Noel

The "duck test" tends to suffice for kids.

I also have fond childhood memories of these coaches. Was it some of the laminates or Bredin's that had compartment/corridor layouts?

One of the old cranes on Waterford quays was preserved. Was the one in Fenit anything like this one?

Better price from Seamus Graham http://www.themodelshop.ie/model-railways/irish-railways/irish-rolling-stock/graham-s-resprays-mk2-autoballaster-non-powered-wagon-with-ballast-load-ie-weathered.html

Nice. Layout looks great. My favourite era - Black'n'tan heaven with loose coupled unbraked freight wagons.

Spotted some interesting recent activity €111 for this 141 including DCC and Kadee couplings seems good value and indicative that the market for these baby GM has fallen. http://www.ebay.ie/itm/OO-Gauge-Murphy-Models-Class-141-CIE-Black-DCC-FITTED-MM0141A-/311468776368?hash=item4884fc5bb0:g:looAAOSwl9BWJmGK This 071 went for €115 which also seems a good price given it too included a decoder and Kadees. http://www.ebay.ie/itm/OO-Gauge-Murphy-Models-Class-071-IE-BLK-SIL-DCC-FITTED-MM0071-/311468773995?hash=item4884fc526b:g:K1gAAOSwT5tWJmA2 Ughh but an honest description http://www.ebay.ie/itm/201455578658

What about a model of the 25000 class high speed electric ICR due to replace the 22k in 10 years time when they are sent to the north wall due to plastic fatigue! In jest. Seriously looking forward to the ballast hoppers as they nicely straddle the era I am most fond of.

Well modern compound tooling can cope with that without the need for stick on pieces, but alas will keep dreaming. Cheers.

An "A class" might make the perfect 'end game' after two dry runs! A less expensive one piece injection moulding for the entire body due the simpler shape, unlike the GMs which require three separate plastic moulds just for the main loco body (i.e. cab x2 + centre + chassis floor), and no expensive hand rail details to be be added so less labour. In jest with hope!

Was down in Fenit last summer and interested to see the remnants of the railway. Fenit Pier at sunset last August - Railway tracks are still on the pier as are parts of the old station complex in the village Tracks are still on the pier The Pier during the day Giant bronze statue of "Brendan the Navigator" point across the seas to the americas View of Fenit harbour, the pier and the village in the background. You can just imagine freight being loaded directly from trains onto ships on the harbour quay wall. Fenit harbour is still used to tranship some of the largest cranes in the world form the nearby "Leibherr" factories to sites all around the world. They are planning to use the old track bed to Tralee as a cycle greenway https://traleetofenitcycleway.wordpress.com The Wanderers photos of Fenit Branch

I tend to agree. However nagging a little the back of my mind, is the invisible to us labour conditions some of these economies hide from plain sight. Easier to do perhaps in China than an open democracy like India. We all like lower prices but at what cost if we came face to face with what happens on the ground. Don't mean to sound negative, but having worked in some 3rd world countries, I find it difficult to avoid my head wondering about matters that I don't really like thinking about. I'd prefer to just resume dreaming about buying a pair of MM 121s in the next few years, and perhaps a quality injection moulded A class running on a centre drive chassis. I worry about whats "enough" when folk on this spec of dust are worrying about drinking water - "mea culpa"

Yes one could sell tickets for viewing behind a climate controlled screen, or premium tickets could include forensic lab white gloves and head masks for closer inspection and handling of stock. A raffle could be run with the lucky winner allowed to run one of the items once around a loop. Seriously though, an exhibition showing the history of Irish models could be fabulous, and worth an entrance ticket.

I did that starting 35 years ago, but unfortunately I have collected a lot of UK stock I now don't need (i.e. there was no decent Irish models back then). You are lucky to be starting in an era when there is an abundance of quality Irish RTR models and kits from multiple vendors. Sure enough I collected a lot of nice UK steam era rolling stock for a fraction of what they cost today but I will only get to use a few selected samples. As China's economy continues to develop production costs along with labour costs will rise significantly in the coming decade, and sadly we may see quality Irish model locos break past the €200 barrier in the not too distant future. It doesn't seem that long ago I bought my 1st MM 141 for about €85 new. Where 3D printing or its replacement might be in 10 years time I don't know, but hopefully it may keep the costs of the hobby accessible for all. In the mean time you can't beat quality injection moulded plastic for quality. Resin and 3D right now simply can't compete for quality detailed bodies.

