jhb171achill

Can't understand why everyone hasn't got one........ Not!

Loco's 59 - one of the well proportioned "60 class" - pity one wasn't preserved. It's the carriages whose numbers I can't make out......

The brake is a standard GSWR product of maybe 1880/5; I can't make out the number in the film - can anyone else? If so, I'll identify it accurately. Worsley Works make a brass kit, I believe, of most of these coaches. They'd make absolutely superb models.

They are all ex-GSWR six wheelers of 1880-90 period, and the one John Wayne steps out of is a composite; he emerges from the first class part. The line from Limerick through here (ballyglunin) to Collooney was ex-WLWR, which became part of the GSWR in 1900. For the next 50 years, despite being in the (predominantly MGWR) west of Ireland, GSWR stock was most common. The locomotive is a "southern engine" rather than a "Midland engine" as you'd get more normally in the west. The laminate stock looked entirely different, was bogie, and was introduced from 1956. The film was produced in 1950 / 1, and released in 1951. The carriages and loco in this clip illustrate perfectly the 1945-55 CIE green (used on buses, lorries and station paintwork up to 1963). It also illustrates the all-over dark grey on locomotives: in this case on No. 59, very work stained as that was the actual service train set.

Well I was brought up in a cardboard box, and had to pay the mine owner to work 25 hours a day, nineteen months a year, and eat gravel for breakfast. No dinner. So there; try telling that to the youth of today.

I've seen that wiki thing before all right, Weshty. Interesting comprehensive list. Would be interesting to know who took the time to put it all together.

I have an apple iPad, and I think you can get blackberry on it. But if you eat too many blackberries, you could get Bluetooth. Why can't life be simple. Like when there were just two TV channels. And Guinness was 32p a pint and it cost 50p to see U2 (no, not an NCC locomotive) in the Baggot Inn.

The 400s were more numerous. In Senior's day (GSR heyday and early CIE) all manner of 4.4.0s and "Woolwich" 2.6.0's kept company with the 400, 500 and 800 classes on the main line. Even humble J15s got a look in on stopping trains.

That is absolutely brilliant news, WTCLASS.

A white line above windows and you've got near enough CIE!

It's spread all over the place, GSR; there isn't any one main central online repository about most aspects of Irish railway history. If you check out th likes of the photo website flickr, you'll get some superb contributions. In some cases these are made by people who post here. If you're anywhere close to Dublin, there is a lot of ("offline"? - as in not computer based!) material in the archives of the Irish Railway Record Society, which are open on Tuesday nights if you're a member. There is a good selection of photos and books available there too. The GSR was Ireland's largest company by a very long way, in pre-nationalisation days. It might be useful if you could give a few ideas about what particular aspect of the GSR you are interested in. If it's for a layout, then the types of locos and coaches used. You might like main line operation, like modelling the Galway, Cork or Waterford main lines. or you might prefer a sleepy rural terminus. If the latter, this could be of ex-DSER, ex-MGWR, ex-WLWR or ex-GSWR origins; all had their differing styles of architecture, but all were under the overall GS banner fro 1925-45. Because of this, there was also vast diversity in the range of locos and rolling stock used. Then there was the narrow gauge - at its inception, the GSR inherited no less than seven separate 3ft gauge systems, four of which it retained to hand over to CIE in 1945. It narrowly missed inheriting the Blessington tram as well. The separate and self-contained Waterford & Tramore system, ad the "as-good-as" separate West Cork system were all part of the GSR.

If my photoshopping skills were any good, I'd set up a whole album of things like that! CIE locos in GNR blue or UTA lined black, "Maedb" in grey or GNR blue, Midland six-wheelers in redbull, green goddess or tippex...... the list goes on! Many years ago, one of the "youths" at Whitehead circulated an absolutely superb mock up of 171 in NCC maroon and the UFTM's 74 (Dunluce Castle) and an NCC "Jeep" in GNR blue. You'd be surprised how well all looked!

That's a very impressive start! Good luck

True, Wrenn! Sold now - though I think I may have another, if anyone's interested I'll look for it.

This is an interesting document. Every loco then in traffic, including some real rarities, including the unnumbered but named oddballs like Argadeen, St Molaga, Sprite, Jumbo and Sambo. Also preserved 90, 461 & 186. Opens out to large poster size. €10 plus postage if you're interested.

Excellent collection - some really interesting stuff in there.

Amazing! Bit like a BnM turf plant.......!

What's this - a watch that tells time? Next, you'll be telling me that's there's a phone which makes telephone calls! :-)

True, Tony........! So we had part Mk 1's - maybe the 450 class could be "Mk. Half"......! :-)

"Jeep" No. 4 in redbull?

You mean GNR vs. CIE, Jawfin? CIE used their standard upholstery of the day. Latterly it was a dark grey colour but I think it might have been reddish at at earlier stage - perhaps josefstadt or Mayner might remember? The GNR had patterned upholstery, second class being (I remember) a grey and reddish pattern, with first having more brown and patterns. When the GNR fleet was divided between the UTA and GNR, they were eventually changed to those companies' styles. UTA upholstery was common to buses and trains and was mid to dark green with a fleck pattern in yellow and red.

I was in Connolly station this afternoon and noticed the usual 29's sitting about. It just occurred to me that the dark blue on them is not at all unlike GNR coach or railcar blue; perhaps a slight shade darker. It's important for perhaps younger modellers to be aware that the blue the GNR used on some mainline coaches and railcars was not the same as the famous steam loco blue. The solitary diesel loco, 800, was also painted the dark blue but without any cream areas.

The right colours on a model really show it up as well as possible. Each to their own, I know, but personally I think there's nothing worse than an excellent model painted wrongly. But on your layout it's not just the attention given to getting liveries and weathering right, it's the whole atmosphere it recreates. Looking at those pictures, I can almost imagine the smell of turf smoke from the cottage next door, and the coal smoke and hot oil smell from the engine..... the attention to all details is great, down to the puddles on the ground.

Excellent, top quality stuff. As others commented, it's always very refreshing to see unusual designs of wagons. May I ask what the prototype is, or if it's your own design it is just as realistic as a prototypical model!

That is just jaw-droppingly good. Those carriages and the Midland 2.4.0 are absolutely perfect. Superb work as always.