Noel

Picked up this handy Vallejo paint stand organiser on Amazon, about €21 landed here. As my collection of model air and model colour increased the disorganised array of bottles were creating clutter.

Welcome news. @Warbonnet Fran, any approx idea of delivery date for B134? PS. Does B134 come in any kind of different packaging or presentation box etc, like IRMs A1?

Only €365 for a baby GM! https://www.ebay.ie/itm/333649782410?ul_noapp=true what has the world come to?

Apologies. Didn’t notice it or must have missed it. Have a nice day.

All good with RailTec here, got 3 timely deliveries in past fortnight from them and emails answered in reasonable time. Got flying snail era stuff and modern era mk3 transfers Including city gold logos. He does a great selection of CIE roundals in all colour variants.

Did somebody apply too much pressure plugging in a DCC sound decoder into the decode roof slot?

Great images. Would love to see a photo of the counter weight mechanism. Does that bridge still exist. Might sail under it some day heading for Lough Neagh.

Cheers, another pack arrived in this mornings post. I just had to get some more. The loads and cages are really top drawer.

Nice surprise in this mornings post. IRM accessory pack; If I counted correctly 36 pallets loaded with Fertiliser bags. Will look well on layout loading bays and stacked in goods yard waiting for next fertiliser train. These are beautifully made and finely detailed. That's approx 800 bags of fertiliser on each wagon. I understand Guinness keg loads will also be available in the future.

@Edo NCE Power Cab is a great starter set, really easy to setup and use yet excellent cab ergonomics. Other options include Roco Z21 white version (unboxed from Roco train sets), or Lenz 100. Personally I don't like touch screen systems because they deny a loco operator eyes off tactile feedback, which is unhelpful when trying to shunt and you want to keep your eyes on the loco rather a cab screen. There is also gauge master prodigy system which is popular, also a dog bone cab layout. Budget €250 for an entry level DCC control system. Lenz is excellent in terms of performance but now rather dated from an ergonomics point of view. You can go right up to Games console style systems like ESU 50200 with a lot of bells and whistle but overly complicated IMHO. This german web site has much better pricing than UK retailers and its Euro. https://www.modellbahnshop-lippe.com/Manufacturer/Products/gb/overview.html?hersteller=modellbahn-shop+lippe&gclid=Cj0KCQjw0rr4BRCtARIsAB0_48PLKR6JXdxwwwEgLYsR5jSOCiZWB5jZb2zohY0-z9RQ6pof9qzZIZ8aAr7_EALw_wcB Info here from a UK retailer. https://www.digitrains.co.uk/dcc-guide

Hi MMIE353 Any models produced after 1995 should be ok. The main culprits are early Lima 1970s, 1980s and especially Tri-Ang Hornby stuff from the 70s and 80s. I have a childhood class 37 that won't even run over code 100 points.

HO won't fit. As Blaine suggests C-Rail. Also Provincial Wagons have a CIE 20ft container and I understand IRM may sell containers in the future as accessories. C-Rail have 20ft and 40ft.

I have one of these class 37 beauties on order from IRM/AS: I expect they will be sublime as proven by past IRM/AS products. The specs look amazing. The rails models look nice, but do not seem quite on the same page as regards detail and chassis quality based on specs and published CAD and artwork samples of the Irish produced class 37 from Accurascale. Great to see an Irish company's success in the UK market. https://accurascale.co.uk/collections/class-37/products/d6704

Hi Paul, Yes I watched Richard's video on that, the end result look well, but not worth the effort IMHO. Our 16.5mm gauge track still looks like narrow gauge, and few are going to the extreme hassle of re-gaugeing their locos and all their rolling stock to run on handbuilt 21mm track. So for me code 75 is the biz. A great selection of points. What's wrong with using it out of the packet?

