The Original You Might Say

[Teletran]

dos this look right?

http://groups.msn.com/TheTARDISbuildersGuild/consoleroomdesign.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=1084

how do you send pictures direct i just cant get the hang of it

[Mark]

Sorry Tele, they are indeed 6" high, but they (well Crich anyway) are definately 7.66" from the edge to the start of the recessing of the glass sign.

From what I understand, and I'm sure Ironage will correct me if I'm wrong, a number of  prototype boxes were, using wood instead of concrete, built almost exact to the blueprints specifications (including the word POLICE instead of POLICE public call BOX).

These (was it 12?) boxes were used to promote the "new" police boxes and educate the public and police constables in there use. As with most things, by the time full scale roll-out of the final concrete boxes started, some things were improved or altered such as wording on the signs and phone panel and the lamp housing (The first was, in my opinion, dreadfull. Looked like a mini nuclear power station on legs!).

There is a book which shows the original blueprints for the British red telephone box, designed buy Sir Giles Scott. These boxes went through the same process, ie a wooden mock-up before the final cast iron versions.

How difficult is the PhotoShop program to use? I've thought about investing in a decent programme (Paint is ok but does get annoying!!). Also how much does it cost, roughly?

[Teletran]

The full packages cost megabucks but you can get a basic photo editing program for much cheaper that is lot more versatile than paint.

(Amended June 19)
Btw dos anyone have a picture of the corner posts where they meet the base, or the dimensions of the roof at critch as it is by far the most tardis like that I have seen. I would also be interested in any details you have of the stepping between the door/walls and the sign boxes as I can only seem to find verios contradictory hights for them and nothing at all on how deeply inset they are.

[Mark]

I've got a couple of piccy's for you of the steps that you wanted. I'll have to transfer them to PhotoBucket so I can post them, probably be later or tomorow.

The dimensions of these bit I can give you.

The three steps  are all 1/4 " in thickness (sticky-out-ness from the wall!)

As for height of each step, starting from the bottom, the first is just under an inch at 2.5cm. The second step is just over an inch at 3cm and the top step is axaclty 2 inch.

As far as the roof is concerned, I'll dig out the Crich roof measurements and post them as soon as. As a point of interest, the roof on the Crich box (and the Mile End ones too) appear to be a slight bit different to the rest of the Met style boxes such as Barnet (There is a comparison picture earlier in this thread, but you knew that ), so I'll post those measurements too.

I found it awkward to get the corner-post-to-base photo (I did try :-/) but the base actually slopes gently upwards towards the wall.

[Teletran]

I may as well tell you what I'm doing to put my requests in context I intend this tardis model to be accurate to a real world police box except that the door will open inwards, the window frames will be coloured to match the walls and the phone plate will match the signs. I got as far as putting the roof on when I realised that I didn't like it, it looked more like a blueprint that had got up and gone for a walk than a real object! So I started again with the corner posts and went to a lot of trouble to smooth out and "grubby up" the edges. Now I have the corner posts that I am very happy with and I am just starting on the base. What I need to know now is what's happening in between the two, what angle dos the top of the base slope at and where dos it stop? What dos the corner post look like where it meets the base?

[mantamatt]

Digressing slightly

First time I have come across this...

http://www.connected-earth.com/Daysout/AvoncroftMuseumofHistoricBuildings/Virtualtour/pano002.htm

Excellent  360 degrees of the inside of a real police box for those of you who haven't been to Crich or Avoncroft. This box, in contrast to Crich has been immaculately looked after from these pictures...

[Teletran]

thank you for your post i didn't realise that the door was blue on the inside, is this a mkI or a mkII?

[mantamatt]

Hi,

In those terms this box is a Mk I Scottish box. On Crich and Avoncroft  the inside of the door is painted blue and from the pictures I've seen of destroyed boxes this seems to have been the norm although I'm sure there were exceptions.

[ironageman]

Nice panoramas; I hadn't seen those before. It's good to see that the telephone door is red now - it hugely irritated me that they'd painted it blue, grumpy old man that I am.

^{PS - Ah, the three steps at the tops of the walls were exactly that on the Barnet box too.}

[ironageman]

Oh, and - 'a number of prototype boxes were [built] using wood instead of concrete' - well, I've read a categorical statement that the first Met boxes were timber with a concrete base, and an equally categorical statement that there were never any timber Met boxes.  But if you have a close look at the pictures on the Getty website, you can tell that the first batch were wooden.  And they were real working boxes; there's a picture in the Tardis Library of one still in use in wartime.

And Mark - just to be awkward... I love that Jaggaroth-spaceship-style lamp on the first Met boxes! Sort of industrial-Art-Deco. Groovy!

[ironageman]

Oh (again!) - and...
' [the Avoncroft] box, in contrast to Crich has been immaculately looked after from these pictures...'

Here's what it looked like when they first displayed it at Avoncroft:

[Mark]

Hello one an' all! Been a bit hectic over weekend so apologis to who anyone that needs one!

Teletran, msm me your email again (lost it, sorry) and I'll send you the details I promised. Then I'll post them here when I get a minute.

Nice panarama Mantawrays, I hadn't noticed that site either. I have to say though, that the way the clip has been put together really makes the box look a lot bigger than it really is.

[Mark]

If any body in the process of building a box is in a need of Police Box signs.....

I've been in touch with a guy on the net who owns a specialist glass making company. He said he can make the signs to the specs. of the blue prints (i.e. "blue falsh glass, sandblasted out").

My next step is to e-mail the dimensions and pictures of the original items to this chap for his information.

He's presently quoted me £50 odd quid per sign but maybe he'll bring it down if there's more than 4 on order!

Bare in mind that the dims. will be for a Met style sign (i.e. not the full size of the lintel), but if anyone is interested in this idea, e-mail me and I'll see if I can get a better qoute.

[noIMG]http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y194/Mark7081/SignLintelPOLICE.jpg[/img]

[Teletran]

I think I've found another deviation from the plans. The walls/door divider "should" start off at two inches wide as it comes out from the wall then taper in by about ten degree until it is level with the start of the pillar corner detail. However according to some closeup photos that mark has just sent me they appear to be more or less rectangular, if this assessment is incorrect please let me know.

I have also noticed that the 3d renderings that were produced for the original police box site use the incorrect six inch squared sign margins from the trench plans.

[Mark]

You are correct Tele (the picture I posted doesn't show it), the centre divider does indeed taper as you described.
[noIMG]http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y194/Mark7081/53IE0043.jpg[/img]

I'm almost certain, based on my Crich measurements and from measureing the blueprints, that the divider sticks out by 1". If you look at the bluerints (Looking upwards) the three steps line up just before the edge of the door divider and then just before the start of the curved corner post edging.