5BarVT

They are all part of NRs drive to do on track maintenance when no trains are running, that means at night, and these are the way of illuminating the site. I think that they are designed so that they do not cause problems for drivers on adjacent open lines.

 

Paul.

Look closer at the photos and you can see the point clips too (sorry I can't think how to describe them for those that don't recognise them). The near point has a scotch to hold the open switch blade open (wedge shaped piece of wood just at the toes) but that for the further set of points appears to have fallen out. Standard way of securing a siding out of use.

 

AWS magnets can't be mounted on steel sleepers, they affect the magnetic field, so one of the pains with steel sleepers is putting in the wooden ones in the right place.

 

Paul.

But there was a GWR goods yard at Battersea (or so says Ian Allan pre grouping atlas) accessed that way.

 

Paul.

It is a lot cheaper as basically the barrier units are little more than an add-on with the existing circuitry still controlling the crossing if my understanding is correct

Your understanding is correct.

 

Paul.

 

 

D6333 with milk tanks in 1968/9

H reg must be August 69 or later. The trees haven't turned so if the slide is stamped before 1970 then it must be Aug or early Sept 69.

 

Paul.

I seem to remember something in the news a while back that some snobbish East Coast seaside resort were complaining that changing the gates to barriers would lower the tone of the place and attract the riff-raf in.

Frinton, aforementioned in this thread.

 

Paul.

It has been done: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDDSB8r-Y7Q Have seen it live, stunning. Built from scratch. I would agree gates too though in this case. I can't even see half the details on these let alone figure out how to reproduce it!

 

Rich

Realistic to the point of all red lights illuminate then two extinguish. Just like the real thing (means there is always a red light illuminated so you won't get away with claiming you must have looked at them during the gap between phases).

 

Paul.

Ardrossan Town. In the 80s/90s was a single platform with AOCL just beyond the platform. At that time an hourly service turned back there and a few trains went beyond to connect with ferries at the harbour. The service has since changed to hourly over the crossing. OK Ardrossan is not as 'urban' as East London, but it is urban enough as an excuse. It has had barriers added more recently due to mis use problems but perhaps your model will need that to in its future.

 

AOCL = Automatic Open Crossing Locally monitored. The driver got a white flashing light to say that the crossing was operating. Photos of almost any crossing on Central Wales line will give the idea.

 

Paul.

All Mr Apple's fault   and me being lazy.  I browse RMweb on my tablet because I have it with me when I'm away or sitting in my recliner and it doesn't bring up the toolbars in the reply box.  I suppose I could always use my work laptop  .  I'll just have to be patient and wait 'til I get home!

Thanks AndyP.

 

Paul.

 

And whose moved the Emoticons all about?

 

Andy, You are king of the emoticons and I would like to follow timidly in your footsteps but I haven't a clue where to find them. Can you point me in the direction to get started.

 

Thanks :-), Paul.

Can I join in on 'still relatively gold plated pensions' discussion or is it going off topic for too long? The salaried section of the BR scheme was always 60 (at least in 1975 it was). The wages grade scheme was 65 and you had to have 10 years service to be allowed to join I think. I recall lots of ex wages grade scheme people being able to buy extra years in the scheme. I never made EG1 while it was called such, so at an interview with Railtrack in about 1996 I had to ask if the post 'had sufficient Hay MSL points to have been previously graded EG1' (it did!). I'm counting the weeks to changing from active to pensioner member!

ES4 is on the Up Line (towards Sheffield) at Bamford station. The photo will have been taken from the end of the Up platform.

 

Paul.

I think I prefer choice 7: provender store at the back with loading dock (and probably crane) at the front.

 

Paul.

North end bay at Cambridge I think.

 

Paul.

Dropped in for 1/2 hour on my way south today. Well worth the visit - you have a superb layout there. Not being into scenic modelling myself, I found it interesting to see the scribed cobbles beside the tramway on the bridge and the ground in the loco yard. I'm going to have to learn not to be frightened of plaster/polyfiller/paint! Looking in the fiddle yard, you have some seriously long curved pway - no wonder the 12"/ft track engineers shy away from them too. Once again thanks to the whole team and well done.

 

Paul.

