Long-span HO bridge options

[Anonymous]

[font=Comic Sans MS]I'm re-starting model RR'ing after some 40 years and finally retiring. I have an A/C 9x16 model room build over garage with entry door near one corner. I want to have around-the-wall track plan instead of dog-bone in order to maximize turn radii. Problem: I need a realistic looking HO scale bridge to span the entryway at the door which can be preferably removed for visitor entry. It needs a clear span of 38-40 inches. Double track would be preferred, but not required. I also prefer not to totally scratchbuild, so am looking for either a kit (I realize a fit is unlikely) or a kit or kits to kitbash, but don't have any idea where to look first. Any thoughts on leads?

Many thanks.

[Anonymous]

I too have the same engineering dilema. I'm doing a 14X27 around the wall and need to somehow come up with a bridge to span the doorway. Preferably a double mainline. Scratchbuliding may be my only choice. If I'm going to have a duckunder this may be more attractive and I will increast the grade to the doorway to get it up some to relieve the ducking. Removeable would be good too. Any ideas would be appreciated also here. Thanks.

[Hal M. Hare]

Rather than a single span, consider mounting a series of shorter bridges with shorter spans on a single base that you can raise up for entrance. Raise the base with the sectional bridge set on it.

[ARTHILL]

I kitbashed this bridge from the - Faller Gmbh
Bietschtal Bridge. It is pretty strong and could be a lift out or swing bridge. There were lots of CV girders added and lots of European decking cut off.







Walthers has it on sale now.

[Anonymous]

I am in need to build a bridge as well. On my 35 x 15 layout I am planning on building a 6 foot long bridge. An arch was the plan but the engineering in it is to much, so I am thinking a very large trestle. There have been some very good posts on peoples bridge construction, that i am looking hard into. I am also looking into buying a couple of bridge kits and doing some bashing with them.
I have found some bridge design programs on the net, but after downloading them they ended being crap.

[Anonymous]

I hate to say it, but you may want to re-think this design. Any bridge that looks good in HO is going to have lots of small parts. It may be quite strong in place, but somewhat fragile while being installed and removed, not to mention stored. Rather than delicately removing it, sometimes you'll be tempted to duck under. And sooner or later, you'll bump it with your head or something you're carrying.

Something like Hal suggested would be much better long-term.

Another possibility would be a horizontally-hinged section, that can be opened like a gate. It could include a bridge, or just scenery. I built one about 3 feet long, of plywood, but haven't put any scenery on it yet. You'll need some sort of locating mechanism, perhaps magnet catches or a slide bolt, for the open side. And, you can open and close it with one hand, and don't need a secure, protected place to put it!

[Anonymous]

Seems like finding the right bridge for your layout is going arround. I'm looking too. Mine comes out of a elevated curve goes about 8' and goes into a curve again. About half of it has a yard under it. I started with tressels and basswood and was thinking of making the tressels and wood look like a mountain range with a blasted thru area for the track crossing under, but this elevated section is in the front of the layout and would hide alot by doing this. I figured if I found a few straight and a few curved bridges that matched each other I could put them in a row (end to end) and kind of make it like Hells Gate bridge ( which is actually much longer than what you see if you include the approach on either side). Any Ideas?

[MisterBeasley]

Since you are just re-starting after 40 years, I'll give you an idea based on what I've learned in the past 12 months, after being out of the hobby for 40 years myself.

You have a lot to learn. For me, it's been a series of "engineering challenges," learning skills and techniques, and making a lot up as I went along. Unless you've been an active hobbyist for a while, you probably need to do some basic trackwork, put together a few kits, burn your fingers on the soldering iron, and do all those things you need to do to become a 21st century model railroader.

Since this bridge will be the first thing you see coming in the door, you're going to want it to be quite nice. If you're like me, you're not ready to build it yet. Instead, I would build a temporary bridge, complete with wiring to "kill" the adjacent tracks and keep your prize locomotives off the diving team. Start with a 2x4, or a 4x4 if you want a double-track. Try painting it gray, and maybe practice painting and weathering it like stone. On top, get a few low-cost bridges that you can just assemble and fit together. (Atlas bridges are great for this.) Screw or glue the bridges to the wood, and you have a rock-solid "causeway" that will span the gap but not cost a lot. It won't take a lot of time to build, but for now it will do the job. Later, when you've done some of your own custom scratchbuilding and kitbashing, and maybe some hydrocal casting, you can decide what kind of bridge you really want there. And by then, you'll know exactly what you want to build.

[Anonymous]

Thanks to everyone for some good advice and suggestions. Considering my "staleness" with the hobby right now, the "temporary bridge" suggested by MisterBeasley sounds like a reasonable way to proceed right now.