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Jon Fitness' average 7mm signals workbench.


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I can't remember if you've seen this?

 

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I'm sure I have. I think they're in Mick's plate&angle thread but thanks anyway. All info like this is gratefully harvested and squirreled away for future reference!

Jon F.

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Not a massive amount done (nightshifts and modelling don't always combine well)

The gusset fitted..

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The bracket work made up from 1.5mm L section and scrap etch..

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I've positioned the dolls as best as I can work out.

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The taller dolls are at the standard 6ft spacing but, unless I've missed something from Mr Warburton's  LMS signalling book, the spacing between those and shunt signal fitted dolls seems to be variable. Depending on which drawing you refer to and which side of the main armed signal doll they are,  they can be 3' 6", 4ft,  4' 6" or even 6ft.  They appear to be 4ft 6" on the Llandudno Station gantry so I've gone for that. Not sure if it looks 100% right yet but I can possibly shuffle the left shunt doll out to 6ft.

Anyway, that's the last signal work I'm doing before the end of the year as I still have a "RMW 2015 build a loco" challenge to complete!!

Have a good Xmas one and all,

Cheers

JF

 

Edited by Jon Fitness
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  • 2 weeks later...

Bit slow to re-start the signals after xmas..... :lazy: ...

I've fitted the staging supports so the main (easy) bit is done now. Time to start the "fun bits :scared: .

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The drive from the servos works it's way up the main stem and has to transfer the action across the bracket to the 4 arms. The right hand shunt signal should have a direct drive rod from the base but the other 3 will have to have the LMS style cross shafts/rocker arms.

 This will use 3 different sizes of brass/nickle-silver tube and possibly a central axle of 0.4mm wire unless I can get everything to work using only the tubes.

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The shafts  will be built up on a strip of brass and the whole sub assembly bolted to the cross trimmers, probably after the painting stage.

Preparing a strip of brass to fit snugly between the top and bottom flange....

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​A support for the shafts will be soldered on at each end and a couple of holes drilled for 14BA bolts to hold the assembly on.

More soon.

JF

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Happy New Year Jon,

 

In 4mm scale I use 7mm scale "Medium Hand Rail Knobs" to support the Rocking Shafts - they look a little bit like the prototype.

 

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This was the 12-arm Gantry on Lime Street.

 

You might be able to use "Long" knobs, or even 10mm scale versions?

 

Steve.

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Happy New Year Jon,

 

In 4mm scale I use 7mm scale "Medium Hand Rail Knobs" to support the Rocking Shafts - they look a little bit like the prototype.

 

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This was the 12-arm Gantry on Lime Street.

 

You might be able to use "Long" knobs, or even 10mm scale versions?

 

Steve.

Hi Steve, 

I've tried using them on 7mm but even the long versions aren't quite long enough for me! I'll have to investigate 10mm scale ones although I prefer to make the whole assembly removable for painting/ installation /servicing/repair etc. 

I'm considering getting the supports and operating arms etched to make it all a little quicker and easier to do. Once again it's yet another job that needs careful design and planning out, not something my brain is any good at!

JF

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Jon

 

If you use 10mm knobs, you could probably run a die down the stem. You could then secure the assembly with a couple of nuts.

 

Nuts, knobs, oh dear.

 

Best

Simon

Nuts and Nobs? Ooh-er; still, I'll need to support the shaft properly... :protest: argh.. no stop!!

 

I think this time it'll be the usual Heath-Robinson lash-up from whatever bits I can cobble up from materials lying about on the bench....I definitely look into using those 10mm handrail doo-dahs though; I take it slaters do them?

Edited by Jon Fitness
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Well, here's the lash-up.

It's all on one shaft with 2 further sizes of tube. It's now a "sealed unit" that I cant dismantle but I can remove the full assembly from the cross trimmers. Each tube and it's respective operating arms rests against the next and it's designed to keep all the arms aligned. It works surprisingly well connected up to the arms so should be fine when the drive rods are fitted from the servos. My own make of cast signal arms need quite a "sweep" from the rocking arms so I need fairly long ones and for the shaft to be held out a fair way from the trimmers.

The main back-plate measured up and marked where the wires drop from the arms.

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The arms for the drive wires

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The full assembly ready to fit. Various spacer tubes added during assembly were chemically blacked to inhibit soldering and luckily it's remained free-running. I had to fit a good support to it all mid way along and the whole thing has 3 bolts that go through both trimmers to nuts on the back.

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And fitted to the signal

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As Steve has shown me, there are other (and probably much better engineered!) ways of achieving this but if this works..good. If it doesn't, it's only a simple matter of removing the assembly and bolting a better version on!

More soon

JF

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  • 2 weeks later...

 Ooh must be time for an update! :scratchhead: Had a bit of a "just get on with it" moment..!!

 

Back to the "plate&angle" signals tonight. The main structure of the 3 doll one is now all dolled up..

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The lamps are all wired separately just in case I need to provide a separate resistor on each one (it's happened before!) so 4 wires need to be reasonably neatly routed down through the post and base plate.

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To keep them under control I wrapped them against the inside of one of the angles (not sure I chose the right one!) using 5 amp fuse wire

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Once they were tied off, I soldered them to the post

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Once this was done I added the staging supports. I usually fit the handrail stanchions through the supports but this type of signal is different and the stanchions are fitted to the staging a few inches inboard of the edge. I'll do this by soldering a flat brass strip across the tops of the supports, laying the staging planks on top then drilling down through the planks and the strips and soldering the stanchions from underneath. As I'm spray painting the signal I'll do the handrails/stanchions last so I don't have to mask off all the decking planks. Sounds daft but It should save me some extra complications!

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A quick test fit of arms...

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This is where I had the "just get on with it" moment and made up the linkages. It's not a job I like to do so I'm less inclined to furtle about with the camera during the process :stinker: 

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A couple of guides for the operating rods on one side

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The structure...

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The servos will be stacked under the baseplate, mounted on 2 lengths of square brass tube

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More has been done but I'll need to take a few more pics....

More soon

JF

Edited by Jon Fitness
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Just a quick update tonight...

Got some paint on the signal and mechanically assembled it. All working fine on the servos using a Megapoints board to test it. I'll admit to non-working weightbars as I want to keep this signal as simple as possible as it's going on an exhibition layout.

I've paid special attention to keeping mechanical losses as low as possible to preserve the bounce so the weight bars got bypassed in the cause of simplicity..(who said lazy burger? :jester:)

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Still to do is the staging woodwork/handrails and ladders for the taller dolls. Getting there slowly!

I'll do a video when it's totally finished (if anyone's interested!)

JF

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Another lovely signal Jon.

To avoid motion loss at the weight bar, I sometimes just kink the operating wire to pass through the bar.

That way the bar moves, but is just riding on the wire without any loss being incurred.

Steve.

Cheers Steve. I've used this method in the past but I usually end up tying myself in knots getting the bends in the right place to match everything up. Many a time I've made either a neat job of getting it slightly wrong or a poor job of getting it right! A snip or 2 in the wire and a bit of fine tube to join up the 2 halves after adjustments is the usual result. Forward planning, accurate measurements and logical construction techniques rarely trouble my feeble brain!

JF

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That's the first of the P&A brackets done! Can't remember if the customer wants the signal weathered or not so I'm hanging fire with the grunge, poised and ready with paintbrushes and a palette of filthy colours :locomotive: .

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Still not had a chance to video it so I'll hang on until I get the nod on the weathering.

More soon

JF

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