jhb171achill

It's an IRM example, MM. Yes, it looks stunning, and believe you me, when you see the REAL thing, you will realise that my pictures above don't come close to doing it justice! It is truly a masterpiece.

It's the Malahide Model Railway! Opening at the end of the month, hopefully. Scenery by "Baseboard" Dave, of this department.......

So, you've silver (1958-63); black (with or without yellow patch, and some livery variations like ONE with a yellow buffer beam, and one with an orange one); black with high tan band, black with low tan band (AFTER re-engining), and finally "supertrain". None lived long enough to get the "tippex" white lines, although I fancy that it would have looked well. And of course, the five that got NIR blue (one of NIR's was never repainted), and the sole one that only on 1st April had Donegal red............. Yes, and also line-ups of all sorts of old wooden-framed stuff. The last run I had in a set like this was a loco-hauled local from Dundalk en route to the RPSI May Tour - I think it was May 1986, but it might have been '85. A 201 (or "C" as it will always be to me!) had four or five old laminates behind it plus a BR van. No two were alike, and one was particularly shabby.

I thought I'd take a shpin this morning in my time machine, and I ended up at Bray Head in 1955 (got a train out from Harcourt St). I was hoping to see a DSER tank engine on a local, but I hear this strange rumbling sound, and this thing comes into view. I think it's one of the new diesels. Can't see them catching on, though.

It won't be "Maedb", anyway.........

As the late, great Baldrick might have said "there's a cunning plan!"

There ye go! So, you've a genuine black prototype. Does it have a "snail"? Tenders got swopped..... If it is black in 1961, it could even have had it several years - 2 or 3 anyway. That one remained until the end of steam in February / March '63, when it would have been formally withdrawn. It will certainly not have been painted after 1961, so it will have had perhaps five or six years in black, in traffic. Excellent find!

Absolutely beautiful model - very well done as always! In terms of colour, what you've put on the smokebox does look about right. I had a look in my records to see if there's any mention of a J19 gaining the black in the last few years - as you know, SOME CIE engines did. It seems that ONE J18 was repainted black very late on. I don't know yet which one, but it had just the pale yellow number on the cabside - I don't think it had a "snail" on the tender (or anything!). But I haven't found any J19. I will delve and see if I can find one in actual black. One of the last steam engines painted, in Cork in 1962, was a J15 which had the normal grey, but uniquely with a black smokebox. Not a good choice for a widespread livery, as it did that winter's beet, and was withdrawn nine months after being painted!

Bat-crazy!

Exactly. And wait until you see what it is!

Might as well add, I will be meeting IRM at Malahide tomorrow with a matching gubbins which highly accurately matches liveries. The purpose will be to assess CIE green (for one of the IRM "A"s). Of Fry's other models, many have absolutely authentic paint colours and these will be assessed too. Among them is the rare GSR green, which was only ever applied to the trio of 800s, as well as coach livery colours for CIE, GSWR, MGWR (the short-lived blue and white, and the post-1918 maroon, but not the brown used on the vast, vast majority of their stock), NCC maroon, Cavan & Leitrim, Clogher Valley, Donegal, Lough Swilly loco green, BCDR loco green, and a good few others. I will post details in due course. In the fullness of time, once the lockdown is over fully, and B & Bs and pubs are open, I will arrange for further authentic colours to be assessed in Downpatrick and Enniskillen.

Wow!!! Superb!!

Folks I’m putting this up on behalf of a friend. Does anyone have the RAL number for the grey currently used on 071s?

Indeed - and in larger scales it’s relevant to modellers, as seat styles and colours are more visible (e.g. O gauge)....

Ah! Fair enough - was just interested. Lovely vehicles, very comfortable. Hard to think what the most comfortable carriages are today...... the better seats in the NIR 4000s aren't bad. Off topic, but the most comfortable things I ever travelled on, within Ireland, were the ex-GN / UTA AEC railcars' 1st class, one old NCC coach which ended its life as a railcar intermediate, but still with old NCC wooden varnished seat frames (UTA 526, I think; Lambegman will know), and the De Dietrichs. Some of the UTA / NIR "70" class centre and trailer cars were also pretty comfortable. The 80 class were awful. By FAR the worst ever, comfort wise, were the truly ghastly UTA MEDs and NIR 450 "castles". Awful things to travel in. The DARTs and 2600s aren't far behind. OK; back to topic - I digress.

So an entirely separate design? I had assumed that it might have been the same body shell but just different shaped windows.....no?

Carriages after 1970 are not my area of knowledge, by any means, so a question. If someone wanted to make a set of the “Galway” International set, with the larger windows (as opposed to “Galway” liveries Mk 2’s), does anyone make coaches suitable for repainting? Just out of interest.....

While not normally my “era”, that whole layout just exudes atmosphere; superbly well done! It’s a good advertisement also for the wares of IRM & Mr Murphy (may their names be praised)!

Ah! They didn't invite me.........

Can I have a pint of Guinness? Please?

This route was normally, for decades, the REGULAR preserve of almost solely 141s, but as Noel says, occasional visits of C, B101, A and even 071 classes were known. In case of an eventual layout extension, I have four black'n'tan 141s, and may get another, to represent this type of route (Mallow - Waterford would probably have ended up the same had it survived). Naturally, a layout based on Gort might have, for realism, a sprinkler above it - permanently on! The first time I ever travelled through this station was '75 or '76 and it was a beautiful bright day, albeit with a nippy enough wind. Every other time since, it's been lashing!

Superb looking yoke. No handrails along the side - that's the way they were delivered; these were only added during the "black'n'tan" period, thus it is possible to have a black'n'tan one with or without handrails. Silver was used 1955-58 on new A, B101, G601, E401 and C classes; the B121s were a light grey rather than silver. Here's a thought. Next person to have a pint with Jim Meade, suggest amending an existing 071 with "snails" and yellow bits! Indeed - I wonder when they were removed from there? I never remember seeing them in real life on black & tan ones either.

Sadly, they're of no use to Whitehead or Downpatrick. The carriage - if there's anything left of it, is way, way past restoration; a total rebuild would be necessary. It was borderline restorable the last time I saw it which was the best part of thirty years ago.

Looks like it will eliminate it entirely! How on earth are they to attract people to use the railway if they have nowhere to park? It's not as if Dublin has half-sensible public transport! Overpriced buses take the longest and slowest route to get from anywhere to anywhere, in order to serve every boreen. I only use buses as an absolute last option - and I'm PRO-public transport!

‘Tis a cunning plot, I tell ye!