Challenge!

[Patrick Davey]

Here's a challenge - can you count and name all the manufacturers of model Irish railway locomotives and rolling stock who are represented in this video, which shows a passenger train and a goods train departing Clogherhead? Some are obvious, some less so.......

Edited Saturday at 19:51 by Patrick Davey

[jhb171achill]

Crossley, Metropolitan-Vickers, General Motors, Inchicore Works, Cravens of Sheffield, Dundalk Works….

[Tullygrainey]

45 minutes ago, Patrick Davey said:

Here's a challenge - can you count and name all the manufacturers of Irish railway locomotives and rolling stock who are represented in this video, which shows a passenger train and a goods train departing Clogherhead? Some are obvious, some less so.......

 

No  but great video Patrick! Thanks for sharing. 

[Mol_PMB]

6 minutes ago, jhb171achill said:

Crossley, Metropolitan-Vickers, General Motors, Inchicore Works, Cravens of Sheffield, Dundalk Works….

My first thought was more like IRM, Murphy, Dapol, JM, Past-Avenue, etc etc…

[Patrick Davey]

24 minutes ago, jhb171achill said:

Crossley, Metropolitan-Vickers, General Motors, Inchicore Works, Cravens of Sheffield, Dundalk Works….

Edited to add the word ‘model’

17 minutes ago, Mol_PMB said:

My first thought was more like IRM, Murphy, Dapol, JM, Past-Avenue, etc etc…

4 right…….

[GSR 800]

24 minutes ago, Patrick Davey said:

Edited to add the word ‘model’

4 right…….

Silverfox, Provincial, IFM

[Patrick Davey]

3 minutes ago, GSR 800 said:

Silverfox, Provincial, IFM

3 right……

[GSR 800]

19 minutes ago, Patrick Davey said:

3 right……

does weathering and billboards count?

[Patrick Davey]

1 minute ago, GSR 800 said:

does weathering and billboards count?

Nope

[Tullygrainey]

I'm on slightly firmer ground with models as opposed to the real thing - IRM, Murphy, Provincial Wagons, JM, Dapol, Past Avenue, Gareth Brennan, Old Uncle Tom Cobley and all?

[Patrick Davey]

12 minutes ago, Tullygrainey said:

I'm on slightly firmer ground with models as opposed to the real thing - IRM, Murphy, Provincial Wagons, JM, Dapol, Past Avenue, Gareth Brennan, Old Uncle Tom Cobley and all?

5 right! Who is the last one?????

[Tullygrainey]

6 minutes ago, Patrick Davey said:

5 right! Who is the last one?????

Largely forgotten pioneer of rubber band propulsion for model railways. Cobley’s company was known for its resilience and was briefly successful during the inter war period but a shortage of raw materials from the plantations in Malaya after the second world war stretched the business almost to breaking point. The hoped for bounce-back never happened and the company was eventually erased. 

[Patrick Davey]

3 minutes ago, Tullygrainey said:

Largely forgotten pioneer of rubber band propulsion for model railways. Cobley’s company was known for its resilience and was briefly successful during the inter war period but a shortage of raw materials from the plantations in Malaya after the second world war stretched the business almost to breaking point. The hoped for bounce-back never happened and the company was eventually erased. 

Glad I asked

[Broithe]

Tom unfortunately died, just as supplies of the essential raw materials from Malaya were beginning to come back on stream.

His brother, Johnnie, took over, but the railway market was gone by that point, and he took the business in a very different direction.

[Galteemore]

They regularly had a stall at Widdecombe Fair. A unique feature of their branding was listing every member of staff on the product packaging. 

Edited yesterday at 06:13 by Galteemore

[Patrick Davey]

1 hour ago, Galteemore said:

They regularly had a stall at Widdecombe Fair. A unique feature of their branding was listing every member of staff on the product packaging. 

Turning into a bit of a 'mare this.

Anyway, to bring us back from the inevitable insanity, here are the SEVEN answers!

 

Murphy Models - 121 class No. 125, Cravens carriage

Irish Railway Models - A class No. A3r, A class No. A15, H vans

Silver Fox - steam heating van

Irish Freight Models - tin van

Provincial Wagons @leslie10646 - H vans, ex-GNR cement vans

Enda Byrne @Past-Avenue - Palvan

JM Design @Mayner - CIE 10T covered van, 20T brake vans

 

There are at least another three suppliers represented in my collection so maybe some day I'll make a video featuring all 10!

 

 

[Past-Avenue]

It's a very nice selection of rolling stock there. 

Things have came a long way in the last 10 years and we should be very happy with the amount of RTR irish models that are available now. 

The challenge was a great idea Patrick and got people thinking  

Enda 

[Mayner]

On 6/7/2025 at 9:34 AM, Tullygrainey said:

Largely forgotten pioneer of rubber band propulsion for model railways. Cobley’s company was known for its resilience and was briefly successful during the inter war period but a shortage of raw materials from the plantations in Malaya after the second world war stretched the business almost to breaking point. The hoped for bounce-back never happened and the company was eventually erased. 

Ironically Brian Fennel a MRSI member used rubber band drive (similar to Athearn Hi-Fi system) to power several scratchbuilt CIE 001 Class diesels during the early 70s.

Like the Athearn models Brian's diesels featured a central flywheel motor with drive (by rubber band) to all axles on both bogies (possibly Athearn parts). The 001s (plasticard body, all metal chassis) were used to haul a CIE Supertrain formed from Triang-Hornby MK2 coaches, as far as I recall the locos were fast/smooth riding and reliable).