Bridge abutments

[doctorwayne]

 

Thanks for your kind comment, Mike.

mbinsewi

....I gotta head to BB and check out Bertrams.....

You may find it slim pickin's, Mike, as photobucket appears to be still having difficulties. 

I did a search on BB for Bertram's, and came up with attached photos in the following three threads:

Barney Secord flies the Grand Valley...

Selling Pennsylvania by the pound...

and Extra 727 East...

However, in all three threads, the photos don't match the accompanying text:  in our last site "upgrade", the photos transferred along with everything else, but their order within the thread was reversed.  I've been going through some of the longer threads, and re-doing the photo order as it should be.  Searching for the links, above, alerted me to the situation with the three linked threads, and I'll attempt to rectify them later.  The photos are all still viewable, though.

EDIT:  The photos in the first two threads,  mentioned above, have been re-done in the proper order, if anyone wishes to check them out.

Wayne

[mbinsewi]

doctorwayne

If your comment is in regard to the photos, they're back.

I was able to log into PB this morning.  It's coming back slowly.

I gotta head to BB and check out Bertrams.  By the way, I really like your form work.  I worked on a few 1:1 scale abutments and piers.

Mike.

[richhotrain]

doctorwayne

Don't worry, Rich, the link is to photos only of bridge piers and the moulds used to create them.

Photobucket appears to still be awol, so I can't even post a picture of Bertram's here (although there should be some in Big Blue).  If you'd like, I'll take a look and post a link to it.

Wayne 

No need to, Wayne, I keep a large photo of Bertram's on the mantle over my fireplace.

Rich

[doctorwayne]

mbinsewi

I just tried again at 9pm, CST, and no-go.

Mike

 

If your comment is in regard to the photos, they're back.  The ones in the link which I provided are available, even when the photobucket ones are gone, as they're posted there as attachments.

 

Wayne

[mbinsewi]

I just tried again at 9pm, CST, and no-go.

Mike

[doctorwayne]

Don't worry, Rich, the link is to photos only of bridge piers and the moulds used to create them.

Photobucket appears to still be awol, so I can't even post a picture of Bertram's here (although there should be some in Big Blue).  If you'd like, I'll take a look and post a link to it.

Wayne

[richhotrain]

doctorwayne

Wow, another thread from the past, with lots of photos in my own posts missing.  I'll see if I can locate the proper ones and restore them.

Please, Wayne, no more photos of Bertram's. The pain is too great. 

Rich

[doctorwayne]

Wow, another thread from the past, with lots of photos in my own posts missing.  I'll see if I can locate the proper ones and restore them.

There were, not too many years ago, three plastic suppliers in Hamilton, Ontario, but, as far as I'm aware, there's only one left now.  That's P&A Plastics, 150 Main St. E. (the old Murphy Bros. building, if you're familiar with the city).

If you're not near Hamilton, simply type "plastic suppliers in Ontario" into the google search thingy, and you'll get lots of options, hopefully something near to your location.  The prices, naturally, have increased since the time this thread was first active.

EDIT:  Aha!  It appears that the photobucket site is down at the moment, so the pictures on page one of this thread should re-appear when that situation ends.

If you want to see the photos (and a bit of a "how-to") you can see pretty well all of it HERE

Wayne

[Muskoka Kyle]

where in ontario are you buying from???

[HaroldA]

wickman

 

HaroldA

I needed two for a bridge that is a about 3 feet away from the edge of the layout.  I built mine out of wood blocks and then printed off concrete colored paper on my printer.  I wrapped the woodblocks in this paper and then used colored chalks to provide some weathering.  Once they were installed and scenicked, they blended in and looked quite good.

 

 

 

 

Harold a picture is worth a thousand words.

 

I know I know.....I keep a camera and tripod down there all the time since I like to track progress.  Right now this particular area is involved in a facelift so maybe after it's done......

 

[doctorwayne]

Damon

Wayne are you pre coloring your plaster mix, or painting them after they are out of the molds?

 

The colouring is done after the casting has been cleaned-up and sized to fit its site.  I don't recall for certain, but I believe I used thinned PollyScale paint applied as a wash - not likely an out-of-the-bottle colour, but something mixed to what I thought looked right.

Wayne

[wickman]

HaroldA

I needed two for a bridge that is a about 3 feet away from the edge of the layout.  I built mine out of wood blocks and then printed off concrete colored paper on my printer.  I wrapped the woodblocks in this paper and then used colored chalks to provide some weathering.  Once they were installed and scenicked, they blended in and looked quite good.

 

Harold a picture is worth a thousand words.

[HaroldA]

I needed two for a bridge that is a about 3 feet away from the edge of the layout.  I built mine out of wood blocks and then printed off concrete colored paper on my printer.  I wrapped the woodblocks in this paper and then used colored chalks to provide some weathering.  Once they were installed and scenicked, they blended in and looked quite good.

[Kyle]

On page 48 of the October 2013 issue of Model Railroader, it describes how to  model a concrete loading dock using concrete. It was a 50-50 blend of DAP concrete patch and hydrocal that is mixed together before adding water.

This method should also work well with bridge abutments.

[Damon]

Wayne are you pre coloring your plaster mix, or painting them after they are out of the molds?

[Kyle]

ACY

Concrete has a coarse surface.  In HO scale, real concrete would be about 87.1 times as coarse as it should be.  That's why I have no interest in trying it.  However, Wayne used plaster.  I've also seen plaster used to good effect by others.

