagh goods train had been officially cancelled for some months, but still operated as a special four days a week usually! Further south, an intrepid traveller found the usual Limerick - Ballina set to be a luggage van, two laminates and heating van. B133 was at the head one day, and the set also included a horse box. It might be worth pointing out that no horse box was ever painted in any variation of a black'n'tan livery. They seemed to have all died out, still in faded green. Goods trains on the Limerick - Claremorris line was variously B141s and "A"s. A typical Westport makeup was recorded as a B121, a dining car, a compo, a second, two tin vans (one luggage, one heating) and another standard ath the end - all of laminate type. A scathing article in IRN - again, in contrast with virtual silence from the IRRS Journal - pointed the finger firmly at the UTA, the Transport Tribunal, Craig and above all the Stormont Government with regard to the Derry Road closure, and their absolute refusal to listen to any economic or social argument. The article states that the decision to close was "purely political...which identifies itself with the Stormont policy of isolating the North from the South". And these people had never heard of Brexit, and the positions taken over this by some elected representatives today! Plus ca change...........! Glanmire Road station in Cork was refurbished with the new now-familiar city terminus white and black platform tiles. However, what would become the standard CIE station name board - black letters on a white background - was also unveiled there for the first time. These signs were virtually everywhere when I did a lot of my earlier CIE travels during 1975-80. At Inchicore, C234 was to receive a Maybach engine instead of the unreliable Crossley one; two "C"s would be thus treated. Against this modernisation, redundant steam engines were still kicking about - four rusting J15s were shoved into a siding near the goods shed at Thurles. By now, 25 of the 40 Cravens were in traffic, all so far on the Cork main line. The "wasp stripes" were now appearing on guard's vans lookout duckets. They were black and yellow, not black and white as in Cultra! On 24th September, a melancholy procession set sail from Cork to that point of no return, Mullingar scrap sidings. To A8, the funereal duty was entrusted; with a Crossley engine, it's a miracle it made it. In the train were 41 old wagons, the erstwhile Mallow breakdown van, and the very last eleven six-wheel carriages to have been withdrawn from service about a year earlier. All were of MGWR origin. Within weeks, the entire lot had been burned and the resultant scrap sold off. Growing road traffic could sometimes benefit the railway. Increasing ownership of cars was rendering parking difficult in Loughrea, so the normal one coach and G formation of the train was replaced by a C and two laminates for the summer of 1964. As a result of the closure of the Derry Road, goods into Sligo for Donegal was showing a marked increase. The former one goods train a day was now increased to three, with different destinations en route being served by each. The All Ireland final between Kerry and Galway provided the usual flurry of activity, but this year, six specials were double headed by 141s, with another special headed by one 141. The day didn't stop there; there were three specials heading the other way too, to Knock! One has B133, while the other two had pairs of 141s. One of the GAA trains was a set of nine ex-GNR coaches. Normal trains tried to fit in around all this lot - 141s and (in the case of Waterford) AEC railcars sets dealt with this. Meanwhile, A and B101s spluttered about with goods. Among UTA coaches now withdrawn and set aside for scrapping were the company's oldest coaches - four old non-corridor bogies built by the Belfast & Northern Counties Railway in 1896. Many NCC and GNR coaches of those remaining in service were being done up internally, with new formica panelling replacing the old wood panels. New standard UTA green upholstery - same as in the buses - was being used, and repainting externally completed a smart appearance. Three hundred of the Authority's old, dishevelled and clapped out wagons were being rebuilt and repainted in Belfast - with the impending end of goods transport, one might wonder why! By now, "Jeeps" were the only locos receiving anything but the most basic attention, and it is hardly surprising that in the line's final months, they were appearing on the Derry Road. They were also making appearances in Dubloj, along with the now-shabby ex-GNR 207 "Boyne", which continued on Belfast - Dublin specials. On the NCC, all the orangemens' trains were Jeep hauled, while on the GNR, the same traffic was managed by two W class 2.6.0s, two Jeeps, and one GNR 4.4.0 - all of which ended up in Foyle Road, leaving the Strabane pilot as the only other operational W class! Thirteen specials and 95 carriages operated throughtout the UTA that day. But GAA, Knock and Orangemen weren't the only customers for special trains. AEC railcars were seen operating over the Belfast Central into Bangor on a number of occasions, as did GNR 0.6.0s on some specials. Football (soccer), seaside, and Sunday School groups were the customers. On 6th August, CIE operated excursions to Belfast. One contained a GSWR 12-wheeler! A UTA excursion in the other direction was so packed that it was stopped at Lisburn to have the station waiting room seats put into the guard's van! But nothing could top one excursion on 6th September, when an auxiliary Waterford - Dublin trains was hastily put together. This consisted of B160 hauling a three coach AEC set (in use as coaches) and four wooden ex-GSWR seconds of 1907 vintage! They would have seen a G class, currently in use as pilot in Kilkenny en route. On the NCC, a Ballymena local was regularly a Jeep hauling two (dead) single-unit MPD railcars... A number of MED and MPD railcars sets were swopped between the Bangor and NCC sections. The latter were for use on the Larne line. By the autumn, the beet campaign loomed; but this year, Carlow would have none by rail. By the end of the year, all but eight of the new Craven carriages were in service, all being described as setting new standards of smartness. Well maintained, this is true still, half a century later, on RPSI or Railtours Ireland specials. As the Cravens appeared, a pogrom took place on older wooden carriages. The last of the six wheelers have been mentioned, but one other inexcusable act of vandalism by CIE was the destruction of the old GSWR Director's Saloon, No. 351, and with it probably the single most luxurious railway carriage ever to run on Irish rails - the 12 wheeled MGWR Director's Saloon, No. 346. Reduced to ashes by having petrol thrown through them, and a match struck. Two steam engines remained at the end of the year providing steam for heat: J15 118 in Cork for steam heating trains early in the morning before use, and J15 130 in Inchicore to provide heat in the diesel maintenance shops. A bizarre development was that some whistles from scrapped locomotives were being refurbished at Inchicore as consideration was being given to fitting them to A class diesels on an experimental basis! And 1964 came to a close; the "swinging sixties", this fascinating blend of old and new, were half way through.

