jhb171achill

Absolutely stunning - as always.

One more for tonight.

jhb171Senior used to make an annual trip to various parts of Brexitstan with the Permanent Way Institution. He started taking colour slides about 1961 or 2 - over the next while I will post some of the pics he took. Few in number, but interesting. With scant knowledge of railways on that island, I cannot give much (if ANY) information about any of what will follow, but feel free! Here, a green electric train, but with full yellow end pending, one presumes, a full repaint into BR blue. Presumably London? Mid 1960s - exact date unknown.

This is true. I was contacted by one of the researchers at one stage, but unknown to me it was a bit late in the day. I sent her a load of stuff about the Achill and (I think) Clifden lines, along with references to youtube clips, stuff in the IRRS and so on, and information on who to contact in order to get copyright / reproduction approval. She thanked me and rang me up. She asked me a number of questions which I answered, all the while becoming more and more bemused / horrified by her utter lack of knowledge AFTER she had claimed to have researched stuff herself. She was unaware, for example, that Irish railways were never part of British Rail - and she was from Belfast! She was unaware of the meaning of the word "gauge" and did not understand why Donegal's trains could not operate through to Belfast or Dublin. And so on; now; as a "layman" (or "laywoman"), one cannot blame her at all for that as far as it goes; much of the public would be the same - and why not - a "normal" person, as opposed to us enthusiasts (!) sees a train as a thing to get them to work, or to Athlone to visit yer wan the odd time - and cares not one whit whether it's a Craven, an 80 class or an ICR in an incorrect GSWR livery. But this lady claimed to me that she had already DONE "extensive" research. Ennnnnyway; I told her all about the Achill line, and ended by saying, in jest "as long as you don't trot out that tired old tale about "the first and last trains carrying the dead". As readers here will know, the first bit of it is coincidentally true, but (a) the prophesy oft misquoted never said anything about any railway at all, and (b) the 1937 train carrying the dead happened a good two weeks before closure. Sure enough, Inda even adds to this, courtesy, no doubt of our "researcher"; as well as the "last" train carrying the dead, he claimed that the line had already been closed since 1934 and was reopened specially - as well as saying that it was narrow gauge, as well as a few other howlers. And whose name appears in the credits as "research"? Yup - mine. To paraphrase an ancestor of King Big Ears; I was "not amused"!

THAT's the one. Just look at the artistic detail on it too - the scenic detail, the ultra-realistic weathering of wooden bodied wagons, and so on. Pristine goods stock ancient and modern alike always looks to me to be far too toy-like - it's like a model of a gleaming shiny JCB in the middle of a model of a very muddy building site!

Not the first time, evidently, that Hornby have ridden on the coat-trails of someone else's initiative. However, maybe IRM will be the first with Irish TT stuff! There was a layout in 3mm scale, which I am sure many here will be familiar with - I just can't remember it's name. It was based on a GNR line somewhere on the INWR section or Derry Road, and was simply a circle of track. It was on display at several exhibitions in those idyllic far off days before covid, trump, putin, johnston, brexit and inflation. For such a small scale, the standard of modelling both of the models, the railway and the surrounding scenery was quite simply unbeatable - absilutely the best. This shows what's possible in this scale. Personally, I think that close up, N gauge is just getting that bit TOO small - especially as scale track in that gauge would need to have rails as thin as fuse wire - and the couplings are a scale 5 feet long, I'm sure (not that traditional 00 ones are great, either!) But that little GNR layout was one of my favourites ever.

Sorry to hear that. As owner of several JM design items, I can say that i am extremely pleased with them. Hopefully something might be sorted out.

This precisely why I witter on about such things as liveries. When a museum restores an artefact of any sort, the public have an expectation that how it appears on display is how it looked in real life. It's easy to say "sure, you can always repaint it", or "the survival of the thing is what's important, not the colour" - or that tired old canard, "different people see different colours". But if we look at things we're familiar with today, like a DART, imagine, if in 70 years' time, there's one in a museum somewhere, and through lazy lack of research it's painted up in black and tan - those of us who SEE these things every day have very justifiable reason to rasie our eyes heavenward and say "WHY could they not have just got it right"! The other thing often heard, and when a volunteer on carriages 45 years ago I said it myself "If you don't like it, roll your own sleeves up and give a hand!" just doesn't wash in this case. When we see the magnificent job done by the RPSI with 131, 85 and 171, and NCC No. 4, it is both easy and justifiable to point out not one, but two repainted Donegal engiens with black domes instead of red - SO easy to get right; and with the single exception of the grey currently worn by 186, never once an authentic livery on an ex-GSR loco - neither it, 184 or 461, or the Derry shunter "Harvey" as, well, unfortunate. Not to mention the "Ivan"; an eye-confusing assault on the senses of black lines, as all the ironwork is thus picked out, or the DCDR's equally unfortunate run of incorrect livery on every goods item it has ever restored, plus a green G611. Cultra is not exempt. The BCDR tank, No. 30, is in an Isle of Man-esque apple green. Attractive though it is, the green is many shades too light; colour photos as well as personal memories will show that the BCDR green was so dark it almost looked black. They've added black paint to the metal parts of an otherwise-original Donegal open wagon, and let's not go into the C & L and Castlederg coaches, with modern plastic stick-on lettering. I am always impressed by the great lengths that most preservation organisations - museums especially - go to in Brexitstan to get such easy-to-research details spot-on correct; maybe we, over here, just don't care! Yes, yes, yes, I know - not everyone cares. But does anyone want to see a yellow, brown and red ICR in a museum in 2077? Now, of course, the disclaimer: I've been the volunteer with the paint pot, when money dictates nothing else is available. But that ain't the above case. So I always respect volunteers, let me make that VERY clear. But please, research liveries - it is VERY easy. Rant over. I need me cocoa.

