Jon Fitness

Yes, lots to learn about thickness and hole sizes and fold lines. And layers!

Thanks Rich. Trying to raise my game but I'm having mixed success..!

The MR signal is now complete and very much in need of some serious weathering. I have several more signals to make in this batch so I'll weather them all together at the end. The little structure on the staging is in lieu of a ladder for the lampman and there are a couple of telegraph wire "pots" on a small bar fixed to the smaller doll. It also has a "D" sign indicating that the signal is fitted with a firemans call plunger that the fireman of any train detained there pressed to indicate the train's presence to the signalbox. Those and the slightly curious layout of the black and white are all gleaned from photos of the actual signal near Bath Green Park shed. More soon JF

Currently got a Midland Railway bracket signal on the go. All posts and dolls are etched brass.

Fantastic work as always Steve! Love the balanced bracket. Nice and characterful. JF

Very sad news Steve. You've put a lot of work into it and it was coming along nicely but your health must come first. Is it possible to retain everything and maybe start again with it in a lighter and more manageable form one day? All the best to you and I hope medical science will one day help your back mate. JF

Thanks Simon, did I word my reply wrong? As you say it must have been a real responsibility for the guard as he only had one chance to stop the coach in the right place. I believe some trains also had several slip portions too.! JF

Thanks Mike, informative as always! I must confess that I didn't copy the mechanical configuration of the real signal!Cheers Jon F

You're quite right in the description of a co-acting signal but I've since discovered this is also a slipping distant! The lower arm indicates to the guard that the distant signal is indeed "off", the driver will be proceeding at line speed through the controlling signal box's area and he can release his slip coach from the back of the train and be able to stop it in the right place. If the distant was at caution, the train may be stopping so the slip can't take place as the coach may stop in the wrong place!HTH JF

Time for a quick update methinks! The gantry has been installed in its new home and I have done a few more simpler signals to relax! Here's a GW centre balanced stop signal. Tubular post, LED lit and servo operated. A GWR co acting/slipping coach distant using SSS arms, a Borg Rail etched brass "wooden" post, LED lit and servo operated. An LMS 2 arm shunt signal, same sources as above! I'm now on to some signals for Bath Green Park shed layout (not mine!). This one is a bit weird, being an almost totally BR(W) structure with upper quadrant arms. It will even have GW pattern lamp cases and weightbars. All my GW lamps and finials are now from the excellent Modelu 3D printed range. More soon JF

Hi Dave, depends which type of ground signal you need! The early cast pattern ones are available from bothe MSE and SSS but no-one as yet does one of the later tubular posted GW/BR(W) types. I'm hoping that Alan Buttler of Modelu will get the cance to scan one sometime and produce it as a 3D print. I have made my own castings to represent them but I think I need to improve on them! JF

Here's the test video of the (now weathered) LMS gantry Cheers JF

Hi Mark, fairly standard LMS/ BR(M) colour schemes according to my books. The spectacle plates were enamelled as well as the arms but they seemed to get dirty/weathered/corroded quicker than the blades which were generally kept cleaner by the signal technichians. This may make them appear black in pictures. The grey for gantries is an LMS colour although which of the fifty shades is correct is beyond me! I think it was a mettalic grey, similar to that used for painting bridges although I'm willing to be corrected on that! Lattice brackets and the welded stem brackets were also grey but sometimes the front face of the main post was painted white for visibility. LMS/BR(M) back blinders were mostly white and only very occasionally black or grey. Heres' a standard upper quadrant arm at ground level.

Its amazing just how long some jobs can take! The LMS gantry is near enough all complete at last. It just needs a good dose of weathering and it'll be all done. Each doll was assembled, wired for lights tested both mechanically and electrically then stripped, painted and re-assembled ready for fitting to the gantry. Once fitted, each dolls lighting wire was soldered to a convenient pick up point within the gantry and the doll soldered to the structure for it's electrical earth. All mechanical links were then installed down to the servos and after many adjustments it all seemed to work. I have cheated a little as the weight bars on the main post are dummy ones as getting them to work in an already complex structure would have added another level of slack in the linkages I didnt need! All the little areas of bare metal were touched in with appropriate colours then real wooden staging added and stained. Doll ladders were then prepared and painted before fitting and touching in. It's all been tested and works well but is in need of a few adjustments as things loosen up around the various painted pivot points. I'll try and post a video up in the next few days. More soon JF

Probably a bit of a cop out answer for this question but it could potentially be either of the 2 suggestions could be right. Ex NER and GNR gantries were notoriously complex, usually providing a separate doll for each route . Ex LNWR gantries could be of a similar complexity; check out some of them that were at Preston rather than just looking at the rather ridiculous example at Rugby that everyone knows! Route indicators were a fairly early invention, the L&YR installing a few around Blackpool in the early 1910's. The LMS did try to replace a lot of gantries with colour light signals but that process was slowed down by WW2 hence a lot survived for a lot longer than they needed to. Not really the answer you were looking for I know but signalling wasn't always modernised/simplified in any logical order really! JF

That'll take some thinking about! Leave it with me!

Canada? No-one over here available to do it Steve?

Did the signals make the move OK Jamie?

Tell me about it! I used to do all my browsing, RMWeb and WT updating at work between trains!

Thank you Mike!

And I even rotated the picture and it still rotated it back! Back to the computer for updates. Too much hassle on the phone!

With the gantry now back to sub assembly stage, I ran a wiring main for the LEDs, fitted railings, ladder and dummy weight bars (yes, I know. It's mechanically complicated enough already thanks!) and started the painting process. I think the primers just about the right colour for the grey the were painted but we'll see when the black bits go on! More soon JF

Got some BR Blue on the Bogie B but I'm a little short on the transfers. I've used up all the useful stuff on my HMRS sheet and I'm not sure if anyone does transfers for these vehicles. Drawn a blank with Fox and Railtec so far.. ☹️

Thanks Rich! I've prepared the dolls now and made a start on the dreaded linkages. All my plans and sketches planning out the route of the linkages were, of course, wrong so I went back to the usual method of "try a bit and see if it fits, make everything else fit round it" I have a rough idea that it will all work now so I progressed with the servo mountings which all have to be at one end due to the gantry's planned location. It now needs a special stand so I can carry on with construction! The dolls are still loosely fitted hence the tweezers stopping the tall one rotating. At least I can now fit the landings, handrails and main ladders. I think its really starting to get that look now! Another thing I've had etched up is a BR(W) bracket structure for a commission. The MSE one available couldn't be easily altered to fit the bill so I did what needed to be done. Aside from being etched on too thick material (entirely my mistake) I think it looks the part and may consider getting a few more done if anyone wants some! More soon JF

Inner bogie frame for a class 76?