Noel

Apologies for EV rant. If anybody is considering an electric car, please don't let forecourt salesmen con or convince you to by a PHEV (ie plug in hybrid) car. Its neither one thing nor the other, and the worst of all worlds, a con designed to appeal to the public who are concerned about their personal CO2 footprint and running costs. PHEV cannot defy the laws of physics, it can't reduce the amount of diesel or petrol needed to travel a set distance, only make city driving more efficient, but on long trips no more fuel efficient than a modern efficient low MPG diesel, and servicing costs are high as two engines have to be maintained! If considering electric either go full battery electric, or for low milage costs a fuel efficient diesel/petrol. Battery electric BEV cars have come a long way in the last 12 months with models well able to achieve a range of 400-500km in real world conditions (ie no hearse driving needed, air con and heater on, etc). Such range means most folks only need to charge at home on cheap night rate electricity and can go about their business and back home without the need to use on street or public charging infrastructure which is still currently free btw (Bizarre). Like wise they can get to any city in Ireland without the need to charge on route to stop for stupid coffee breaks while car gets a charge. PHEVs have tiny batteries so only a range of 40-50km on electric mode which is fine for short urban trips but on long trips ICE mode is needed, yet some PHEV owners mistakenly believe they've bought an electric car and try to do long trips on battery only mode stopping every 40km to charge up. Why? its so inconvenient and time wasting and saving only a a few euro using the free chargers, not to mention cluttering up the public charing infrastructure due to 'confirmation bias' in an attempt to prove they can drive to Galway or Cork on battery only for free, instead of letting it run on ICE mode (combustion engine) as designed for long trips. PHEVs are not saving the planet nor are they saving folks the sort of money they have been convinced they are saving. Its a myth, science cannot be defied! Back to model choo-choo's now PS: Don't start me on HEVs, another marketing con job pandering to folks genuine fear of climate change. Hydro carbon producers backing auto industry ICEs and therefore PHEVs/HEVs, and auto industry also scared of the change in their business models when BEV replace ICE (ie tiny servicing revenue, unemployment in manufacturing plants rationalised for less complicated BEV production). The transition era from ICE to BEV really started in 2019 and malevolent forces are spending billions trying to slow it down. The future is bright, all the technology already exists to solve energy issues, and climate change its just a matter of now getting on with it before its too late. We do not have to go without, or go back to living in caves and riding horses, just modify our consumption, and stop cattle breaking wind at both ends which means the end of the global beef business as we know it - synthetic fillet minion anyone? And we can save money at the same time. BEV compact SUV costs about €10 a week to run on night rate electricity instead of say €85 on diesel, and virtually no servicing costs, and they are no slouches, quiet, one peddle driving can be relaxing with all the usual driver aids. BEV is the way to go. Former super sceptic.

I'm Spartacus

c'est magnifique Lucky client. Eoin hat's off, hope you feel the joy of producing such master pieces.

I confess I never liked CIE round post prototypes, always preferred solid square and lattice signal posts. Just me I guess. Probably caused by building ratio signal kits in the 70s which were nearly always square, and also caused by period drama on BBC/ITV which always seemed to have square post signals

I suspect a J15 commissioned from a brass kit to the same standard as an 00 Works would probably cost at least double. I've seen too many bokety looking brass built locos, off square, off true, and run like Triang tractors from the 70s. The 00 Works J15 while not perfect is beautiful and easy to add detail.

Presume the NEM pocket location was part of his helpful contribution. You made the right call to break off and take it in house, ever since that chassis everything that followed seemed flawless not to mention superbly accurate and detailed. Onwards and upwards.

Sad to hear. Just goes to show pre-paying for models can be a risk.

The prototype was a bit of a Dalek alright but necessary to run with the Bachmann mk2a coaches.