1963 Concluded Back from the tropics now, so back to delving, and we're now in 1963. With steam finally dying on CIE this year, it was a truly momentous year in Irish railway history, and this huge change in motive power over the previous decade was now focussing minds on the strengths and weaknesses of the new forms of propulsion. Over the past decade, we had seen a shift from the general rule, like this: 1950-2 Steam everywhere. 1952-5 AEC on almost all secondary passenger services, and many main line ones. Steam everywhere else. 1955-60 AEC and A class on main line, secondary and suburban passenger, and A, B101 and C joining steam on goods. Steam still on many branches and pilot working. The B101 class are seen as "southern engines", being based in Cork, Limerick & Waterford. Unlike other diesels, they are not to be seen all over the system. B101s are mainly active on Rosslare - Waterford - Mallow - Cork, Waterford - Limerick, and Cork - Tralee, but make more than a few appearances on the North Kerry (normally AEC on passenger and "A" on goods) and Limerick - Sligo less often. The B101 class are also occasionally to be seen on the DSER but rarely on the ex-GN lines, and almost unheard of on the Midland. This will remain their lifetime habits. 1960-3 AEC graduate towards Dublin suburban mostly, with A taking the lead on other passenger trains for a very short time until the B121s and B141s are in use. C's on remaining branches as they close. A, C and B101 on goods. Steam on a few branch duties and pilot work, very occasional goods e.g. beet and cattle specials. 1964-7 The "Yanks" take over passenger work very substantially. The increasingly unreliable A class are largely on goods now, and the even more disastrously unreliable C class are mostly on pilot work now, with rare appearances on passengers trains. AEC cars now in Dublin. Steam gone. In 1963, it is noted that on average only 12 of the 34 "C" class are in traffic at any one time. With their branch lines (e.g. Birr, West Cork) gone, they do little but pilot work. The rest await on the Tiresome Long Term Illness Siding at Inchicore for their next appointment with the long-suffering fitters. Then somebody suggests new engines for them! It was noted, though, that with the B121 and B141 class spread thinly all over the system, while many opportunities presented themselves where double-heading would be beneficial, rarely were there two of these classes in the same place, at the same time, and available for such duty. Thus, their 950hp power was an operational limitation. However, the C class, even when working, were worse - it was noted that five bogies was as much as one could deal with in realistic terms. The newer E class had proven unstable at speed, and were thus confined to shunting around Dublin, though two were allocated to Cork and one to Limerick. A G was in Tralee to handle the Castleisland goods and shunt. Another G had for just a couple of months dealt with the daily Foynes mixed - in between the end of (J15) steam there, and the end of passenger services in '63. With all the new locos, especially the B121 / B141 classes, plus further closures of smaller intermediate stations, many passenger services were considerably speeded up. The Dublin - Galway service had a full half an hour knocked off it.The final trains on the Sligo - Claremorris and Tralee - Limerick sections were, as usual, AEC railcar sets of three cars. The "Burma Road" one trailed a tin van - AEC sets were often seen towing all manner of items - from six wheel coaches to tin vans to having Park Royals or even older wooden corridor stock as intermediates. Now, the Limerick - Ballina service, bereft of its railcar, would switch to a 141 and coaches - a pattern maintained until passenger services ceased in 1976. Naturally, many many steam engines were now lined up for scrap, including old GNR types. On 10th June, J15 151 was steamed and went from Amiens Street to Bray and back, the purpose for which being unclear. Prior to that, 184, 111, 187 and 151 had all been in steam for filming purposes in the spring, but this jaunt to Bray does appear to be the last time any locomotive was used by CIE for any sort of normal use, even if apparently it didn't haul anything. I say "normal" use; two weeks later the old Cork gantry vertical boiler locomotive "Pat" was steamed for an IRRS group. This left locos in store at various locations, but the vast majority in Inchicore. Elsewhere, lifting of closed lines continued in the vicinities of West Cork (with a C class on lifting trains), Port