Noel

Yes, Killaloe has so many hidden treasures, from cafes, eateries, history, etc. Twas allegedly once the ancient capital of Ireland. Can you imagine how successful that railway line might be nowadays with a holiday season DMU running from March to October. Like Carrick-on-Shannon, Killaloe seems to have weathered the recession better that some other small midland towns. Half the Munster rugby team live there. Best breakfast on the entire Shannon can be got in Derg House cafe on the western side of the bridge (Amilie's), lovely french couple run it and their full Irish is only €7 but is cooked like no other I've ever tasted, you won't need to eat again same day. Other nice places to moor up is below the bridge by the Cathedral canal, or at the Lakeside Hotel jetties (less noise, less wake).

A major modelling attraction of 1940s to 1970s goods trains was the mixed variety down in ROI of short wheel base two axle wagons, and there were almost no boring uniform 'block trains'. Pick up goods trains make it possible to model small goods facilities at branch stations often with only one or two wagons being dropped off by a passing mixed freight train. The zenith era of Irish goods traffic before the roads came along and boring containerisation.

Those panels look seriously professional. Very impressive.

Any chance of a pair of photos side by side of UK one and an Irish one for comparison?

Oh no, not the incredible "LIMA Murphy Models" thread? One solution I can think of to save that incredible resource is a clever IT bod writing a script to bulk transfer all your PB images to another host (download + upload each jpg), and then text substitute your PB URLs here in the Lima thread with the basename URL of the new image host! Alternatively a script to bulk convert them to attachments stored here. Dave if you still have all the original images on your PC with their original names all is not lost.

Yea, I always used to host my own images, but lapsed into using PhotoBucket a few years ago because of their iOS uploading app, mainly for sailing photos and laterally model rail stuff. Anyway I've moved the images back to my own host so it won't happen again. When I get a chance next week I'll redirect all my IMG urls on IRM to the new host and normal service should be resumed.

Broken Image links Update. I've just bulk uploaded a backup copy of all my model rail photos to new host, and in the next week or so I will edit any of my past IRM forum posts that have image tags to point to my new private photo host instead of PhotoBucket. I've just completed fixing all my RMweb posts. Hopefully my broken IRM image posts will be sorted within the next week.

Pure craftsmanship.

Impressive. Some of these massive permanent exhibition layouts on the continent are incredible. Love the U-Boat in the lake. This one in Hamburg has a working airport. Are they the same layout? (i.e. is Sulzer's link above to the swiss section of 'Miniatur Wunderland')

Former Killaloe railway station snapped yesterday from the water. It is now a beautiful private home. The goods sheds slightly downstream are now a popular steak house restaurant. The old line connected with the Limerick-Ballybropby line, ran along the river bank and once connected commercial Shannon passenger traffic with Limerick, as well as connecting Killaloe which was a sort of holiday resort with Dublin and Limerick.

WARNING Photobucket is the latest free photo hosting web site to disable links to linked images (i.e. via bb tags). It looks like more of the free photo hosting web sites are going to disable this feature. Kirleys photo library was disconnected a few months ago when dropbox did the same. Others may follow suit. I don't know if it may be possible for site admins to harvest such photos and change the links to an image cache on the forum. I will move my images to another host and edit the links in my main layout and workbench threads which currently have all image links to photobucket disabled. Admins when you get a chance if you could please temporarily enable long term 'edit' facility for postings on my account for a few weeks and I will change the IMG links to point to one of my own private hosts. PS: photobucket will allow linking for paid hosting but at a cost of €399pa which is a daft price.

Thanks for all the Limerick works photos. Very interesting following it.

Swinging on the hook tonight far away from the layout.

Excellent. The story telling both visually and in prose makes it even more interesting.

Fab-U-lous. How did I miss this post. Super result Graham, especially the chassis and paint job. She runs better then any model A class I've ever seen. Love the sound. Which horn track did you use?

Hi JB Do you know which type of 6 wheel coaches were used on this opening sequence of the 'Quiet Man' movie? Noel [video=youtube;L6YrqZ7HZ-0]

No prob Rich. Like that photo, is that a mixed rake of mk2 and cravens, or Galway mk2 set with some black roofed mk2? Personally for me 201s were more quintessentially remembered for hauling mk3 sets and later the mk4, but perhaps that memory is shaped by the routes I travelled on most. As you say 'each on to their own'.