Try this:

 

http://www.hwilliams.co.uk/railways-s-c-signalling-crossings/loc-power-cubicle/

 

Ignore the power bay at the end, but you might be able to manipulate the view through the double doors. It's not particularly full, but is a good example of a current loc case internal design.

 

Paul.

Well it gives you an idea, you can probably find similar looking regular electrical relay cabinets more square-on and do the same with.

 

But at the end of day, if so few know what should really be inside there .. who can say it's wrong

Agreed, but I'm one who can!

 

Only just seen this layout and I like the idea of an open door location case (loc for short). FYI the two photos in cromptonnut's post are actually telecoms cabinets: you can tell by the thick door which contains all the air-conditioning kit. You might be able to get some suitable images from one of the signalling manufacturers' web sites.

 

Paul.

Ouseburn probably doesn't give the right image to me as it was a right smelly thing 50 years ago. It ran past the bottom of our road when I was a child (between Armstrong Bridge and Byker Bridge) but I had never actually worked out where it came from so never associated it with that part of the Metro. Claytons on trip workings and metrocam DMUs in my day.

Paul.

Committed years ago mate, now she won't even come into the Old Potting Shed, when Dinners ready, she sends me a TEXT, hahhahha

You need a couple of nice old wooden Railway Phones, one in the shed and the other back in the house, so you can be asked what you want for your tea first and then be summoned later.

 

Paul.

I like the 'box as well; reminds me of the ones at the western end of the Landore triangle, and at Castle Cary.

 

And Lansdown Jn (Cheltenham).

 

Paul.

Look in disused stations for Kings Cross York Road and there is a photo of the tunnel mouth that your DMU above is about to disappear into and also a photo of what is above. Not dissimilar to the effect you want. Prototype justification - tick; right side of the Thames - tick: what more do you need!

 

Paul.

I hope you haven't gone to print yet as I have a few minor comments too, mainly to do with the lever leads (the box with the details of what the lever does).

 

Levers 6 and 9: the 7 should be on the next row down (like the 5 on lever 4)

Lever 13 is led by 12

Lever 14 is led by 15 and 17

Lever 18 is led by 16 as well as 17

Signals 20 and 21 would be better as a mirror image i.e. the post on the right furthest from the line.

 

It really looks good and I'm hoping to get to Lancaster to see it in the flesh. My Dad went to school in Lancaster in the 30s and would have loved to see it too.

 

Thanks, Paul.

the Hornby 25 (or Type 2 if your memory goes back further than mine does) has been around since 1977 with a revision to what's still on sale today in 1980.

Service sheet inside the box that holds mine has R068140777 stamped on it. Didn't know it was that new a model when I bought it. Still running very sweetly when I last ran it about the turn of the century. Will be converted to dcc before it runs again.

 

Paul.

Will the back scene have the corner of Trent House on it? If so you could make it one of the days when I'm 'down south' causing havoc in a layout risk workshop and put me on with back to the window!

 

Paul.

I don't often ask "techie" questions. Not so much techie, but involving signalling which although I get the basics, is not something I'm completely clued up on. If I do decide to go for a street crossing on the extension board and therefore assume the line continues somewhere, there will need to be a platform starter at the left-hand end of Platform 3. Will there also need to be a "Limit of Shunt" board in the 4ft between Platforms 2 & 3 (shown below)? Finally, as the layout will be operated as a terminus, would the level crossing gates or barriers need to be closed every time a terminating train arrives at Platform 2 or 3 as a precaution against overrun? Puzzled of North Norfolk...

 

You always need a signal to protect a level crossing but you have never needed to close a gated level crossing in order to run into the platform in your situation. With barriers today you would need to go through complicated processes to decide, but in your era same as gates would also have applied.

 

A limit of shunt in platform 2 would not allow passenger moves (so all incoming trains to 3 then shunt out and back into 2). A main semaphore arm as on 3 would allow passenger moves straight in (doesn't need to go anywhere beyond) and would probably be mounted on the platform rather than in the 6 foot (4 foot is the dodgy bit where trains hit!).

 

Feltham and Reigate have an LoS as you suggested and can only shunt ECS. I'll see if I can think of an example for you where passenger trains run straight in.

 

Paul.