GSR 800

Tell that to IRM.. I'm neither here nor there with this, Ireland is a much smaller market, Though I think an IRM J15 would do well, its not as safe a bet as other preserved types, even if they were the largest class of loco in the country. I think, at least for their first Irish steam model they'd go with something else, money being on GNR, maybe NCC types. I'd lean GNR for the first one. No doubt it'd be the better model though, nothing against 00 works just a fact. If IRM dropped J15s I'd buy two anyway, just as I bought two A's. And the silverfox A's have seemingly vanished from all layouts... In the British market you have the numbers and arguable 'stagnation' from the big two giving room for competitors to produce better models at lower prices. My bet would be on a V class, maybe something NCC though the time for that would surely be to coincide with the Moguls completion. Of course theres the precedent there with 4-6-0s for the 800s but I wont be holding my breath since she's not RPSI.

Dick was a mare

And then there were fewer... One of the GNR types I'm sure, though you'll keep the seal on it. I'd be tempted to say the S class, though the V class have that extra bit of wow factor...Q class is probably the least likely of the three, but maybe, maybe. At any rate, nice looking model, hopefully with the larger tender they add weight to it. 315 isn't bad for a batch build, I may buy one if the budget allows it.

Depends if it's the station building or specifically the train shed. Listed lodge cottage up the road was absolutely gutted in a rebuild, only original thing left was the front facade. Still good to see it lived in rather than rot but I digress.

Most of it seems to be on VAT, absolutely robbed blind.

Quite likely, its a health and safety hazard. Whether they replace it, who knows, probably not, would be corrugated if they do.

Perhaps, but my J15 is a pretty weak runner too, I've never had such a problem with any other locomotive, it's jerky and has little torque unless you give her a good lick of power. Steamers do tend to be a bit more tempermental than diesels with running but her running is bad in a very unique way. She almost always needs a bit of a bump to set off and stalls randomly.

Come on lads, they are already building 4-6-0s, it's clearly a prototype to everyone favourite Irish 4-6-0s The Long Toms of course

Funny enough I've noticed the fold up tables on the ICRs make such a sound...

pennsy ping pong cars?

56 reminds me of something more recent..

Thats quite a few announcements, but they've said in terms of powered units, there can only B1, a? Took some gymnastics for that one but anyway

File the bearings on the outside of the gearbox flush? Might give you a bit more room, not sure if it'll cover the distance.

Isn't N quite expensive for it's size too? Really is more about the space available IMO. Weird that they've focused on getting the big express locomotives out (which makes sense) but the only shunters and smaller locos I can see are the 08s. I'm sure they'll add to the range shortly but surely a few smaller steam locos like panniers or jintys or something? Long as they don't produce the speed breaking 0-4-0s en masse.. At the same time I understand where Hornby is coming from, at 00 they are stuck with legacy couplers, very substandard controllers for sets and a lot of legacy moulds. I quite like the scale, which is quite ironic considering I've been thinking about moving into O gauge. Hornby 'leading' the charge into the scale though, meh.

In Dublin I see cyclelanes used quite often on the trek from drumcondra station up to uni, albeit this is a lane mainly on the footpath rather than the road, if that makes sense. Those bloody scooters are the menace there, but its certainly used. All the same I still see cyclists in front of the busses...right in the middle of the bus lane like.. As for cyclelanes, I've used the Mullingar-Athlone greenway a good bit and I can sum up traffic as follows Mullingar-Castletown: usually pretty busy with walkers, cyclists, runners, etc. Castletown-Streamstown-Moate: Usually totally deserted. Streamstown station has seen major renovation though, playground there I think. The bank is falling away in places on the trackside coming into Moate. Moate to Athlone: f*ck all once you're past Moate for miles, nobody at all until you pass the bridge carrying the main road into Athlone, then chock a block as you're going in. The recent extension with the tunnel was pretty underused in comparison. I found it a tortorously boring slog once past Moate. What you see is 'hubs' of activity from the big towns and villages for maybe a mile or so, and then you could go on for ages without seeing anyone else. AIT is right there as you go into Athlone, really can't see how the greenway is justified when put against the loss of the ability to reopen it for commuter traffic.

Don't try plucking it from the 1/1 scale version anyway...dangerous business.....

Pigs will fly. Sounds more like what you'd like to see. It'll be EMUs, something like the 800s in Britain. 071s and 201s will hold the roster for locos on freight, PW and departmental work for a good while, after that probably some standard electric loco to fill those roles.

Thats what the Battle of the Atlantic (and the Royal Navy generally) was for.

Just like the real ones They are not, it's that DJ is in the Canaries so he is looking at ebay espana. Your man selling is based in Swindon.

From storage at Mullingar.

Huge addition of excellent photos, including a great many of the last years of steam. Macha was under the spotlight for me, 20 new photos of her at Glanmire, Mallow and elsewhere in her last year.

Park Royal iirc, so theres a bit of room to say 'ah sure ye are buying all these coaches, do ye want this railbus while ye'r at it?' I could see her being used as an inspection car or something in her last years..

so it is a longer throw, more akin to a king or king arthur (spokes and webbing incorrect as mentioned)? And only 6'3? quite unusual, was always under the impression they were 6'6 or indeed 6'7.

Wonder what the throw of the likes of a GWR King would be? IIRC they have a solid spoke so unsuitable but still would be interesting to compare! Those forked joints in 00 gauge would be a sight to see! Regarding the valve spindle 'crosshead', I think it would be a beneficial addition for performance if you can get it to work, the wire that replaces it on the kit allows for too much slop imo. It may require a scratch build of the valve guides though as they lack the lip to guide the head as on the prototype.

Was Maedb not withdrawn earlier than that? She was sitting in Thurles stored in 1960. The timeline seems quite muddled after that, pictures often having wrong timestamps. The IRRS has a picture dated 1964 of Maedb and Macha tender to tender in Inchicore, both intact. Theres another picture dated 1962-3 with Macha cut down to the frames! Another has her boiler and firebox on an old tender chassis dated feb 1963 The locomotive in the photo is almost certainly Macha Interestingly here's a photo of one of the tenders at Inchicore, supposedly in 1959.. https://thetransportlibrary.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=204476&search=CIE+Coras+Iompair+Eireann&page=4