jhb171achill

On the subject of platforms, in my early model days with an oval of Triang track, an 0.4.0 outline, two trucks and a guard's van, I noticed something in my first Triang Hornby catalogue. It was that most, or at least many, model platforms seem to have tapered ends. I'm not sure why - maybe for flexibility given layout curves in general. They regularly crop up on layouts. It is worth pointing out that both here and in Britain, such things were the exception rather than the rule, even when converging tracks were just off the end of the platform. That at the Loop Platform in Downpatrick (the original BCDR one) is one of the few examples I can think of. Generally, platforms are better having ends the same width as the rest of it.....

Really realistic weathering - looks great!

I'd want beer as well.

Brilliant little "man shed"; wine bottles an'all!

No - never on cattle trucks. Originally they were open roofed until Board of Trade regulations made railway companies cover them some time after 1900. (Didn't stop the T & D using open ones until the end, though!). The vehicles with the "part-tarpaulin" roofs divided roughly into thirds, with the middle section open, were otherwise normal goods vans. Officially "Convertible Vans", they were more normally known as "soft tops" because while they could be used as cattle vans with the tops open, they were more normally used for general goods with the open sections covered by tarpaulins, which were held down by ropes going over the sides and secured either side of the central van doors. Virtually all Irish railways had them, both standard and narrow gauge. None survive. The last ones in traffic on the 5ft 3 were probably mid to late 50s, as once the "H" vans started to be built en masse, they disappeared, just as the energetic prodiction line of Park Royals and laminates sent the passenger six wheelers to the scrap man in pretty short order. I think that the West Clare and C & L may have had them almost until closure. I believe that "soft tops" were a uniquely Irish idea.

What's the loco type on the upper photo - is it an SD40?

Where was that and when?

Interesting looking yoke...... With a bit of imagination, a drop-on tender body, running boards and a much amended cab could make it look vaguely Irish....

Now that we have fertiliser wagons, bubbles and above all "H" vans, the CIE cattle truck is one of the last major omissions! I believe Leslie is bringing one out tomorrow..........................................................................!!!!!

Often, the very ends of platforms were gravelled, and later tarmacked. This can still be seen at Cobh. Maybe a bit of cardboard with lightish grey grit as gravel? And weather this plus the tiled surface to match?

At the risk of causing indigestion among the purists, if properly cleaned up it could pass a generic type for many origins. If it's to be GSR, just a slight shade lighter grey, if BCDR their dark lined green. The DSER (and later GSR / CIE) did have locos which weren't at all unlike that. Depends on how particular you are about accuracy.

MikeO, it depended entirely on the internal layout of the coach. Some were side-corridor, some "open" (centre aisle), and some, such as GSWR 1097 at Downpatrick, a combination of both. Add to that the fact that some vehicles had guards compartments, luggage compartments or one thing or another either at one end of the coach or in the middle. Some companies used "torpedo" style vents, others used the "flatter" ones - this depended on the in-house carriage design of the company, or the firm they bought the carriage from. Naturally, by mid-CIE-days, this meant a hotch-potch of different types! Is there any particular type of vehicle you are interested in?

.....on the Union Pacific? Sorry!!! Couldn't resist it...........!

FB rail was spiked directly to sleepers for a long time, and I remember seeing it on the Loughrea branch and on many, many sidings since then. The thing in your illustration is known as a "soleplate" rather than a chair and was widely used too.

Me too. There was so much variety then compared to today. The railways catered for so much more than containers and "customers" in identikit tin tubes.....

Excellent stuff - love the 20T brake van too!

I would guess that the timetable above was much the same in 1989 unless Shelton was closed by then. I'm not sure exactly when it shut, though even if it wasn't there in '89, artistic licence on your layout could involve an extension, with fertiliser bogies all over the place!

I'd say Murphy's is busier!

The most recent WTT I have is that dated 13th January 1986. It shows the following, paths only shown in italics: 0120 Dublin - Shelton empty fert 001 class haulage 2020 Cork - Shelton (overnight) ammonia 001 0235 Dublin - Shelton empty fert 001 0450 Pearse - Arklow ECS Mondays only 141 0500 Dublin - Shelton empty fert 001 0935 Connolly - Rosslare PAS 121 x 2 0930 North Wall - Wexford bagged Cement 141 1335 Connolly - Rosslare PAS 121 x 2 0842 Marino Point - Shelton (leaves Dublin 1404) Ammonia 001 1725 Connolly - Arklow PAS Mon-Fri Only 001 1833 Connolly - Rosslare PAS 121 x 2 1445 Marino Point - Shelton (dep Pearse 1952) Empty fert 001 2140 Ex-Cork earlier - Cork-Shelton Empty fert 001 ...and corresponding returns workings. At busy times, all paths were utilised. At slack times, few might be, especially the Wexford cement, which, if memory serves me right, was "curtain" wagons, at one time anyway. I've a pic of one somewhere.... "A"s, 141s and 121 pairs were to be seen!

I love that model of coach. No. 4.

An unusually ghastly forgery!!!! Those standard GSWR signs seem to get quite a few company initials variations. The T & D had them. Any others (and there are lots) that I've come across are duds, but this one just about takes the biscuit! Is the seller trying to pass it off as real?

Fair enough; personally, I prefer accuracy. However I would feel that there's a place for both. Standards have indeed come on, but the numbers of hours in a day and wallet size maybe haven't kept up!

I prefer that original look to the current one, I have to say....

Very good shot, Kieran, love the lighting. I can't help feeling that that design of building will be a significant railway landmark in years to come....

A lovely looking beast, indeed, and it shows what can be done to create a good, if not strictly accurate CIE look. It should be grey, though; easily remedied. The significant differed is the cab - this could also be very easily amended, though overall it looks great.