Neil C, Malcolm W and Steve with JCB spent Monday at Broadway to prepare the concrete foundation block for the (second!) bracket signal. This is situated south of the "south of station" points, close to the steepish access ramp up from the new car park entrance - more about this shortly.
The JCB makes short work of digging a hole and the shuttering is soon in place:
There was some initial concern about getting the Easymix lorry up the slope so the first dose of concrete was ferried up in the JCB bucket, but by the time this was in the hole the lorry had made it up the slope and the rest was delivered neatly from the shute:
It took 1.3 cubic metres of concrete to fill the shuttering. This will take a while to go off before we attempt to put any strain on the studs. This signal should have it's C of G not too far off centre so the lateral strain is minimised.
Two additional holes have been dug to accommodate the blocks which hold the steel plates for the pulley wheels. There is one situated each side of the track to connect to the signal wires on the Broadway side.
(Above pictures courtesy of Neil Carr)
Tuesday 30th July
A very wet day for us at Winchcombe with a bit more progress for the fittings on the bracket signal.
We have taken possession of four new castings for the double balance weight arms required on the bracket signal. These need machining - a bit of milling and boring - hopefully by our colleagues in Toddington machine shop.
In the meantime we have mounted a single balance weight arm to check alignments fot the down rods and signal wires - note the blue nylon rope.
We have also acquired two large electric locks which are being dismantled and cleaned by Keith L, John P and Carl S. We need one of these for Toddington Box to control the two sets of motor points (still to be installed)
These have four locking positions. A lever check position initiates the operation of the point motors and confirms that the points have operated correctly, etc.
George B has deburred and primed a consignment of lamp case brackets in the semi-shelter of the MSC shed lean to:
Continuing rain has rather curtailed our outdoor activities today. Let's hope for better weather next week.
Curly
All looking very good Curly.
ReplyDeleteRegards, Paul.
Presumably if the money is made available to install the Loop extension that bracket won't be in the way - or will it have to be moved?
ReplyDeleteI believe that a gantry would replace the bracket.
DeleteNow that would be impressive!
DeleteThanks for the update, Curly. I was wondering how badly the southern points were damaged by the recent run thrpugh? It looks like the FPL stretcher was bent but the FPL itself remained locked. Did one set of wheels jump the switch blade or something? How long will it take to get it fixed? And that bracket signal foundation looks to be smack bang in the middle of any loop extension!
ReplyDeleteHow soon is the bracket likely to be installed on its new base?
ReplyDeleteGood to see all the progress at Broadway; excellent work!
Noel
Not too long now. We still need to make sure all the fittings are OK before we go vertical. Everything including the two dolls will be removed for transportation.
DeleteAny news on the Broadway points? Presumably the switch is crippled and requires replacement?
ReplyDelete