Interesting not-so-early Irish Railway photos

[jhb171achill]

3 minutes ago, GSWR 90 said:

Ireland's most glorious diesel loco, G613 at Heuston, 1962, from the O'Dea Collection. 

But what is it pulling? A carriage (no underfloor engine) with a window and lights at the end? Not a Bulleid AEC, not one of the Park Royals converted to driving trailers for the Waterford and Tramore – what is it?

Possibly one of the 1900-series brake thirds of early CIE (immediately pre-laminate) days? Several later GSR and earlier CIE types had windows in the guard's end. It is seen shunting, obviously; next to this are two early repaints into black'n'tan - a laminate and a Park Royal. Three bogies was their maximum load for work like this. Overall, as shunters in a place like Kingsbridge or Westland Row, they were about as useful as a chocolate teapot! However, there is plenty of evidence they tried them on a number of types of work - even the Limerick - Foynes mixed, which must hold a record of some sort for distance travelled with a service train (and a mixed at that) with a small shunting engine.....

The modeller will note, of course, there's a "prototype for everything"!

[Mol_PMB]

1906 or 1907, one of the AEC ‘mules’. See also Ernie’s thread. 

[exciecoachbuilder]

Hi guys.

I remember a coach in the carriage shop in the mid/late 70's? that had brake and driving controls at one end, and very cramped looking too.I thought that it was very unusual at the time. Could it be this coach?

The railway back then had a few oddities, including a full kitchen car. No seats just cooking facilities. It was no doubt an old carriage because of the really old style buffers on it.

It's a shame that with all the Irish railway books and photographs, that there are very few photos of coach interiors. The photographers back then didn't seem too interested in taking coach interiors. Maybe they couldn't gain access? I don't know?

                                             Paul.

[Mol_PMB]

35 minutes ago, exciecoachbuilder said:

Hi guys.

I remember a coach in the carriage shop in the mid/late 70's? that had brake and driving controls at one end, and very cramped looking too.I thought that it was very unusual at the time. Could it be this coach?

The railway back then had a few oddities, including a full kitchen car. No seats just cooking facilities. It was no doubt an old carriage because of the really old style buffers on it.

It's a shame that with all the Irish railway books and photographs, that there are very few photos of coach interiors. The photographers back then didn't seem too interested in taking coach interiors. Maybe they couldn't gain access? I don't know?

                                             Paul.

Yes, that would have been 1906 or 1907, or possibly 1408 if it was a Park Royal. They were CIE's three AEC driving trailers. 

1907 hung around with preserved 184 for a while at Inchicore in the early 1970s, but was later completely destroyed in a crash. 1906 lasted longer. Some more info here:

And here:

 

The elderly kitchen cars were GSWR 1130, DSER 29D, and GNR 272N. All survived into the 1960s.

Here's 1130 (Ernie photo):

Earlier seen in green here:

272N (IRRS photo):

https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53508810174

29D (IRRS photo):

https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishrailwayarchive/53506782108

 

[exciecoachbuilder]

Thanks for the info Mol. Some great stuff to read through there.

Cheers,  Paul..

 

[jhb171achill]

29D was a highly unusual (and very obviously noticeable) survivor….

[Mol_PMB]

40 minutes ago, jhb171achill said:

29D was a highly unusual (and very obviously noticeable) survivor….

The old kitchen cars were allocated to the Radio Trains and other all-in tours, until replaced by 2403 and 2407 in the mid 1960s. 

They could serve meals to over 400 covers (i.e. the whole train).

There had originally been a plan to build 1 kitchen car and 2 dining cars in the 1950/1 carriage build programme, but the programme was delayed and they were cancelled - hence the gap in numbering between 2401 and 2405, which was partly filled in the 1960s by 2402 and 2403, but 2404 remained a blank forever.

Instead of the planned new kitchen car, 1130 was converted from a GSWR third to a kitchen car in 1952.

There's a lot of correspondence about this in the IRRS archives.