TheSignalEngineer

This is the building in the original photo from close in. It shows the relationship of the buildig, track, loading gauge and signal more clearly. https://www.francisfrith.com/blue-anchor/blue-anchor-entrance-to-foreshore-c1939_b124009 This one dated c1939 is from a bit further along the promenade than the original photo. The building on the left is now the Driftwood Cafe. Next is The Retreat, long gone but I believe in the 1930s it was a tea room. If you look carefully you can see the level crossing sign and the tearoom sign of the original post. https://www.francisfrith.com/blue-anchor/blue-anchor-entrance-to-foreshore-c1939_b124009 Moving on to c1955, you can still see the loading gauge but the pillbox is present. https://www.francisfrith.com/blue-anchor/blue-anchor-the-bay-c1955_b124022 I'm still going with c1939.

Used to hang around for that when I was working in the Saltley area. I usually came through on its way back to Norwich when I was waiting for a train into New Street.

At 12 we went travelling around London, Manchester and Liverpool shed bunking. First bus into Birmingham on Sunday morning and back in time for the last bus home at 10.30pm. The following year the school cadet force camp was right next to Pirbright Junction. No neef for the bugler to wake you in the morning. One of the last LSWR 700 Class in service used to pull up about 50 yards from our tent with a trip consisting mainly of coal empties. I spent one night as part of the camp guard, patrolling the railway side boundary from 11pm when a big liner had docked at Southampton. Then on the last evening, it was a Friday in the August holiday, 60 steam hauled trains between the evening meal and lights out. Plenty of cops from Southern sheds. It seemed that anything able to boil water was pressed into service.

Looking at the coaches and counting the doors, are the third and fourth 70' Toplight Thirds?

Spotted that building on another photo. Will try to find it again. It is beach side of the railway possiby just inside the gate. The loading gauge doesn't help with dating as it is there on a picture said to be c1955.

Different building. If you look closely at the original picture the building is behind the loading gauge in the siding

And my first DubDee in the flesh, or should it be metal, was a bit af a shock. A school trip to London I think it was, before the M1 was built. We went via Banbury and somewhere ended up parallel to a railway. Possibly the GC near Aylesbury as we ran alongside 90033 of Woodford Halse on an Up coal train for a short time. Never seen one of those before. The next one I saw got stuck in Snow Hill Tunnel with a load of 40 coke hoppers from South Wales to Bilston. Had to be rescued by the station pilot.

Living about 3 miles from New Street and Snow Hill we had a local circuit which was quite varied. Family connections at Stafford and Bromsgrove, outings to Worcester, Leamington, Stratford upon Avon were all regular . Early realisations of different things started around 1953 when we travelled to Swanage via the S&D and later in the week using a local to Corfe Castle which still had old stock in some variation of Southern green. Not sure which shade, Green was Green in those days. Next was a birthday trip with my grandparents to London Zoo, around 1955-56. What were those funny trains that ran on 4 rails south of Watford Junction? And their companions about half as high as proper trains? And those points at Euston which flew across with a bang and a hiss?

There's a lot of compression on the original photo. I will have a look on Google Earth tomorrow to decide where it was likely taken from.

Depends upon the light, film type and exposure and how good the darkroom technique is. On monochrome I could get it to look anything from white to dark grey depending on the angle of the original and what it was reflecting. This is the back of a Vauxhall Standard 12-Four from the 1938 brochure.

Centre of the spare wheel cover. See 2nd car from right on here https://www.francisfrith.com/blue-anchor/blue-anchor-sands-c1939_b124004

I don't know about gaps but three went there from new. Websites don't give much information.

I thought at first it was 'GWR' but when I saw it on a big screen on looked more like a water stain directly below the tank vent in the 'G' position. Could it be in Shirtbutton livery? That would tie in with the lack of the Pillbox which I understand was built in 1940. Three letters on car reg plates started to come in c1932. Looking at a large version there are two distinct colours on the sides of the third coach. When the petrol ration was restored in 1945 it was only for enough to do about 90 miles per month. It was stopped again for a short while after a dock strike (1947 -or 48?) and raised to about 180 miles per month until being abolished in 1950. All things considered I would say that it is Summer 1939, the latest date it could have been. It may even have been the Bank Holiday, 7th August 1939, when most people had accepted war was inevitable and people were trying to make the most of their last few days of normality.