Laoise - Kilkenny, Birr, Ballaghaderreen, Mountmellick and Banagher. Other lines slumbered, the cutting torch hanging over their heads; now weeds would gather, soon the track would be removed. Not quite yet, so Newmarket slept, as did Ballylinan, Oldcastle, Edenderry, North Wexford, and Bagenalstown - Palace East. I remember the eerie sense of an abandoned Palace East when jhb171Snr took me there just after the track had been lifted. A farmer with a shotgun, to whom I assume the land had just been sold, kindly advised us where we ought to go, and how quickly we ought to go there. The UTA was still whinging about how much money it was losing. Paltry by todays standards, at £438,000, but not really all that enormous by the standards of the day either. Some creative accounting ensured that the road services showed up as best as they could, while the railway showed as financially bad as possible. However, some stations on the Derry Road were being smartly painted up and renovated; obviously, closure couldn't be far away! Victoria Bridge, Pomeroy and Sion Mills all won best-kept station prizes. Yet, they increased their steam fleet. Loco shortages on the ex-GNR section meant that three S class and one Vs (170, 171, 174 and 207) were now being bought from CIE, who had inherited them in 1958 but with the end of steam had no use for them. The blue livery, albeit so filthy that it could barely be seen, would grace the Derry Road once more, as buoyant passenger traffic meant that steam hauled passenger trains would not entirely be displaced by AEC and BUT cars on the Derry line. In contrast to what CIE were doing, it's interesting to see what was working on the UTA. The last ex-NCC 0.6.0, No. 13, wasn't doing much and would be withdrawn soon, but was noted shunting York Road, despite having been out of use for a while. York Road (or Duncrue Street, as they now called it) had recently overhauled "Jeeps" 2, 51 and 57, with 10 under repair. Alongside 10, "W" class 2.6.0 No. 97 (possibly the last of these in traffic?) and two GNR 0.6.0s were also under heavy repair. Eleven more steam engines of both NCC and GNR origin were advertised for scrap, while W class 95 and 98 were hauled dead to be stored at Whitehead, never to run again. The Derry Road had seen little steam on passenger work in recent years, the majority of trains being AEC railcars, but the summer of '63 saw what might be seen as an Indian summer. The three S class locos recently acquired from CIE, and the busy summer traffic, saw up to 50% of the trains on the line in the summer being steam. As well as the S class trio, the remaining U / UG types put in appearances, especially the Posrtadown - Dungannon local. And this was to be the season that on several occasions, CIE B141 class diesels would grace this line as far as Omagh on Lough Derg pilgrimage trains. I believe, but I am not certain, that a CIE AEC railcar set did this duty at least once. On the NCC, steam took a further step backwards, with a noticeable increase in specials being formed of the various types of MPD railcars. From normal passenger service, steam was almost extinct on the NCC. On 27th May 1963, an MPD set ventured off the NCC for the first time with a 5-piece passenger special from Portrush to Dublin and back, while a couple of weeks later B165 took a CIE set on a Dublin - Portrush excursion. The MPD jaunt south was repeated a week after that. Steam activity on specials in the summer of '63 saw W class 91 do fourteen specials, ex-GNR 4.4.0s 58 and 60, "Jeep" 50 and W 104 also seeing action. With Warrenpoint and Derry still working, this might be seen as an Indian Summer for UTA steam, even as the fires went out on CIE. The official roster - bearing in mind that some locos officially in traffic were not actually so - was as follows: NCC "WT" Class 2.6.4T "Jeep": 1-10, 50-57 (18 - the entire fleet of them) NCC "W" class 2.6.0: 91-9, 104 (8, though 95 and 98 had been out of use for a long time) NCC "V" class 0.6.0: No. 13 (1; saw little use, shunting only) SLNCR "Lough" Class 0.6.4T: 26 "Lough Melvin" and 27 "Lough Erne". Shunting only at York Road; 26 rarely used. (2) GNR "SG3" 0.6.0: 32-32-7 (6) GNR "SG2" 0.6.0: 38, 39 (2) GNR "SG" 0.6.0: 43, 44 (2) GNR "UG" 0.6.0: 45, 47-9 (4) GNR "Vs" 4.4.0: 58, 207 (2) GNR "S" 4.4.0: 60, 61*, 170, 171, 174 (5) (* out of use for some time; GNR numbers still on recent ex-CIE purchases, UTA numbers on others) GNR "S2" 4.4.0: 62, 63 (2) GNR "U" 4.4.0: 66-8 (3) GNR "T2" 4.4.2T: 5X (Not much in use - shunting at Gt. Vic. St) The "X" after the number meant