Btw, I think you meant MIR? Yes, if you mean these crude looking metal junk heaps from an era when modellers were expected to have blacksmith skills! http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CIE-B-121-CLASS-DIESEL-WHITE-METAL-KIT-by-model-irish-railways-No-2-/201965699331?hash=item2f06180103:g:5vwAAOSwXY5ZUPp3 http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CIE-B-121-CLASS-DIESEL-WHITE-METAL-KIT-by-model-irish-railways-No-1-/201965694843?hash=item2f0617ef7b:g:QvQAAOSw3h1ZUPdK This plastic 3D 121 kit is far finer, costs less and fits the newer Athearn SW1500 chassis like a glove. https://www.shapeways.com/product/S3QTQFYCT/irish-railways-121-class?optionId=57420082 However I do have the height of respect and admire modellers who made the best of kit standards and poor quality that pertained 30 years ago. Thankfully the hobby has long since moved on.

Dave, really like the last pic with 20 bubbles punctuated by a brake van. The first five wagons behind the loco look like they are a different colour!

Any update on RTR options for container flat wagons suitable for 20ft Bell containers? C-Rail 20' Bell http://www.c-rail-intermodal.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&path=25_28&product_id=190 Patrick's recent layout post showed how well 20ft Bells can look on SWB wagons. I have no interest in kits. Bell containers seem to be able to span multiple eras for Irish goods trains. Looking at some old youtube footage it didn't seem uncommon to see a goods train with a mix of vans, open wagons and Bells in the one formation.

PS: Just wondering as there are plenty of RTR BR mk3 coaches already available, despite the small differences, but that are relatively easy to respray or commission resprays, would an IR Mk4 coach be a more attractive proposition for some Irish model operators? There is no RTR remotely close to them in terms of shape, they are unique Irish prototypes, and probably the most attractive looking livery ever to run on Irish rails. Just a thought (goes against my length reservations)

Hi Rich Combination of reasons. Lack of compatible RTR rolling stock, the Lima effect, and yes IMHO, shorter wheel base stock will have a broader appeal and wider target market. Another reason may be the 201 prototypes may not have as much nostalgia appeal as the earlier GMs due to the predominant age profile of the hobby, and the very distinctive shape of the older locos with walkways and rails just makes the models more desirable than the plain shape of the modern locos. That makes a lot of sense re PP where shorter rakes won't look out of place. In IE 121 hauling two or three coaches and a DVT would fit in well on any size layout. I travelled more miles myself on mk2 and mk3 but bizarrely my 'nostalgia' memory prefers the look, operating fun and great diversity of older stock when playing model trains, but that's just a personal thing. I actually have a 201 but its more for a display case and don't plan to drive it on the layout.

One of the problems with some modern image rolling stock such as mk3/mk4 and twin container bogie flats is they are very long and don't look as well on typical layouts, which cannot accommodate decent length rakes of long stock items. They can look very odd overhanging shorter radius track bends. You get a more poetic license with shorter wheelbase stock facilitating more realistic rake formation lengths. For example the long MM 201s just didn't seem to sell well and may be in retailers stocks for years to come. Then there is the cost factor of buying a realistic length rake that is also practical to fit and operate on a layout. Now if I was modelling in N gauge it would be a different matter because you could easily accommodate an 8 coach rake of 75ft coaches looking well on large radios curves, but it just doesn't work as well in 4mm scale. One of the attractions of the earlier eras is you can mix and match virtually any coaching stock, they were shorter 57-62ft, and a rake of 4-6 coaches, or even one plus a heating van looks prototypical.

It seems a shame we don't have the population density nor heritage funding culture in ROI to preserve a section of a closed railway line that is still largely intact such as this one. The Limerick-Nenagh-Ballybrophy line seems at risk of becoming another closed line in the not too distant future. Ballyglunin is only about 10 miles from Athenry with mostly bridges at line crossings. Pipe dreaming.

Is there any remote possibility that part of the 'western rail corridor' might reopen in the next 10 years (i.e. if traffic levels viable post recession)? I think it was part of the original WRC 'dream' but I've no idea if that section of the WRC was wishful thinking or viable.