Show us your Favorite bridge! Tell us a bought it. Is it scratch built? Is it a model of a prototype or is it free lanced? What materials did you use? What scale is it? How long is it? Lets see those bridges! Ok I'll start this off with my favorite bridge. Its representational of one that was along the prototype DAV&P. RR. This bridge is scratch built of wood. Its G scale and measures almost 6 feet in length and has been in service for almost 8 years now.
My favorite bridge is the "two mile long" Karankawa Causeway over Suter Bay to my island seaport of Karankawa (my version of Galveston). Actually about six feet long. Built from the top segments of 7 Atlas viaduct kits, with a Pola/AHM Scherzer rolling lift bridge as a center span. Based more or less on the Galveston rail causeway, seen here with the Texas Limited in 1991.
While not the bridge itself it looks like they used the one I used to drive over as the example. Nearly a perfect match. It's over 100 miles away so I can't take a picture of it, if it's still there.
I used to drive over this one. My 25 cent tour of Corpus Christi, Texas took guests to historic sites, through the industrial district, into a poor neighborhood a bit like Catfish Hollow from Porgy and Bess and then came up over this bridge where you could see we were just three blocks from the center of the financial district. The railroad cut gave the name "The Cut" to this neighborhood. Photo 1975, bridge demolished 1976. I donated half a dozen photos of this bridge, and some 1500 others to the archives at Texas A&M University Corpus Christi, where I got my masters degrees. Kenneth L. Anthony photographic collection: http://rattler.tamucc.edu/dept/special/Anthony.html
27' long. 6'8" radius curve. 5' high. Built from old cedar fence boards cut down. Been there about 18 years now. Used regularly. #1 gauge. Dave
Scratch-built timber trestle stained with real creosote oil. Wife wasn't thrilled first time she came down to do the laundry. "What's that smell?" (Tsk...a woman would have to ask.) Another view, and it just happens to be a larger version of my avatar image:
I love that overhead shot, Crandell. I might have to try that myself, not that my bridges are as interesting and spectacular as those already shown. Mike
I used Kato Unitrak bridge sections that I cut up and resembled to approximate the Brazos River bridge in Richmond, Texas. I replaced the Kato N scale track with Micro Engineering bridge track. Built by the T&NO on the Southern Pacific Sunset Route, it is still used by the UP.
Wow :wideeyes: A tremendous bit of building there, Jim. I can't match these. Great work by all. I'll have to nominate my road bridge as my favourite because it's the one that has given me the most fun My overhead view was a bit boring, but here it is They are Central Valley Models kits. More photos please! Mike
Mike, it may be smaller than the others posted, but it is an exquisite bridge and sooooooooooo credible. Nobody in the hobby I know does it like you, bud. Jim, you did a fine job of that large trestle. My compliments.
Crandell that's very kind of you. I always look forward to your scenic shots. The bridge deck is foamcore sheets laminated together, the upright concrete supports are balsa covered with artists texture paste and the concrete blocks are oblong section styrene tube. I must finish the railings some day.
Just a Rix concrete overpass. Still needs weathered (I've been saying this for almost 3 years now!). Abutments are by Chooch, IIRC. Won them as a door prize at an NMRA Regional Convention a couple years ago.
Here's the HO scale Castor River bridge on my Zalma Branch of the Frisco circa 1915. It was removed in 1934 when the line was abandoned. It's scratchbuilt but no photos exist of the prototype. The stumps of the ancient pilings are still visible so I took a canoe (no roads nearby) and took field measurements.
I have four bridges (one of them is a road) over Oyster Creek on an NTRAK module. All of them are scratch built.
I'm dying to build one of Bob Knights lenticular truss bridges. I have a plan to use it as a highway bridge. I have a few traincat bridges built but they are in storage.. does this count as a bridge? Randy
Wow, nice work everyone, and a good idea for a thread. This is an Atlas bridge. The model has been "retired" now. I've got an overhead, too, taken when I had to drag a ladder into the train room to change a bulb in the ceiling.
Crandell and Mike, Thanks for the compliments. It was hard work building it in place. These days I build the bents using a template. Older and wiser now! Jim
Picking a favorite bridge can be tough as there is a little drama with every one. I have a couple of bridges that are mine, but I have seen so many here and on tours I cannot begin to narrow them down. On my home layout which will be dismantled this week is comprised of Micro Engineering kits. The abutments are styrene and the bridge footings are from Fine N scale Products. I will greatly miss this scene. My module favorite has to go to my most recent build, Piru Creek. The bridges are simply the Kato assembled bridges with Chooch stone abutments.