that it was to be set aside for scrap if even the slightest fault developed, i.e. zero budget for maintenance. (1) GNR "T1" 4.4.2T: 187X As above (1). Of the above 57 locomotives, 18 were of one type, but the remaining 39 engines were of no less than thirteen types! Look at the GNR stock for example - no ex-GNR type had more than six members, and many were a class of 1 or 2. The summer Rosslare set was noted as being an AEC set (that much was typical) but with an old GSWR wooden dining car included. A cameo of workings on the Sligo - Limerick route in June 1963 saw a two-car AEC as the normal passenger set; that on Limerick - Tralee was the same formation. Single B121s were on the goods on this route, and on the main line to Sligo. The ballina branch train, however, had a C, usually hauling an old wooden bogie and a tin van. G615 was shunting in Ballina, while a C often handled the branch goods. In these times the Nenagh branch still was seen as the main line into Limerick. One typical train is recorded: B144 hauling a train of a Bredin, a Park Royal, three laminates, a dining car and a tin van. The ex-SLNCR railcar, now clad in CIE green, was working Limerick - Nenagh locals. The summer of 1963 saw busy traffic on weekend summer excursions from Castleieland to Fenit and back. AEC railcars dealt with this traffic. As autumn fell, the GAA's All Ireland Football Final would produce some interesting traffic as it has done from time immemorial to recent years. Nobody can convince me that there's anything even remotely interesting about getting a camera out for a Kerry supporter's special in these days - ehhh, oh, it's a 4 car ICR. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. ALL the normal trains on that line are ICRs. But we're not talking about the glorified LUAS that passes for a railway today, all the way from Londonstrokederrybrexitcityderry to Cobh. It's September 1963, and no less than seven special s would leave Waterford for Dublin on All Ireland Day. But - with the recent closure of the Kilkenny - Port Laoise line, section occupancy was impossible on the main line for the normal service plus six specials all leaving within half an hour of each other. The solution was to send them up to New Ross - still open for goods, and beyond; the New Ross - Palace East - Macmine line had been closed since April but was not lifted. Thus began and ended 141 class operation over this line, as another remarkable feature of these trains is that they were all 141 hauled.B176 was first, then B147 left at 07:00, followed by B177, B158, B160 and a double-headed B148/B170! Autumn saw G615 alternating with a C on the Loughrea line, with its unique one coach train. Meanwhile, Inchicore's last two wholly-built coaches, two firsts of laminate stock, and the first Cravens, were out on test. Steam and Cravens had just missed each other; while all steam was gone months earlier, no Craven was yet in traffic. The first Craven was 1504, the rest numbered numerically after that. G617, the Tralee shunter / Castleisland goods engine, managed a rare passenger feat in September, when it took a two-coach special for an IRRS group on a rare non-stop run through Tralee, as it travelled from Castleisland to Fenit and back. One of the old GNR articulated Gardner railcars, No. 105 (ex railcar G) was still working on the Warrenpoint branch, but a single BUT car, 129, was also working on its own on off-peak Belfast - Portadown services. Every year, when the Orangemen and Apprentice Boys came out of the woodwork, many interesting railway workings would result. While 1962 had seen ex-GNR 0.6.0s predominate on the GNR section, now, with the recent purchases of a trio of S class from CIE, now-neglected filthy 4.4.0s were to the fore again. The last NCC "W" class 2.6.0, No. 104, did take a train from Sion Mills to Belfast, however. Passenger workings on the GNR by these locos was rare. As the year ended, a new dawn was about to break. If the railway hadn't been run down enough, the lowest ebb of the dark clouds of the Benson Report was about to appear. This would result in first, almost halving what little was left of the UTA network, followed by a new renaissance of the rest. All goods would go, along with the Derry Road and the Warrenpoint branch. But, out of the ashes, the new 70 class railcars would come, along with - at long last - the North's first ever main line diesel locomotives being planned. But that's for another day; 1963 is hereby put to bed, as will I quite shortly. Goodnight all; we awaken to 1964 when I'm in the mood.

