New book: GWR Signalling Practice

[Compound2632]

For those actively looking for incompleteness, the lack of a chapter on Reading Signal Works might be noted...

 

But hey, you Great Western enthusiasts are lucky to have all this material in one volume. Signalling books have been published for a handful of pre-Grouping lines - it requires a fortuitous combination of surviving documentation and some individual(s) with the enthusiasm and time to devote to it.

[The Stationmaster]

1 hour ago, Compound2632 said:

For those actively looking for incompleteness, the lack of a chapter on Reading Signal Works might be noted...

 

But hey, you Great Western enthusiasts are lucky to have all this material in one volume. Signalling books have been published for a handful of pre-Grouping lines - it requires a fortuitous combination of surviving documentation and some individual(s) with the enthusiasm and time to devote to it.

One of the best sources was the series of articles published in 'The Model Engineer' in the 1940s as it covered, with a separate article for each, all the larger Pre-Group companies and quite a good sprinkling of the smaller ones plus a separate series on lever frames.  There were also articles bringing things partly up-to-date for all of the Grouped companies.  They didn't cover each Company exhaustively but they were fairly good for covering most everyday signals, far better than quite a few other sources I have come across over the years.

 

A good many years ago a signal engineer friend of mine managed to put together a fairly complete list  of the articles and mde photocopies of all the ones he could find - it would be a great resource if copyright allowed them to be put online

[RailWest]

On 08/06/2019 at 19:31, The Stationmaster said:

.....originally a through siding to Taunton West Jcn which was at some date (possibl;y when Taunton West Jcn 'box closed in , I think, late 1970) altered to a single ended siding.....

 

 

I would agree with that from my recollection of the layout alterations. TWJ closed Feb 1971

[timbowilts]

On 21/06/2019 at 18:48, The Stationmaster said:

 in more modern times by the use of back-to-back radios.

This brings back to mind an occasion in the early 1990’s at Reading whilst waiting for my train home to Chippenham. A stone empty came through Platform 4 (as was) headed for the Berks & Hants. Balanced upright on the buffer beam of the last wagon was a radio handset! I can only presume that Acton Shunters were minus one radio.

Tim T

[The Stationmaster]

I bought a copy yesterday at the Steam exhibition and have had a very brief look at an early chapter particularly about early GWR power signalling (where I think I have come across a date error BUT only because it disagrees with another secondary source and it isn't about a GWR date in any case - I shall delve further into that one when I recheck the other sources).  From a very quick scan through there are some excellent early 20th century photos which area well reproduced and the sketches showing block sections and Station Limits are very clear which is commendable.

 

UPDATE after checking other dates - It looks like the date 'error' is in fact more a descriptive difference because while it could be read to imply that the 1905 GWR electric lever frames were the first in the country they definitely weren't but they were seemingly the first to use full electric interlocking ,albeit supplemented by full mechanical interlocking at the insistence of the Board of Trade.  The LNWR Crewe type electric lever frame preceded the Siemens/GWR  electric lever frame by 6 years but apart from the electric check lock controls on point levers were otherwise interlocked mechanically using tappet locking.

Edited September 9, 2019 by The Stationmaster
Update

[The Stationmaster]

I'm gradually making my way through but admittedly more in snatches of specific parts rather than going through in detail from page 1.  The information on signal construction and dimensions is  comprehensive and appears to well researched judging by the coverage of signal arms dimensions so excellent for the modeller in that respect.  The illustrations are also pretty comprehensive with some well chosen photos and a considerable number of scale,  but not dimensioned, drawings.

 

In such a massive tome - and it is massive and it is well worth £45 if you want to know a lot of GWR signalling equipment detail information - there are I suppose bound to be some detail oddities.  i have found a few (so far) dates which are incorrect - the 1911 enamelled half disc to be applied to independent ground signals is incorrectly dated (or should I say it does not agree with the date in the relevant GWR minute book lurking in my bookshelf) and there are a couple of oddities in the 'post nationalisation' section with the story about Reading ordering a large stock of lower quadrant arms (which might or might not be apocryphal) as taking place in 1950 whereas the arms bore the initials GWR and were dated 1947 - so were probably ordered in anticipation of rather than as a reaction to nationalisation.  The comment that 5 foot arms had disappeared within 10 years of nationalisation is also incorrect as I took a photo of some at Didcot West End in 1961and I think the Saundersfoot one also lasted until 1960 if not a little later and there might still have been others around that late.   I haven't yet found a reference to the very rare 4 foot Backing Arm but there is an excellent description of the Backing Distant at Aberdare along with a well known, previously published photo of it.  He also seems to regard tubular steel underslung signals as an oddity whereas in fact they were perfectly a perfectly normal way of meeting sighting constraints at some places - albeit not a very frequent sight.

 

The explanation of basic block working is pretty good as are the descriptions of various single line block systems although it is implied that hoop type token etc carriers were only used with Electric Tokens which is incorrect and I haven't noticed a mention of Miniature Electric Train Staff - I might have missed it.  The explanation of the use of the Train Approaching (1-2-1) bell signal and block signalling process reads very oddly - perhaps because it is related to specific signal boxes might have been correct for them but is not wholly how it was set out in the Block Regulations or indeed how it was normally applied.  By contrast Absolute Block Regulation 4A, Line Clear To Clearing Point Only, is quite well explained but it doesn't seem to make clear where it wasn't needed and why; perhaps I need to read that part again?

