jhb171achill

The folks who use Ballybrophy as a commuter station - are they from quite a number of surrounding towns, does anyone know out of interest? And - are they typically going to Dublin, Cork or elsewhere?

VERY good planning. No. (5) in particular is one that I wish I had observed with a past (long defunct) layout.

The GSR used white on wagons entirely. The light green was introduced by CIE in 1945. The GSR white, and white used by CIE from mid fifties onwards tended to "weather" (or fade) to an off-white, which is why stark clear pristine white never looks right on models. Brake dust, coal smoke and general wear and tear saw to that. The light green of earlier CIE also faded and weathered to a nondescript colour! So plenty of variety there.... Prior to about 1956-ish, all wagon snails were complete rather than unfilled-in stencils. After that almost all wagon logos were stencil like the photo above.

Looking good...... fantastic shed too!

The beauty about that one detail is that personal preference of either is prototypical! Especially pre-1965-ish! Incidentally, prior to roughly 1954 or so - not sure exactly - snails and numbers were painted in light green, not white. White seems to have started early to mid 50s, at which time the occasional faded "G S" was still about. I saw a colour pic somewhere of a light green version still (very work-worn though) about 1959.

There's an interesting thing above. On wagons, but on nothing else, the flying snail was painted on initially. In the late 1950s they started using a stencil for both snail and numerals, but painted snails were to be seen around well into the sixties, just like stencilled snails lasted well into roundel times! Above, we have a stencil on the photo, and the equivalent of a painted one on the model. Both ran together (as above). It would be good, given especially the advent of Leslie's "H" van, if a run on transfer of the stencilled flying snail was available. Anyone? I love this layout!

And, if I may say so, Nelson, especially the likes of yourself, with your extremely impressive collection of hand made wagons / UTA stuff!

Interviewing that gentleman is a superb idea, Mayner. You might consider passing the info on, also, to Selwyn Johnston of Enniskillen's railway museum who has spent 20 years building up a very impressive collection of ex-GNR men's recollections in that area in particular.

The "W" van could well be UTA dark green. It could also be the bauxite brown that the UTA had on fitted vans. Your views on the red are certainly plausible, though blue can stand out too! I don't think anyone would mind nowadays on a model! The grey used by the GNR and UTA was virtually the same, but given the lack of activity that UTA wagon paintbrushes had, and their deliberate running down of goods traffic, weathering and wear were very bad. A newly painted clean UTA good wagon was an extreme rarity, so a UTA goods train is really only realistic with heavy, heavy weathering!

Randall, if it's of any assistance, eiretrains himself can assist you in terms of identifying less well known locations, plus what's in the IRRS (if you're already a member you'll know that anyway): also, there is the highly valuable collection of Jimmy O'Dea in the National Library in Temple Bar Photographic Archive. If only to browse (and I've done it) the whole collection is fascinating and freely available by appointment.

Unloading hatch......well spotted Dhu Varren!

That smell will live with me forever. If you were awaiting a train on a platform on a hot sunny day, and the creosote and tar was leaking out of newly laid sleepers, the smell was very noticeable. Concrete sleepers nowadays and the stale stench inside entirely sealed up railcars is neither the same, nor remotely pleasant. Incidentally, that's an excellent photograph, Tony. Lots of interest in it.

Looks great! Going back to the carriage above, I'm just noticing it has curved in ends. If you wanted, you could look up numbers of former Waterford, Limerick & Western vehicles, as they were the only carriages in the entire GSR / CIE fleet which had curved in ends. Obviously, after 1901, ex-WLWR stock was absorbed into that of the GSWR, later GSR, but there were still a few nice survivors about in late CIE days. The family saloon, No. 900, is - I believe - still (in a very derelict state) in Belturbet. That is the only W & L vehicle left after the destruction by vandals of their former Director's Saloon at Mullingar in the 1990s.

Ah! It's page 64. You're right about the sign - but how do you know it's red and white in a b/w photo? :-)j

Very interesting.....any way of scanning the pic here? Page 66 in my copy has a pic of a horse box, a carriage truck and the Fintona tram.....

Kildare rings a bell, all right. I have an idea that Sallins was used at one time on the stump of the old Tullow branch. Don't know what the method was though.

Tony Looking good! In terms of raised running bed, yes that is a good idea. For absolutely maximum accuracy, you might like to study photos to see where the high and low bits were. The GNR (and GSR) often had a central "drainage trench" between the rails.

Yes. An antelope steak. Someone at portadown assured me.

Superb!

Post will be an issue, yes, unless May can pull some serious rabbits out of hats. The rules re borders are crass and unnecessary. If a country wants to leave, they can do what they want with gauges. If they want to stay, they'll continue with the same gauge they have not only now, but a century before the EU existed!

Indeed, Sulzer! I suppose, to be fair, they can't get it right every time...!

Just before that train went out of service, I had the delicious steak in it, and it wasn't on the menu even! Also, they only had one left and they didn't charge me! Try that in the DD or a Mk 4......

I don't, Glenderg - time stopped for me after Cravens. BR Mk 1, 2 & 3 stuff to me is.... I'm afraid...... ....... (sorry, I dozed off there. Where were we?) :-) I have to say, though, in that form in England it looks amazing. None of the NIR liveries, nor even the BR blue and grey, made it look as well. As for the brief insipid light grey and light blue of NIR, probably the drabbest and dullest livery ever!

Eh? The windows are completely different....

Some of their cars look well. Cars and vans in station forecourts - if the right era, and if the wheels aren't super-shiny - can add a lot of realism. But a Toyota Corolla, for example, on a black'n'tan layout ....no.....