Good price....... could make a CIE K if the blinkers were amputated..............

Yes, the D & D ones wouldn't have had the hallmark Inchicore cabs and chimneys, thus in all reality it's a bit far fetched. However, as I said, poetic licence allows anything! On another forum someone raised the idea of painting a J15 in lined CIE green....while none ever were, who's to say it wouldn't look well! To give an idea of just how immeasurably important these engines were, and how they are absolutely essential to ANY layout on CIE (bar the Midland section!) in CIE times, I gleaned from Leslie McAllister's excellent book on these engines that NO LESS THAN 72 were STILL in traffic (technically at least) in 1958; most of these lasting until the end of steam during 1962. Go back just a few years earlier, to 1955, and we find that there are NINETY-NINE J15s on the books. That's MOST of them. Other classes came and went, but the standard J15s were the absolute backbone of the southern system for years. The only GSR / CIE areas they never went to were the West Cork system (where none ever ventured at all), the Tramore line and so on. As well as the ex-GSWR system, they became staples on the WLWR & DSER lines. However, with the MGWR having their own equivalent in the forms of the J18s, they were very rare visitors to the Midland section, and apart from the Limerick - Sligo line having been built, might never have seen Sligo at all. In the very short few years (about 1959-62), there were low single figures instances of them appearing round Amiens Street, and possibly a ballast or something to Drogheda. Now - before modellers get excited about buying 99 models, bear in mind that by 1960 there were numerous variations in boilers, smokeboxes, cabs, and so on. Only so many looked exactly like the 00 Works model. If I can find out a definitive list of what locos corresponded exactly to the model I'll post it; maybe Roderick or Leslie can throw light on this? For those interested, the locomotives on the books in 1958 were as follows, most remaining until 1961-3: 101 105 106 108 109-11 114 116 118 119 121-8 130-134 136-9 140 141 143 149 152 154 156 157 161-2 164 166-8 170-2 176 179 181-6 188 190 193-8 200 223 229 232 253-6