 

The existence on the GWR in the late 1930s of a couple of Draw Ahead Signals is also mentioned.  While the Rule Book amendment references are absolutely correct what isn't really explained is why that change happened which would have been useful in view of the effect it had on the GWR which was caught up by something which was very alien to its practice up until then. (and in fact fits oddly with things it had been doing before 1914 - but you need the minute books to make more sense of that debate).

 

I have two niggles with the book but these are really personal in may respects.  Firstly the author has a habit, and a very bad one in my view, of referring to trap points as catch points and that might confuse those people who understand the differentiation between the two - he could perhaps have even used the older term safety points which would  have been a bit less confusing.  Another thing which irks me is what he list as 'subsidiary signals' because most of then aren't according to the Rule Book although the GWR's printed Rules & Regs course notes do use the term to  a sort of similar extent.  And I don't like the term 'directing signal' when used of splitting signals but that too is a personal thing although the way he has got in a bit of a tangle by confusing 'principal route' (in advance of a splitting signal) with 'principal line' (in advance of such a signal) does make for some rather odd reading when he talks about signals reading from Relief to Main Lines on quardruple track sections.

 

In summary some of my views are definitely personal and stem perhaps as much as anything from my background as a railway operator dealing with signalling in operating terms (although I have also worked for a signal engineering company on signalling work and dealt regularly with signal engineers in my BR days).  The detail points are exactly that and in most respects are very minor and definitely no reason for not buying the book.  Overall I would recommend it to anybody with a particular interest in GWR signalling especially modellers looking for dimensional information and some useful scale drawings (but N.B. they are not dimensioned although the scale is stated on the drawing).

 

Worth £45?  Definitely

[The Stationmaster]

One or two other bits and pieces -

 

 The change of colour of temporary restriction of speed warning boards to yellow is stated as 'by 1950' - the effective date was July 1949.

 

Naming of stop signals is only referred to as Home and Starting signals and the naming practice is not otherwise explained (or I haven't found it yet?).  Judging by the minute books there appears at some time to have been a change in the way the GWR referred to additional Home Signals provided for acceptance purposes because Pre WWI minutes refer to them as Outer Home Signals whereas later they were described as Home Signals and the standard GWR procedure was always to name the first stop signal at a signal box as the Home Signal irrespective of its role and detailed purpose.

 

As far as nomenclature is concerned all running line stop signals in rear of a signal box (except bay platform etc starting signals) were Home Signals and all stop signals in advance of the 'box were starting signals.  Within those general classifications individual signals were distinguished by a supplementary prefix to distinguish them from each other - e.g.  (in successive order) Home Signal, [Intermediate Home Signal], Inner Home Signal.  Staring Signal, [Intermediate Starting Signal], [Intermediate Advanced Starting signal], Advanced Starting Signal.  Those shown in square brackets would only be used when there were more than two Home or Staring Signals

 

The description of the way in which STOP boards were used is rather suspect.  They definitely didn't exist at all traincrew operated level crossing gates and they were probably most prolifically used in yards in various situations where it was required to either bring a train or movement to a stand, or in some cases stop it starting away, without permission from a member of ground staff or a Signalman.  This might have been a relatively late change but they were definitely in use in yards by the early 1940s.

 

The chart showing different sorts of 'catch points' uses Chief (i.e.civil) Engineer's terms and is not therefore properly distinguishing trap points (previously known as safety points)  from catch points and they were of course drawn in different ways (or should be).

 

No doubt other bits and pieces will arise as I come across them

[micknich2003]

The signal article Mike refs to run to about a dozen installments, I have them all here, and likewise the series of articles on the various types of mechanical locking frames. All were wrote by the late O S Nock.

[The Stationmaster]

Caption to Plate 97 on Page 163 contains two errors -

 

1.  The signal is Clink Road Jcn's Inner Home Signal, not its Home Signal (which betrays a lack of detail checking because details of the lever leads are available on the SRS site,  even to non members).

2.  The lower arm distant is actually Frome North's outer distant controlled (at one time) by Frome South and not the other way round as stated in the caption.

 

Although the short distance between Frome North's and Frome South's various Down Main signals would usually have meant that Block Regulation 4A would apply in this instance it did not because Frome South had a control on Frome North's Down Distant Signals;.  The situation in the Up direction might have been similar but as Frome North slotted Frome South's Up Main Advanced Starting Signal there would technically have been no need for Regulation 4A because the slotting would prevent From South's Up Distant being lowered if the line was only clear to Frome North's Clearing Point.  Alas the one remaining chap I could have asked died a few years back.

[Donw]

We are very lucky to have you on here Mike thanks for noting it all.

 

Don

[The Stationmaster]

One interesting point I have come across in the past few days while doing some extensive research on the subject is that there seems to be very little in the book about the three position Upper Quadrant signals.  This is a bit disappointing (for me if nobody else) as certain aspects of the Ealing & Shepherds Bush Railway installation appear to have been unique as far as British use of these signals was concerned and the associated block working must also have involved some novelty for its time.  What has also been completely missed (unless i have still to find it) is any mention of the special fog repeaters associated with some of the E&SBR signals - all i know is that they were 2 aspect colour lights showing  amber (t yes really) or green aspects when turned on.

 

Perhaps a bit anal as a subject area for some people but still a very important part of GWR signalling history and, I suspect, potentially also involved with the views of certain individual senior people within the Company.  BTW talking of the E&SBR I yesterday noticed that there are some station buildings of very GWR appearance still present on the line and currently painted in a pastiche (or better) of GWR paint schemes.  another field trip will be in order when the opportunity arises I think.