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Dapol 'Western'


Andy Y
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I've been taking a close look at the prototypes' nameplates, mainly so I can draw up fictitious ones (based on the list of the batch of 26 that never got to be used, and also from a list from my own imagination). It would seem that the numberplates were set in what's called Helvetica Heavy 85, while the nameplates were set in Helvetica Bold 75. That's the closest match I've been able to achieve. It isn't any other Grotesque typeface that I can source. I think I'll crank Photoshop into action this weekend. Western Excelsior, anyone? Western Endurance, Western Defiance, Western Revenge... you get the idea.

 

RWJ

 

I think Misha Black came up with the typeface used on the Western plates (I know for certain he designed the typeface used on the Warships, based on earlier GWR styles) - and David Birt's book 'The Class 52s - A Tribute To The Westerns' has some excellent drawings giving the dimesions of all the individual parts which the paltes were made from.... the numbers and letters are 5" high, and the length of each numberplate varies due to the spacing between the individual letters... it appears to have all been worked out very carefully to get each plate looking right with subtle gaps between each digit.

Edited by Rugd1022
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Is it not rail alphabet? Its very similar and was used on other nameplates.

 

HTH

 

Jim

Is it not rail alphabet? Its very similar and was used on other nameplates.

 

HTH

 

Jim

No. Rail Alphabet wasn't seen in public until 1964. Margaret Calvert and Jock Kinnear probably only drew it in their studios the year before.

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Hi Jerry,

The nameplates, to stop people criticising the fitting in N gauge will be fitted I'm afraid.

 

As for the time frame?

Seriously I have no idea, I need to see how many workers return after CNY first.

Cheers

Dave

 

Thanks Dave, hopefully they won't be difficult to remove.

 

Jerry

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I think Misha Black came up with the typeface used on the Western plates (I know for certain he designed the typeface used on the Warships, based on earlier GWR styles) - and David Birt's book 'The Class 52s - A Tribute To The Westerns' has some excellent drawings giving the dimesions of all the individual parts which the paltes were made from.... the numbers and letters are 5" high, and the length of each numberplate varies due to the spacing between the individual letters... it appears to have all been worked out very carefully to get each plate looking right with subtle gaps between each digit.

Interesting. In which case he slavishly copied Helvetica. The dead giveaways are the digits 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, and 9. They match Helvetica Heavy 85 *perfectly*. There isn't enough personality in 4, 8, and 0 to be able to tell. As far as the nameplates are concerned, again, it matches Helvetica, *except* that the 'Western' R is ever-so-slightly narrower than Helvetica's. It's terribly subtle, though. All other characters I've seen match nicely. The big difference is in the spacing, or kerning. It's nothing like Helvetica's metrics, even spaced out to 330% normal spacing. Then again, hand-spacing always tends to look better than computer-decided spacing.

Edited by the-gog
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My preferred method is to use 3M double-sided sticky tape. It's not as strong an adhesive as the regular single-sided Sellotape, which makes it relatively easy to remove the plate, if need be. Plates I first stuck in some 4 years ago with this method still haven't fallen off.

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Mike

Any chance of a photo of the bogie innards and the axel out of the bogie

 

Getting very tempted to order one, and being able to get it rewheeled quickly would make it even more tempting

Rich.

 

Every chance, when I can work out how to post multiple photo's and caption them individually! Leave it with me.

 

Mike.

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Rich.

 

Every chance, when I can work out how to post multiple photo's and caption them individually! Leave it with me.

 

Mike.

 

A blog on the conversion is (should be) here;

 

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blog/1274/entry-11140-this-is-one-way-of-doing-it/

 

Mike.

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My local emporium mole tells me that they hope to have the blue ones by the end of next week - does that fit Dave?

 

If by any chance with us by/on Thursday we have an Abbotswood running day and off to Howes this morning to order a sound chip....

 

Yee haa!

 

Phil

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