Thanks for posting, especially the youtube video. It was nice that the A class IR tippex livery loco lining exactly matched the positioning of the lining on the mk2d coaches it was hauling. In relation to rosslaire yes it seems crazy they moved the trains so far away from the ferry ship berth, long walk for passengers (ie customers). I understand there are very few foot passengers nowadays and they issue was the level crossing disruption of vehicular traffic at the port. No wonder there are less passengers. Once upon a time you could get off a railway coach on the Carlisle pier in Dun Laoghaire, walk across the platform and board the ferry, with pretty much the same on the holyhead side, walk across the platform and board a class 37 hauled mk2 set to London. Now you'd need to be marathon fit to interconnect trains and ferrys. Have low cost airlines replaced such means of transport?

Ordered this only on Tuesday but arrived by post today Wednesday, now that's good service. Rebuilt Dutch GSV from Irish Freight Models. The bogies are particularly nice and have NEM pockets. Another little project. This GSV will be suitable for running with Bachmann mk2 Irish Rail coaches and has compatible corridors connectors as per the prototype. The resin moulding is of good quality. Assembly and painting due in the next week or two. I understand these are mainly to be sold as RTR but I am grateful for getting my hands on a kit. x

Excellent looking job

Oh if he had them in lined RPSI green I'd bite his hand off for another one. They are lovely locos, uniquely Irish and the most numerous steam class to run in Ireland.

DCC Steam sound added to our 00 Works J15 Loco courtesy of Neil from WheelTappersDCCsounds. He also fitted a pair of working head lamps for me. Now that summer is here, not sure how much modelling will get done. http://www.wheeltappersdccsounds.co.uk/page147/index.html

As a matter of interest what happened to the 141 and 181 fleet? Were they broken up, sold to scrap merchants, or put into long term storage? (ie aside from the preserved few). . . . and how many 121s are likely to be preserved, is it just the one? (ie 134).

I wouldn't pay that kind of daft money even if they were black'n'tan livery

They look very well. Tidy job.

Rare as hens teeth. Yes noticed those three models going as a set before, and may be of interested to NIR connoisseurs, but NIR not really my cup of tea being absent from my nostalgia memory. Continental and Foreign models despite the close proximity to the CIE sphere don't really light my candle. But I'm sure they will find a good home with a NIR modeller/collector despite the price. Probably never to be rerun again.

Hybride seems a cop-out neither one thing nor the other. Better to go full electric using overhead wires or 3rd rail. CAF mk4 coaches between a pair of power units on the Cork route? Comfey and quiet. The Luas Tram in Nice, France has batteries for the city centre sections and overhead wires for the rest of the route (avoids unsightly cables in scenic parts of the city).

Tender process begins for 600 battery-electric powered Irish Rail carriages https://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/tender-process-begins-for-600-battery-electric-powered-irish-rail-carriages-926984.html?fbclid=IwAR0F7lenDHZmwyhmQb0Xb_3Xlln_MuWQMC6R3EBl-3B1pVvVTvYyyCf6HyY

The ones I got from Marks are not bad, similar quality to the Bachmann Green flying snail CIE coaches, just without the gangways. and different door/window arrangement.

Middle pic Looks like a HLV, Suburban Laminate coach, and a tin van. Not sure about the last coach in the last pic. Perhaps bogie brake parcel. @jhb171achill? I love the cross over era when it was common place to Black'n'Tan coaches mixed with silver tin vans and some green flying snail coaching stock. In terms of RTR models, Irish Freight models for the tin van, Dapol/Marks Models for the green non-gangway suburban coach and Irish Freight Models or Silver fox of the last van.

My wife did not like the obtrusive white EVSE outside the front door, so a respray was called for. New to this whole EV malarkey. Having to learn a whole new language and sub culture! Luckily I have @Junctionmad to educate and advise me as he was an early adopter. I nearly went for a PHEV but apparently that's like wearing a Leinster Rugby jersey in Limerick - impolite and likely to get one lynched! So went full BEV, scary but so far so good. Luckily no DCC involved but one disadvantage of BEVs is that there is NO sound at all at all. Forgive the non-modelling content, silly season on the workbench nothing going on except the queue for projects is getting longer.

If it was the 1960s they would be rightly prosecuted and somewhat 'roughed up' while in custody. Moments of insanity. At a bare minimum they should be sentanced to do 200 hours of community service, and given criminal records. They deserve to be named and shamed in public gaze for all in their community to see what thugs they are.

Darwin. There are still some apes amongst society.