SignalTraffic Forums

by **LarryC39** on Sun Mar 14, 2010 11:17 am

It seems most of the classic U.K. signla views are of signals with the tunnel visors. Does anyone know more about why only few cutaway/cap style visors were used or if they had any significance?

by **2070** on Sun Mar 14, 2010 11:23 am

LarryC39 wrote:It seems most of the classic U.K. signla views are of signals with the tunnel visors. Does anyone know more about why only few cutaway/cap style visors were used or if they had any significance?

I would guess they came about from World War II and their "blackouts". But that would be just a guess!!! :scratch:

by **SignalLab** on Sun Mar 14, 2010 2:33 pm

never really thought about it but suppose you are right...
just happy to have mine....rare visors or not!
http://s436.photobucket.com/albums/qq86 ... sey003.jpg

by **jab8356** on Sun Mar 14, 2010 3:39 pm

I like the cutaway visors better on a Plessey than the tunnels.

by **traffic-light-man** on Fri Mar 26, 2010 5:52 am

In towns, it was commonplace for there to be one cuttaway signal at the stopline, as we still have now, but there were often two secondary signals on the farside of the junction, with tunnels. This is the only explination I can come up with.

I, too, prefer cuttaways, but I've always had more tunnels than cuttaways.

by **LarryC39** on Sat Mar 27, 2010 12:41 pm

That makes sense, sort of the equivalent of the baby signals France uses at the stopline.

Apart from the traditional white/black color scheme and the all black scheme, how often was the black/yellow paint jobs used?

by **traffic-light-man** on Sat Apr 03, 2010 6:32 am

Black and yellow was only use in, to the best of my knowlege, Austailia on AWA rebrabranded Plessey lanterns, and in Malaysia, however it was generally SGEs installed there, which is why the SGEs in Singapore were likely painted yellow and black (all be it, not in the original manner!) until they were removed last year.

by **3liteguy** on Sat Apr 03, 2010 6:56 am

I have the cutaways but poly :glare:

lenses.

by **LarryC39** on Sat Apr 03, 2010 9:35 pm

Yours is a later model :rander:

. Apart from the poly lenses, the door tabs were rivited onto the door and the body halves were assembled with quick rivets. Older models used glass lenses, STOP command lenses, and large head peened rivets for the body section. The oldest style I've found had the door tabs screwed into the body, instead of rivited, and also had a copper/brass pin set into the door arms instead of being cast as part of the door, weirdest of all was the loom protector that comes out the back wasn't made of aluminum/stainless like modern flexi conduit but was copper.

by **traffic-light-man** on Tue Apr 06, 2010 4:46 am

Assuming your Red poly lens is blank, then you actually have a rare type. The blank lenses were introduced mid 60s, and the Mellor head was supposed to be introduced in 1969, so there was only a short time frame in which these were actually installed. Of course, the Mellor head didn't hit the streets until 73, but AFAIK, they used SGE heads as standard substitution.

With regards to the rivet types. That is correct, earlier ones were 'soldered' together. I have one of these, complete with glass lenses. On the other hand, I have one that pre-dates 1950s which has the same characteristics of my newest one

.

If it was once black and white, its pre-1957, definitely, and is an ATE head.
If it has poly lenses (but still lettered), its more than likely a post-1961 head, and is a Plessey.
If it has blank lenses, it's pre-1970s but post early 1960s.

Plessey bought ATE in '61, and the traffic signs regulations introduced Warboys signs (the current roadsigns) in '61 too. Warboys signs were installed with embossed STOP lens Tins.

Its a timescale mess, and one that I hope to rectify soon. And don't even start with the GO embossed lenses!

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