Signals

[John P Boogerd]

Is this a Japanese signal?  It is made in Japan but I don't know if it's Japanese or American outline.

[bikkuri bahn]

That's an unusual type I've never seen before.  Kind of a position color light signal.  Any markings on the box it came in?

[KenS]

I'm not aware of a Japanese prototype that looks like that. But that hardly means there isn't one.  It appears to mix a row of several lights with a single green one off to the side on the same head.

 

The diagonal arrangement of lights could be some kind of optional "caution" indicator, but normally Japanese signalling only uses that approach on repeaters, and only with three lights, and those wouldn't have the single light on the same head.  When Japanese signals mix two indicators, they're usually on separate heads.

 

I've never seen anything like that American either.

 

It could be a special-purpose signal for one railway somewhere.  But otherwise, I'd guess European or non-Japanese Asian, just because I don't recognize it.

[Nick_Burman]

Definitively US-prototype - a GRS type G signal.

 

 

Cheers NB

[westfalen]

Nick's right, when you blow up the photo you can see it has red, yellow and green lights arranged in a triangular pattern like this Atlas signal.

 

http://www.modeltrainstuff.com/PhotoDetails.asp?ShowDESC=N&ProductCode=ATL-2235

[KenS]

I see what you're saying.  I was fooled by reflections (probably off a shade) that made it look like more than three lights.

 

Yes, that looks like a simple model of a typical single-head inverted-triangle style signal (Red, Yellow and Green lights in an inverted triangle on the same target), as was used by NYC and Pennsy, among others. GRS referred to them as the "type G" from at least 1925 and that name is often used, although some railroads used the same style made by US&S under different model numbers.

 

Three-light signals are replacing earlier railfan-favorite styles in many places since they use fewer "bulbs" (LED assemblies today) than position-light signals, and lack the moving parts of single-indicator multi-color lights ("searchlight" signals), making them cheaper to buy and maintain. Most of these put the bulbs in a vertical arrangement similar to typical Japanese signals, but the inverted triangle is still in use.

 

I don't know of any Japanese railroad that used this style of signal.

[bikkuri bahn]

I suppose the closest example in Japan would be shunting signals.

 

There are also these unusual signals found on Kintetsu, apparently on its 1067mm network:

http://trackway.exblog.jp/17058621/

 

http://blog.goo.ne.jp/gazo22/e/fca027f637199742d2b9a0c3f36312ea

 

http://bbs11.fc2.com//bbs/img/_249600/249516/full/249516_1332063537.jpg

 

http://file.tobu11664.blog.shinobi.jp/c51.JPG

 

They are possibly products of Osaka firm Asahi Kiko:

http://www.asahi-kiko.jp/

 

*I have a feeling these are warning signals for grade crossing obstructions, rather than train signals. Note how they are numbered, as if keyed to another piece of infrastructure.

[John P Boogerd]

Thanks for the input everyone - these are actually a lot that is for sale on ebay right now and the only information there was that they are marked 'made in japan' - I'll pass on them, though, since they don't fit a Japanese layout.

[westfalen]

I suppose the closest example in Japan would be shunting signals.

 

There are also these unusual signals found on Kintetsu, apparently on its 1067mm network:

http://trackway.exblog.jp/17058621/

 

http://blog.goo.ne.jp/gazo22/e/fca027f637199742d2b9a0c3f36312ea

 

http://bbs11.fc2.com//bbs/img/_249600/249516/full/249516_1332063537.jpg

 

http://file.tobu11664.blog.shinobi.jp/c51.JPG

 

They are possibly products of Osaka firm Asahi Kiko:

http://www.asahi-kiko.jp/

 

*I have a feeling these are warning signals for grade crossing obstructions, rather than train signals. Note how they are numbered, as if keyed to another piece of infrastructure.

I think I saw some of these during my last trip, if I remember correctly the two white lights come on to show the driver of an on coming train that the crossing protection equipment is operating. There is quite a variety of these on different railways in Japan, every time I get the ear of a Queensland Rail manager or signal engineer I suggest they would be a good idea here but get told we don't need them.

[bikkuri bahn]

You're right westfalen, I saw this signal described in a book I just spotted today at the bookstore.  It's in fact used on the entire Kintetsu network.  And it is indeed interesting to see the various types/styles of indicators among the railways.

[westfalen]

There were several at Yamato Saidaiji. I think the signals were dark until the crossings went down and the white lights lit up, I summise that the red lights come on if the crossing is blocked or the gates are not operating correctly.