Real wood has the same problem.

 

Regular concrete would be to course.  In the article, it said that the concrete used was for securing bolts, and that it is a lot smoother than regular concrete (and comes in smaller amounts). I will look for the article tonight and post the name of the concrete.

[cowman]

If there is not a plastic supplier in your area, try a sign shop.  My little, local sign shop will get me 4x8 sheets.  No shipping charges as long as they come with his order.

Good luck,

Richard

[wickman]

doctorwayne

For large sheets of styrene in various thicknesses, look in the Yellow Pages (Huh? ) or on-line for "plastics suppliers".   Here in southern Ontario, a 4'x8' sheet of .060" styrene is about $25.00 - and you don't need a pick-up truck to carry it home:  they'll roll it up and tape it, and it'll fit even in the front seat of a small car.

Wayne

 

Thanks Wayne wouldn't you know it I was just down in southern Ontario. I did manage to stop at Curry's for plaster cloth in Whitby, which by the way if your in Markham Curry's has a clearance sale on there plaster cloth.

[doctorwayne]

For large sheets of styrene in various thicknesses, look in the Yellow Pages (Huh? ) or on-line for "plastics suppliers".   Here in southern Ontario, a 4'x8' sheet of .060" styrene is about $25.00 - and you don't need a pick-up truck to carry it home:  they'll roll it up and tape it, and it'll fit even in the front seat of a small car.

Wayne

[wickman]

doctorwayne

 

wickman

Wayne can you tell be what dimensions you would use for the styrene mold for the base, top  and  the step? Im HO ,  thinking you are as well.

Thanks

 

 

 

 

Lynn, the dimensions are suited to each particular bridge - I usually make the piers and abutments a little taller than required, then file or sand the bottoms until they're at the proper height.  Most of my bridges are on grades, so while the same mould can be used for each similar piece, the individual heights may vary - that's why all of the moulds are used upside-down and are at least as tall as the requirements of the highest bridge.
As for steps in piers or abutments, you'll need to measure the height of the bottom member of your particular bridge and size the mould accordingly.  Don't forget to leave room for bridge shoes if you're using them, too.

As for the moulds themselves, they're all built from .060" sheet styrene.  I buy it in 4'x8' sheets, as the same material is also useful for kitbashing and scratchbuilding structures and rolling stock.

Wayne

 

Thanks Wayne.  I'll have to do some measurements then. Where would you find .060 4x8 sheets of styrene? I was lucky enough to get a rather small piece of evergreen .040 styrene from out hobby shop.

 

[doctorwayne]

wickman

Wayne can you tell be what dimensions you would use for the styrene mold for the base, top  and  the step? Im HO ,  thinking you are as well.

Thanks

 

Lynn, the dimensions are suited to each particular bridge - I usually make the piers and abutments a little taller than required, then file or sand the bottoms until they're at the proper height.  Most of my bridges are on grades, so while the same mould can be used for each similar piece, the individual heights may vary - that's why all of the moulds are used upside-down and are at least as tall as the requirements of the highest bridge.
As for steps in piers or abutments, you'll need to measure the height of the bottom member of your particular bridge and size the mould accordingly.  Don't forget to leave room for bridge shoes if you're using them, too.

As for the moulds themselves, they're all built from .060" sheet styrene.  I buy it in 4'x8' sheets, as the same material is also useful for kitbashing and scratchbuilding structures and rolling stock.

Wayne

[bogp40]

ACY

Concrete has a coarse surface.  In HO scale, real concrete would be about 87.1 times as coarse as it should be.  That's why I have no interest in trying it.  However, Wayne used plaster.  I've also seen plaster used to good effect by others.

Real wood has the same problem.

 

Hydrocal is my choice for this, the plaster is coarse enough, pending the mold or pouring and it can be chipped, gouged and scored. the chipping/ breaking gives a great scale cobbling for aged concrete.

Stone capping is poured. ripped Hydrocal castings cobbled to show aging

Same distressing to production WS castings also can help prior to painting/ weathering

 

[ACY Tom]

Concrete has a coarse surface.  In HO scale, real concrete would be about 87.1 times as coarse as it should be.  That's why I have no interest in trying it.  However, Wayne used plaster.  I've also seen plaster used to good effect by others.

Real wood has the same problem.

[wickman]

Wayne can you tell be what dimensions you would use for the styrene mold for the base, top  and  the step? Im HO ,  thinking you are as well.

Thanks

[Kyle]

Great job Wayne!!!  That looks awesome.  The plaster turns out well, and the weathering job is good.  

Has any one here used actual concrete?  There was an article in MRR awhile ago about making a loading dock out of real concrete.  I would think that using the concrete would make the piers and abutments look more realistic.

 

[wickman]

Great post Wayne.

[doctorwayne]

Thanks for your kind assessment of them, Jamie.   They're kinda growin' on me, the more that I look at them.

Wayne

[engineAL]

Thanks for the pictures. Your castings look really great!

[doctorwayne]

I removed the bridges and added some weathering, using pastels applied with a brush.  While I'm not overly pleased with the results of that job, it did help to accentuate the board detail.  These first two bridges will eventually be surrounded by trees, so most of the weathering won't be too noticeable:

I also applied some pastels to the footings of the towers on the taller bridge.  They're simply squares of .060" sheet styrene, cemented together with lacquer thinner, then filed to shape. 

This bridge was also lifted-out to add some weathering:

Wayne