Jonathan most photos of delivery grey 121s showed the locos were fairly clean. Possible pride in the new machines and modern technology compared to the metrovic junk heaps, the GMs must have seemed ultra modern a bit like comparing Audi's to the MV lada's. Perhaps they kept them cleaner in the early 60s. Even the black'n'tan' 121s always looked fairly smart, it wasn't until the 1980s and later the orange GMs especially tippex era locos were allowed visually to look almost like scrap. I've a grey 121 in the pipeline but it will be getting a very gentle weathering. Just a bit of weathering on the under frame, bogies and lower valance, topsides almost pristine

Another eBay mk3 donor arrived today. These Hornby coaches came with strange couplings reminiscent of Lima italian style from the 1970s, but at least they were in NEM pockets which were at the correct blasted height. Put kadee no 19 in and married up perfectly with the kadee height garage. These are not bad looking coaches but quite poor runners, due to the lack of swivel NEM plates (kinematic coupling pockets). Impossible to push backwards over any point work or on a bend without derailing. The body pops off fairly handily clipped in 3 places each side. Just a thin blade and wooden ice cream stick needed to unclip it and prise the body off. Will soak in hot water to help get the glazing to pop out and break the glow bonds. Bogies pop off fairly handy too. At least these bogies won't need any modification unlike the previous which needed a certain amount to get kadee draft gearbox couplings bodged on at the correct height and distance from buffer beam. Hopefully might end up with a rake of CIE Supertrain livery mk3 coaches which I might auction for charity in the future. Thought about converting Hornby shorties (ie seven window coaches) but they don't have buffers as they were expected to run with HST train sets. Its a real pity Hornby compromised what is a decent coach with cheap couling arrangements that do not facilitate close coupling. Does anybody know if Oxford rail mk3s are better in this respect? These will be quick resprays so not bothering to change the doors, at 2ft I won't notice and the duck rule applies on our model railway.

IRM central station. 3 rakes of IRM freight trains held at Woodvale Junction. On platform 2 are 10x42ft Container wagons, down loop 15xCement wagons, up loop 8xFertiliser wagons in the weathering queue). For balance on platform 2 a CIE era loose coupled goods train behind B188 and B121 in consist. Two Taras on Platform 4, background the evening 20ft container wagons due to be marshalled onto the end of the goods train just before departure to Kingsbridge. 4 Years ago a scene like this would have been impossible to even dream of. It would have just been bachmann BR outline goods wagons GWR, LMS, LNER, etc. Nearest on P4 is flying snail era steam special with J15 waiting for delivery of HB ice cream to the refreshments van..

No 10-10-20?

Like the sound of a real 201 dubbed over the video mix

Code 75 flexitrack and code 75 points fit together. Bullhead requires bullhead points as the rail profil (is shape) is different requiring special fish plates. Also the last time I checked there were very few types of points available for bullhead, but it does look great. I don't think its possible to use Bullhead track with code 75 points, but I could be wrong. I'm in the middle of laying code 75 at the moment (pic below). Have a look at this thread. Ballyercall uses code 75 Bullhead track.

Next time might try a consist with 3 x 071s and put every single IRM wagon I have behind the trio, even the ballasts. PS: Might try a rake of 40 MM coaches, the knock super special.

Hi Paul. All my life I used Peco code 100 streamline, which I was very happy with in my ignorance, but I've since switched to code 75 for new work which I really like. Visually there's not that much difference, especially when ballasted and weathered in. I've also switched to electrofrog points which is a bit of a PITA as regards a bit of extra wiring but the Cobalt point motors help with that as the frog polarity switching is all local. Some old Hornby and Lima stock may not run over code 75 points due to the pizza cutter wheel flanges 20-30 years ago on rolling stock, especially old locos.

A long for me anyway freight train. 35 beautiful looking IRM wagons hauled by two Murphy Model 071 locos (10x42ft Container flats, 8xFertiliser wagons, 2xTara wagons, 15xCement wagons). Running a superb mix of Irish wagons like this would only have been a fantasy dream only a few years ago. The ten lead 42ft's had become somewhat stiff again (axles) after being lubed a few months ago as per IRM recommendations, I guess the lube may have dried out, but the two 071s in consist managed ok. It is fabulous to have such good looking genuine Irish rolling stock. Happy days playing trains. The keg load looks well on the platform.

I ordered another pack. I know, I know, despite my lack of interest in having a rake of modernity due my preferred era, they way I looked at it I managed to buy an extra pair of flat wagons for putting C-Rail containers on or running unladen, and also got an accessory pack of kegs for use on loading docks and trucks. I plan to run the kegs in mixed rake formations with some containers, and cement wagons, bubbles and pallets. Variety makes the world interesting.