RMweb Premium Ray H Posted February 20, 2014 RMweb Premium Share Posted February 20, 2014 I’m currently building a single post, single arm signal. This is the first of what I hope will be a number of working signals, driven by servos. I’m having a little difficulty identifying the component labelled as part 8 – the stop bracket – as the drawing in the kit is so small. I think that I have found it on the black sprue but there are two similar looking parts and I’m not sure either which one to use or which way round they fit. Can anyone offer any guidance? Am I correct in thinking that the backshade (part 6) is designed so that the signalman can confirm that the signal lamp is alight when the signal is at danger? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold beast66606 Posted February 20, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 20, 2014 I’m currently building a single post, single arm signal. This is the first of what I hope will be a number of working signals, driven by servos. I’m having a little difficulty identifying the component labelled as part 8 – the stop bracket – as the drawing in the kit is so small. I think that I have found it on the black sprue but there are two similar looking parts and I’m not sure either which one to use or which way round they fit. Can anyone offer any guidance? Am I correct in thinking that the backshade (part 6) is designed so that the signalman can confirm that the signal lamp is alight when the signal is at danger? 2 - The back blinder use is two fold, it can be used to check the lamp is alight and it also shows the arm has responded to the lever movement, it moves to obscure the small white light which shows out of the rear of the lamp. It's been too long since I made a signal from Ratio for me to help I'm afraid - can you post a photo of the sprue ? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Ray H Posted February 20, 2014 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted February 20, 2014 The two options appear to be the items immediately above the balance weight. I presume that the balance weight lever slides on to its pivot wire and the stop bracket then slides on and is positioned such that the balance weight lever's travel is limited. I presume that the travel limit should apply to stop the (upper quadrant) signal arm rising too much, the arm apparently being restrained from dropping below the horizontal by the interaction between arm and lamp housing. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Stationmaster Posted February 20, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 20, 2014 Ray, Can you take a pic of the instructions please and post it in a large size (max 1600 wide x 1200 high and set to about 500kb) on here so we can enlarge it and get a good look. It's so long since I put any of these together I can't remember but you do need something to stop the arm dropping below horizontal I seem to recall as I made at least one using thin fishing line instead of the solid wire between balance weight and arm. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
34theletterbetweenB&D Posted February 20, 2014 Share Posted February 20, 2014 Much as the reply from Beast, it's a long time since I built a Ratio signal kit, and put actuators on them. Just my opinion: don't try and actuate the signal arm through the representations of the prototype parts: just too much lost motion, and rapid wear. Have your actuator drive the signal arm as directly as possible, and put the travel limits on the actuator mechanism. Leave the prototype parts out of the drive as cosmetic fittings. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Joseph_Pestell Posted February 20, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 20, 2014 I think that if these are going to see much operation, you need to replace some components or reinforce with brass. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Ray H Posted February 20, 2014 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted February 20, 2014 Many thanks for the responses. I think I have got it sorted by a bit of trial and error. I cut one of each of the two likely candidates off the sprue and played around with each and found that the upper piece in the picture is the part that gives the greatest range between stop and clear positions, including a clear indication actually looking like what it is meant to be and not as though the signalman hadn't had his shredded wheat for breakfast! The next trick appears to be fitting the ladder, the hoop at the top and the stays part way up the post. I've had a look on the Internet and found numerous pictures of the front of signals but, understandably, not too many of the reverse side. The (ladder) hoop provided with the model looks decidedly over scale and bears no resemblance to the way the ladders are constructed. Talking of ladders, the kit is full of them but . . . the longest is too long (which means it can be cut down and the next size down requires an eight foot tall lampman! In addition, there are holes in the base into which the ladder appears to have to fit, but the holes are too close together! The signal is very much an experiment. I have an MSE kit as well and the aim is to use these in the longer term but I wanted to get a working signal on the layout and thought the Ratio kit might suffice. I'm still hopeful but I think a few bits might be missing when it goes on the layout! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Stationmaster Posted February 20, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 20, 2014 The hoops in the Ratio kits are way over scale, a long way over scale cross-section. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
clecklewyke Posted February 20, 2014 Share Posted February 20, 2014 I have an MSE kit as well and the aim is to use these in the longer term If you are happy soldering - use low melting point solder and liquid flux - then you will get a better job with metal parts from MSE/Wizard - they have a wonderful range and Andrew Hartshorne's service is second to none. But remember that Alan Gibson also does some excellent kits of LMS upper quadrants. Having said that, many years ago, on my first Bradford North Western, I did use Ratio kits to make some ex LNWR bracket signals which were successful but I ignored their working parts - I just used strong steel wire bent to shape and working directly from the operating mechanism (in this case tube-in-wire) and the signal arm, with no cranks, and with the balance weights purely cosmetic. They were quicker to make than metal signals but otherwise their only merit was that they broke rather than gashed wrists when track-cleaning. Good luck - working signals are imperative in my book - we split operation between signalmen who set the road and drivers who (usually!) follow the signals. It makes operation so much more realistic. Ian Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Ray H Posted February 20, 2014 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted February 20, 2014 One installed signal. The scene might have looked better with a loco with headlamps and a crew - I have a couple of the former but to my shame none of the latter. The signal is operational using a servo and the MERG Servo4 controller board that was installed previously for the day that the signals were installed. I've stuck the servo in place with a double sided sticky pad - double sided tape couldn't crack it. Unfortunately during the setting up process - a disadvantage of sticking the servos in place rather than having their position adjustable - the balance weight stop, the item that the original thread was all about, managed to part company with the post and is probably well on its way to Sochi by now! I subsequently replaced the original balance weight pivot wire with a longer length with both ends bent over to stop a similar situation arising again. I left the hoop off the ladder and even had to modify the ladder supports as they didn't seem to want to fit either the post or the ladder. Nonetheless I now have one working (inner home) signal on the layout. No. 2 (an advance starting signal) faces the one in the picture and is as close to the bridge as it can be. Fitting it to the layout should be a relative doddle, making it might take a bit longer but at least I now know what goes where so that should also be a quicker process especially as I've already painted the parts. Thanks for all the comments and suggestions. I shall have a look at the Alan Gibson signals in due course, possibly after I've tried the MSE one in stock. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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