TheSignalEngineer

The DC Lines were originally electrified at 630V as that was the common type of traction motor at the time. It also fits in with an old standard which defined 660V at the upper limit of 'Low Voltage'. At interfaces such as Queens Park there is a gap in the 3rd and 4th rails originally of 40ft to separate the two systems on LUL 21 and 24 lines at the Willesden end of the North Shed. This was the sketch from my briefing notes which went with the possession and isolation limits during the DC Lines Resignalling Comissioning in 1988. There was/is also a 'Negative Shoe Detector', a short piece of isolated 4th rail, approaching Queens Park on the Up DC Line. That confirms the presence of an LUL train before the signal onto the Bakerloo will clear to prevent full size train trying to go through the North Shed and into the tube tunnel. Looking at Google Earth it appears that the gap in the Down direction is now much longer. There is also a gapping arangement on the connection between the DC Lines between Queens Park and Kilburn High Road used to turn back LUL trains if the Bakerloo is closed. There is no 4th rail through the crossover. Similarly there are no 3rd and 4th rails through the scossors crossover at Stonebridge Park depot. A subsequent complication is that the route round the curve from Willesden Junction Low Level station to the North London lines is 4th rail at the one end, loses the centre rail, becomes 25KV above 3rd rail then straight 25kv at the Harrow Road bridge, about 400 yards overall. I'm not sure whether the 3rd rail extends as far as the 25KV on the connection between the DC Lines and Willesden DED. All very complicated from both the traction and signalling viewpoints.

Manchester Oxford Road also had two systems for a while until the MSJ&A was converted to 25Kv. Watford Junction has a section on the Down Fast to enable dual voltage units to be moved on and off the DC Lines.

Excellent show, well worth the trip over the hills, even if the weather on the way back was dire. I thought the standard of the layouts was excellent and the trade was good, even though today was more of a fact finding mission on that side. Managed to catch up with a few friends and then just before I left I bumped into a York resident I worked with a long time ago and had not seen for about 20 years. An altogther good day was had. Thanks to all those involved.

The nearest station used to be Menai Bridge where the Caernarfon line carried straight on and the Holyhead line turned right to access the bridge.

Got myself one recently. Very good when adding fiddly bits to the underside of stock as well as lubricating and wheel cleaning.

That sounds reminiscent of where we lived about 40 years ago. Leafy suburb but heading approximately north from about half a mile away, in running order, Velocette motorcycles, Lucas lamp factory, Tyseley loco shed, BSA gun factory and Bordesley marshalling yard. Carry on a bit further and you had Lawley Street Goods, Saltley shed, 3 gas works, nechells power station and Washwood Heath yard and a Spitfire factory. Our area was popular with German pilots heading south who had overshot their target and wanted to get rid of some excess weight. The house two up the road had been destroyed as had several others in the area. Our house was occupied by the builder who had built several of the properties along the road so decided he was not for killing. I had found a mound at the end of the garden and decided to get rid of it. A few inches below the top I hit concrete. I cleared a trench to its edge and found it was 9 inches thick. Below it were steps down to an entrance and engineering brick walls 13 inches thick. Inside there were still wooden bunk beds. The whole air raid shelter was about 2/3 below ground level and covered by what had been excavated to protect it. I decided that removal was unlikely without serious effort so shovelled in the rubble that was waiting for a skip, recovered the top and landscaped it with a rock garden. Looking at Google Earth I think it has now been converted into a raised patio.😃

The ANPR ones I have used are pay on exit, except for one at an airport where you pre-booked a space and put in your flight number. That one let you out without question up to a certain time your flight had landed. I've used two ANPR ones this week. The first was at Llyn Brennig, which I think is owned by Welsh Water. Very easy system, no barriers, just cameras. When you put in the last three characters of your reg plate it shows a picture of you arriving with the time and the charge due. Pay by card and off you go. The second was at a car park operated bt Denbigh Council. First it didn't want to let me in, then at the exit barrier said there was no record of my number plate entering. It asked me to select the time I arrived then told me the charge. I had a similar problem in the past at Gisburn Forest with one with the same type of cameras. I don't do Pay by App. I just take my custom elsewhere, so if it's a shopping centre they not only lose my parking fee but the profit on my purchases as well.

