Bents for a trestle

[stingman888]

Hello all,

 I will be inlarging our S & S railroad from 65' x 30' to an L shaped 100' x 40' this spring.
 I would like to build a trestle with bents but i am not sure of the size of the lumber to use on the bents.
I have been looking on line for prints but nothing is coming up for G scale.

Any help would be appreciated.

[Quitchakiddin]

The material dimensions that I use/cut are 1/2"X1/2"X whatevever length you need for your upright supports and top cross piece.

Diagonal and cross bracing is 3/16" X 1/2" X whatever   length you need.

Once your bents are constructed they look best spaced about 6'O.C. and I use the same 1/2"X3/16" stuff for connecting braces.

I salvage old fences and decks for the raw material then run it through the bandsaw,that gives you a really nice resawn look.

Been diving in dumpsters a long time!!

Bill

 

 

[Mt Beenak]

G'day,

I have also built all of my trestles using half inch square uprights, but I use 1/8th x 1/2 inch cross members and diagonals.  I am using old (pre weathered) hardwood fence palings.  These are quite sturdy because they are cut from eucalypt (gum) trees. You may need thicker cross timbers if you are using softer timber.  I use 1/8th x 1 and 1/4 bolts to join everything.  Brads or a nail gun splits the hardwood.

Good luck and send pictures when you are done.

[jhsimpson62]

Sounds like an interresting project. Lumber sizes mentioned above are good. Having built several trestles, I'll pass this information on for consideration. I have learned to use bases cut from trim boards for the plastic/saw dust deck materiel. Ceader lumber will hold up better than hardwood soaked in wood preservitive, and can be easily secured with a power nailer and glue. These are strong enough to walk on after 5 years in the garden. Here are some pictures. Jack

[smcgill]

I used 1/2" X1/2" for my trestle.

.

Good luck!

OOO YA  cedar creates a LOT of fine dust!!

 Sean

[ttrigg]

I too used half inch square material, salvaged fence boards. I built a jig for my trestle construction. Sorry I didn't take a pic of it but it worked very well and quickly allowed consistant trestles. I took some of my "timbers" and ran them one pass through the table saw taking off about 1/8 inch. T screwed them onto a piece of 1/2 plywood. One on the top side of the cap and two small pieces at each end of the cap. Then one on each side of the posts for the trestle bent. I cut all the caps to 71/2 inch in length, (slightly oversized). put the cap into position, slide the posts into position. I then cut some 1/8 inch x 1/2 inch "scabbing material 2 inches in length. with the cap and 4 posts in position I glued and brad guned the scabbing into position. runnig along the post across the side of the cap. I used the same material for latatudinal bracing across the side of the bent, glueing and brading as I went along. Let it set for about 20 minutes for the glue to set up. Since the material used to align the parts on the jig was smaller than the timber of the bent it all lifted easily. Then went to the scroll saw to trim off the scabbing that went over the top of the cap, and exteded beyond the edge of the outer posts. Flip the bent over and apied scabbing and bracing to the other side, then trim to fit.

[lew1970]

This is some good stuff here. Sorry if this is hi-jacking the thread a little but, is there a trick to making "new cut" lumber have the old look? Maybe some sort of acid or maybe bead blast? Ive started cutting some lumber for my project and was going to just let it sit outside until I need it. Of course if there is a short cut, i'm all ears..

 

Thanks

[cacole]

I built all of my trestleworks out of cedar fence pickets purchased from one of the local lumber stores.  I ripped them into square pieces for the uprights, and used redwood bender board strips for the cross members and diagonal bracing.  The bents were assembled using a pheumatic brad gun and yellow carpenter's glue.

They've been in place for over 5 years now and are showing no signs of deterioration other than turning black, which all cedar fences around here eventually do. 

Mine can be seen at http://members.cox.net/cacole2

 

[ttrigg]

lew1970

This is some good stuff here. Sorry if this is hi-jacking the thread a little but, is there a trick to making "new cut" lumber have the old look? Maybe some sort of acid or maybe bead blast? Ive started cutting some lumber for my project and was going to just let it sit outside until I need it. Of course if there is a short cut, i'm all ears..

 

Thanks

I use a copper based wood preservative for all my wood projects. Most of my "timbers" are recycled fencing panels. Running them through the saw makes "fesh cuts" that make it look like new wood. I soak sections of the project in the preservative for a couple hours so that it soaks in deep. Then it set out in the sun for about a week so that the oils of the preservative soak in and dry up. Some times I leave it green and allow it to age in place, a nice rich grey/brown develpos in about 6~8 months. Some times I use a Min-Wax gel stain that I've thinned with turpintines (1 part gel 2 Parts turp)