Ok this is my prized possession. Do you know what it is and what it is used for?? Have a look but don't give the answer away yet [ 23. November 2002, 00:07: Message edited by: Colonel ]
Dunno. But, it reminds me of the dentist I had when I was a kid. My brothers and I used to affectionately call him, "THE BUTCHER".
I believe I have seen this discussed before. In fact, the picture looks familiar. I'll say no more for now.
It is before my time I guess as I don't remember seeing anything like this before. But since the Colonel posted it it has to be from Australia and I saw my first wire pull signal in NSW in 1993.
It looks like some form of an inline adjustment screw for a push-pull mechanism. As said earlier, since Paul made the original post, it must be something involved with signalling. (Boy, wasn't that a safe guess )
Yes it is in it's earliest form </font>[/QUOTE]If I am correct, it is called a staff. I know what it is used for - can anyone else guess?
Rob is correct in saying it is a staff. It was a common modeof safeworking in both australia and Britain as australian Signalling was based on British standards.
Now that I know what it is I know what it is used for. It is a form of Manual Block or Track Warrant (In the US). It was used on railroads in the US before signal systems were installed. Paul can correct me but I believe the staff was locked electrically so it could not be taken until released when the block it controlled was clear. I never saw this system in use but have read about it in articles on the history of signal systems.