I remember Moseley Tunnel very well. The first time I worked around there was restoring the telegraph lines after a visit from the copper fairies early in 1967. Another visit sticking in my mind was when the Glasgow-Edinburgh push-pull trains were being built at Derby. I got a traffic notice with a test run propelling Derby to Derby via the Lifford Curve. My mate and I nipped off out of the office, set up our cameras above the tunnel mouth and made ourselves comfortable. We had been there about 15 minutes when an Inspection saloon pulled up at the old station site. The Divisional Civil Engineer and his Bridge Engineer who knew both of us came heading up to have a look at the state of the tunnel. We made a sharp exit through the undergrowth back to the road before he could reach they top.

On the subject of vans and linking with topical products there was an Iron Mink in full view parked in a siding next to Banbury Station for many years. From the badly work paintwork it looked to still be carrying GWR Red, GWR Grey and BR Light Grey in various parts. I think it lasted to the 1980s if not longer. Paul Bartlett photographed it in 1978. https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/gwrvans/e150e0b0d

Still visble in August 2022 images if you put the streetview man by the big tree about 300 yards notheast of the canal.

Google Earth 2021

My Starfish is so old it originally had plastic wheels and Hornby Dublo couplings. It was refurbished/rewheeled nearly 20 years ago and is still in use. I agree about the one piece hopper, having built 'flatpack' ones from other makers, but the bits under the hopper ends are a real pain.

There are three part built on my bench at the moment. I bought them off club sales stands at shows on the past. They are difficult to get together square and the glue didn't want to work on one kit. I've tried following the instructions and making it up as I go along but neither is easy. I don't know what present production of this kit is like but have built a number of other Cambrian kits over the years and have been pleased with how they went together and the final finish I achieved.

Sorry you are leaving the site, I first found out about HLJ from Allan Downes and have watched its growth on here and at Wakefield. So good I went back again, one of only a handful of layouts I have made a special trip to see again. Personally I hate FB and keep my activity to a small number of friends and groups I want to follow. Too much rubbish and abuse on public stuff over there.

Can't believe it's ten years dince I posted this.

Most were worked by 57xx. A few could only be accessed by smaller types, Stourbridge had 74xx and 16xx for those. 56xx were used for some of the heavier workings and Large Prairies sometimes turned up on the Hockley traffic between peak hour passenger workings. There was also one strange trip, possibly Oxley to Swan Village or something similar which was booked for a 9F on a fill-in turn, but I think that only worked from end to end with no intermediate shunting by the train loco.

Shouldn't be too much of a problem, it's nearly three weeks until the next service train is due.

Bet that man on the steps reading the paper is a bit cold.

I never volunteered for railway organisations although I did drafts for a couple of signalling plans for one of my workmates who was involved in one. M volunteering was with sports clubs as it was totally divorced from work. For about 30 years I dug holes, laid mains services, maintained buildings, repaired fences, lopped trees, maintained courts, did committee and admin jobs including three years of reviving and running a league of 12 divisions and over 130 teams, etc,etc,etc.... When I got to feeling it was a drag I decided enough was enough and went back to playing with my trains.

At about 13 seconds into the video you can see the hook part of the 'Z' engaging with the outside of the block which forms the end of the roller assembley.

The reason being that if it were standard six-foot anything above 3 arms will clash with carriage footboards.

Found the Midland one I was looking for. Taken from between the switch blades. Pulling the lever moved the rod away from me. There is a roller in the middle of the stretcher which follows the slot as the Z-plate moves driving the switches from right to left. The switches are locked when the roller is in the straight part of the slot. The points are detected locked by the movement of the small scale-beam crank attached to the Z-plate. The link moves the slot in the detector slide out of alignment when the mechanism starts to move and resumes its aligned position when the movement is completed. There isn't a date on the picture but I did jobs there in 1976 and 1979. I think the latter was when it was converted to power operation from Saltley.

Not got access to my signalling album at the moment but I'm sure I have a picture of probably the last in use in the Birmingham area. It was at Kings Norton and survived into being worked from the Shunt Frame after commissioning of Saltley PSB. It may have survived until the box was finally closed. I will try to scan and post tomorrow.

Near the site of the former Knightcote IB signals. I have a picture somewhere taken from a bridge showing the current line curving away and the abandoned earthworks straight ahead

And I forgot to add that beyond Hadfield the reserviors cover most of the land flat enough to build houses on. Once you cross the A628 or the Woodhead line the valley sides climb steeply and there is a lot of unstable ground.