Couldn't agree more! Great scale, great models, truly awful interviewer and interviewee.................

I think anyone trying to set the record straight on ALL of the errors in every single episode would have a herculean job to do! It has to be one of the single worst-researched programmes in Irish TV history. Truly awful.

The Ballymena one in 1952 shows up very well the distinctive design of the old Belfast & Northern Counties flat-sided carriages, many of which were still pottering about into the 1960s. These were built long before the Midland Railway of England (NCC) became involved.

Sorry, forgot to add that! Hotel Newport, at the top of the street. Here are the details: https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/newport-300-history-weekend-tickets-421825420187

If anyone is bumbling about in the Newport area this weekend, I will be doing a talk on the Achill line as part of it on the Saturday. Throughout the weekend there will be a number of talks by various people on different historical and cultural topics relating to the area. Unlike Indakinny, I will neither be claiming that the line was narrow gauge, nor that it was specially reopened to carry the dead in 1937!

Rare to get one of it parked on its end, Jim................

Superb!! But - have we set a stopwatch to see how long before it’s vandalised?

I’ll be there!

Very good thinking indeed - or donor chassis for 141s in that scale? It's interesting to look at my own available layout space and imagine what extra could have been included at 3mm scale. It's probably an ideal scale for portable mini-shunting layouts.

Bit of a cold bug stopped me going anywhere yesterday, but I'd have gone to see that Rathmichael one alone - never seen it before. Excellent, pure South Wexford.

Looking VERY good, David! Don't forget to give it a name in old gaelic script, if you can find it - Gráinne Mhaol maybe!

Yes, it absolutely IS the opposite of logic. Certainly, looking through my own records, this seems to be the case in a few pictures I've just looked at. It is the case here too. I have a dim recollection too of an image of a mixed coming into Loughrea with the one coach, one "H" van, one container flat and the guards's van - I THINK being in that order, which would bear out what you say. However, I cannot verify if this is coincidence or not, still less what the reason might have been if it wasn't coincidence. Jury has to remain out on that one. And, indeed, it's a secret hiding in plain sight - in all the obsessive perusal of photos that I've done over fifty years or more, I never noticed that!

Here’s this old horse box yoke on the last Sligo - Limerick goods. Photos courtesy of Barry Carse from our book “Rails Through The West”. And yes, as Mayner says, the container flats, as per usual practice, were running loose-coupled within a loose-coupled goods train.

That leading vehicle is a converted horsebox, done up as a mobile tool van with, I think, space for an ovenight crew to stay in it. It spent the last few weeks of the loughrea line in Loughrea station aganist the old carriage shed buffer stops. After both this line and the Burma Road closed (on the same day) it seems to have vanished. I will post a pic of it later. This, on the other hand, was an entirely different vehicle. Another mobile tool van, but this time a GSR outside-skinned 1930s goods van derivitave. It remained in "flying snail" green well into the 1980s; the last time I saw it, it seemed to have been laid up in Kildare.

First, congratulations on your developing interest. You will find all the information and support you could possibly want here, from information on models, to advice on building, to availability and quality of models, to historical details, you name it - just ask. The first things to look at are what budget you have and what available space. You can fit a small shunting layout, even in 00 scale, into a surprisingly small space and all you need is a locomotive and a dozen or less trucks. Quality varies. If you want accuracy, you need to pay a bit more. If you're not fussed about how accurate your layout is to be, anything goes and you'll get bargains at model railway shows or on fleabay. beware of customs and brexit charges from buying in Britain, though - as Broithe says, contact Wrenneire on this forum to discuss needs. If you're in Dublin or Cork or nearabouts, contact Mark's Models or call in (see them online too). Good luck!

Very nicely finished and weathered trackwork too. Silverfox do indeed seem to default to grey roofs for pretty much everything - CIE never put a grey roof on ANY diesel locomotive or carriage before the Arrow railcars in the 1990s! Another thing they do is to put black lettering on silver diesels - should be light green - SO easy to do properly; and also white lettering on locos like the above (green liveried coaches, railcars and diesels) - this should NEVER be white, always pale green.

CIE seemed to cotton onto the "re-branding" a bit later; obviously, such agreements were not binding therefore different companies or countries might have abolished one or other earlier or later. I think that publicly at least, the NCC was the last to offer all three classes within this island. I actually have a list of dates somewhere which I will post if I can fish it out.