Exhibiting your collection "History of Irish Model Railways" Dave sounds like a fabulous idea.

Horror - that's nearly as shocking as the wrong shade of white on a stripe PS: The OCD in me would have to fix that odd buffer before the loco was allowed out in public [video=youtube;tnzz-eFmKaw]

Well Dave as you and I have often joked, I'm a hybrid of the 1st two. As for accuracy of models in some cases if nothing better is available I am delighted to enjoy RTR stock the pass the "duck test", or at least until something better comes along. Not in my wildest dreams back in the 70s did I ever expect a scale RTR model of any Irish diesel locos nor coaches. Now we have a full house except for the 121 and perhaps an improved A class, but we have Park Royals, Cravens, Laminates, and now ballast hoppers that straddle the era I remember fondly. I just have to remind myself I need limited numbers of all of the above and must not repeat the wasteful exercise I got into 30 years ago when I started to collect BR steam era locos from 3 of the big 4.

Hi Fran, yes I think you are right. I have a chest of unopened Bachmann and Hornby steam locos I collected 25-35 years ago that stand as a waste and an embarrassment. The discovery of an MM 182 at the Fry Museum in 2008 reawakened my interest in the hobby and recently changed it from British outline to the Irish black'n'tan scene I remember in the 60s and 70s especially loose coupled freight. Most of the Bachmann's are split chassis and I think it is time for an ebay spring clean and declutter. I still like GWR and LMS so will keep a few pax and freight train formations from those companies. But I will hang on to my old Hornby-Dublo collection and the few Triang samples.

Or more specifically when are enough model railway items enough? A bit of a daft question perhaps, but human nature being what it is, many of us myself included can't help acquiring more stock, kits, collectables, memorabilia, trinkets, books, etc, when the "buying urge" is triggered by walking into a store, visiting a website, a sale, or visiting trade stands at a show. And all the little "self justification" demons pop into my head. The temptation to buy two more 071s at the excellent "sale" price on offer from one of the exhibitors at the SDMRC show was powerful - marketing works - visual feasting works - but luckily the Borg's "resistance is futile" cliche did not apply. I decided to leave credit card at home and only bring a small amount of cash, and I reckoned it possibly saved my 000s of euro buying more stuff I didn't really need. I have five 071s already and do not need two more even though they are livery options I would have liked. Bizarrely on the drive into the show I was listening to Spirit FM and heard a financial advisor advocate the use of cash as a means to reduce impulse buying or limit unnecessary spending. I did manage to pick up some really useful items and paid cash. I also got some useful info and pricing on particular items I will need in the near future. I understand there are genuine collectors, but personally for myself there are only so many locos that will fit on our layout and there is no point in me storing them in boxes collecting dust. I hope I am slowly learning what "enough" means and how to be "content". I'm sure I will fail though.

The light weathering looks well. Impressed you got it done so quickly. Was that one of the legomanbiffo ESU chips? Looking forward to hearing the sound from a video clip if you get the time.

Tommy supplies both but I've ordered the RTR option. I have some of his Park Royals already which I found very good, so expecting this laminate to be just as good.

Yummie yes please, perfect for my modelling era! Have been waiting for these since they were announced last year. A few of these will make perfect stablemates for a mixed rake of Park Royals, Laminates and Cravens. The Black'n'tan era of RTR model coaching stock is now complete between MM, IFM and SF models. We've never had it so good.

I really enjoyed visiting the show again this morning. It was much less crowded than Saturday so much easier to get around the different class rooms and see the exhibits close up. Well done to the organisers. Just one suggestion which I'm sure has been made many times before, but getting a small catering contractor to come in and run a temporary cafe would have been very welcome and perhaps enabled some folk to stay longer at this excellent show and get somewhere to sit down for a rest and a chat. Congrats on 40th anniversary. PS: Along with some really nice layouts on show, my personal favourite layout was 'Belturbet' - stunning

Thanks Joe

Does anybody know if SSM was at the show?

Hear hear