Static displays will rotate much of his collection. Many of the post-Fry models which ran in Malahide were, apart from being 0 gauge, very crude indeed by any standards. I am not sure what will happen to them but I wouldn’t think they’d be disposed of.

Depends on their budget! Yes, the Fry stuff will be mostly in glass cases. The new layout will be 00 scale, thus the Fry stuff of a larger scale wouldn’t be able to operate on it anyway. Careful wording in marketing materials will therefore be of great importance!

It’s as good as certain that 186 was the first of the class in Portadown. Any visit of a southern engine to the GNR was never going to be likely. The BCDR managed to have a GSR (ex DSER) loco on loan at one stage, and the NCC and GNR swooped 4.4.0s at another time. I think that in that short window at the end of the 1950s, the GNR and steam, a J15 may have got to Drogheda or even Dundalk, but Portadown would have to be a stage too far in CIE times, let alone GNR days like 1956. However, poetic licence....... “something” has broken down, at the very time that a J has unusually got to Dundalk; there’s the excuse!

I think I recall seeing 018 about the time of my 18th birthday in newish supertrain livery.... Drogheda, I think....!

The loose coupled trains largely disappeared in 1975, though a few operations continued a little longer. Loco livery would be “supertrain” with an occasional black’n’tan still about. Wagon livery for 1973-5: Goods vans: about two thirds of them were brown all over, rest grey all over. A handful of the grey ones still with snails. Open wagons: no wooden sided ones left in traffic. Bullied opens all grey (and dirt!) all over. Brake vans: all brown. No grey ones left in traffic. Fitted container flats: all brown. Carriages: all black’n’tan except new Mk 2. Don’t forget: nothing ever had a black chassis or roof. Brown wagon - brown chassis. Grey wagon - grey chassis. If you go for 1971-3, fewer brown wagons, fewer supertrain liveried locos. Prior to 1972, all locos black’n’tan. Prior to 1970, no brown wagons, but a few wooden opens still about. Hope that’s helpful.

Gauge 1 would be easier to model simply because fiddly details are larger and more manageable! The smaller the gauge, the more unforgiving it is for anything but the finest high quality engineering, straight lines and clumsy painting! But of course it needs space.

Colours are absolutely SPOT on. Those curtains looked darker when clean.

What a beast!

Well, I believe he wasn't even there when he didn't do it.

"Tesco Special Horse Meat Van Box"! Three for 79p stg...... every little helps! Made out of genuine British Horse! 1.00% natural! (product of Zyxclistan) Contains: E342, E309, Cylohitsafgh Substitute, 190g genetically modified American sugar corn syrup, 890g salt, E443, monosodiumate glucosamine-glycol, petrol, desiccated rat proteins, horse extract, rabbit dropping, arsenic (tesco special recipe), horse meat, E1098, clarified granite extract, Trump extract, Brexit juice, Artificially inseminated jihobi seeds, extremist Islamic texts, MGWR modified ballast extract, paraquat, strawberry jam.

Post Brexit, Tesco will have their cheque book out......

Ah! It’ll have to be another time - I’m in Thailand.....

Repaint? Green or grey? Nice either way - the above green is too light. Nice model. Love to see an 0 gauge loco like this in action.

Interesting, Tony - that would have been during my dad’s time as District Engineer in Enniskillen.