Maunsell stock had duckets except on narrow bodied stock IIRC. The first SR stock picture that shows a periscope I can find in the Mike King book was the Bulleid 59ft all door sets.

First off the blocks was probably Bismarck's scheme in 1889. That fixed the age as 70, about twice the life expectancy of an ordinary German male at the time. Later it was reduced to 65. Most early schemes used either 65 or 70.

We already had a Bin Line down there about 1988 when I put back the connection to F Sidings at Willesden for use during the North Circular Widening. The contractors had to relocate a Victorian rubbish tip to a clay pit in Bedfordshire. The Freightliner flats and open containers used were locally referred to as "The BinLiner"

SR locos started to get them when some yards were provided with 750V overhead wires. At least 7 Bulleid pacifics were reported with them in mid 1960, as was an H class tank. I think the instruction on removal of periscopes was effective from the end of 1963 when the reduced clearances to the wires were approved for use south of Rugby and in the Birmingham area. This was also the reason for banning certain classes of steam loco south of Crewe

Three LB&SC examples I've found from the early C20 have a worked point end on the side of a double slip coming in from the main line. I've found nine examples across four railways that would tie in with what I drew but there are others using hand points for the incoming points. Finding one with a facing entry like the OP is quite rare even at terminal stations. The only one I can think of so far on double track was the entrance to the run round and carriage sidings at Ilfracombe, where all switches on the double slip were box worked. In my opinion this would be the preferable method for a facing entry as it ensures that the incoming train doesn't need to stop and observe the lie of the points when making a move from the Down Home to the Run Round or Siding.

One of the compromises in modelling. Unless you build it yourself it's impossible to replicate reality, and with the materials available get it to work reliably. In later years it would be probable that 7B would become 3C leaving 7A as a single end.

I've not forgotten about you, just doing a bit of revision on Saxby and LB&SC matters. Regarding the double slip in the siding I found two sketches on John Hinson's signalbox.org website albeit trailing onto the running line. They were at Horsham Junction c1900 and Leatherhead in 1927. Re-orientated and converted to your numbering they would look like this:-

One stands normally in, the other normally out. It helps to simplify the interlocking in some instances as pulling the signal lever requires the FPL lever in the correct position thus eliminating signal to signal locking on conflicting head-on routes over the same piece of track

I can well understand that given the quirks in Saxby's signalling installations. Some are difficult for me to understand and I spent my whole career in the industry

Madrid Metro has 12 numbered services on the map. In 1961 the Southern had headcodes up to 99 on all three sections, plus use of 1-9 as well as 01-09 in some instances. I remember timetable posters on some stations having an explanation of the routes taken by each headcode stopping there. No different to having bus numbers and people seem quite happy until you change one. Woe betide anyone changing the Birmingham Outer Circle which has carried the same number for 98 years.

I found a sketch of Epsom Downs quoted as being 1920 with back to back FPLs worked by one lever.

Sorry to be joining the game a bit late, but I was struck down by man-flu so not been feeling to brilliant. I had seen the thread and most of my first thoughts regarding lie of points and which ones to double end have already been covered. There are possibly probably four ends where FPLs aren't strictly necessary, two in sidings and two trailing points in the Up Main which don't have a facing passenger move. Another change to FPLs that I have used in real life is to use one lever where there are two points back to back working 'Flip-Flop' with one in and the other out. I don't know if the LB&SC ever did that but I will look at a few plans later Regarding numbering, although railways did use different systems even amongst their own boxes the usuasl system was points and sahunt signals in the middle, Down signals at one end and Up signals at the other. To get the proper direction which way round is the frame, trackside or back wall of the box? Trackside with the signalman working facing the track was the most common. That determines the numbering sequence and also how the box diagram would be orientated. From the layout thread I think the box was on the Pilot Siding side of the track. Numbers would be arranged to cut down walking up and down the frame for a route, and to avoid the dreaded 'Pull-Between' where you have to pull 5 points then 3 points followed by 4 FPL. Proper arrangement of the numbers can cut down the length of locking bars and also reduce the number of locking trays needed in the frame. I will take another look at it later if you can answer the questions about orientation of the frame.