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Stone Arch Viaduct / Bridge

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    January 2014
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Posted by ROBERT PETRICK on Saturday, August 31, 2019 4:56 PM

freeway3

I grew up not far fron the Thomas Viaduct, and used it as a basis for my model.  My (previous) model RR is long gone, but my abandoned blog lives on:

viaduct1

viaduct2

...and a couple of under construction shots:

viaduct3

viaduct4

I made hydrocal castings from silicone molds, using CAD modeled & 3D printed (SLA) masters.  More (and larger) photos and a complete how-to on my blog (the how to posting is on the second page, dated Jan 13 2013):

http://basrr.blogspot.com/

Hey Ed-

Two things:

First, nice layout. You should post more often. And second, I just noticed your avatar: The Ruthless Toothless Broad Street Bully. They don't make 'em like that anymore.

Robert 

LINK to SNSR Blog


  • Member since
    January 2017
  • From: Southern Florida Gulf Coast
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Posted by SeeYou190 on Saturday, August 31, 2019 2:17 PM

railandsail
How to construct them is another big question mark for me.

.

The best viaducts I have seen were made by piecing O scale tunnel portals side by side for the length needed.

.

railandsail
Interestingly, it was commisioned and built so early on by B&O's first president,...and its still in use TODAY !!

.

Not surprising at all. There are ancient stone viaducts many times older than that one is use, or still standing, all around Europe.

.

A stone viaduct will last thousands of years. It is more work to remove one than it is worth. Many will probably remain for many lifetimes.

.

JaBear
Once upon a time, when I had time, I built this viaduct using 4” x 2” pine covered with 1/8” MDF, and card.

.

Holy Cats! Bear... that is amazing. I don't know if you have shared pictures of that before, but I love seeing it now.

.

-Kevin

.

Living the dream.

  • Member since
    February 2009
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Posted by railandsail on Saturday, August 31, 2019 12:24 PM

freeway3

I grew up not far fron the Thomas Viaduct, and used it as a basis for my model.  My (previous) model RR is long gone, but my abandoned blog lives on:

viaduct1

viaduct2

...and a couple of under construction shots:

viaduct3

viaduct4

I made hydrocal castings from silicone molds, using CAD modeled & 3D printed (SLA) masters.  More (and larger) photos and a complete how-to on my blog (the how to posting is on the second page, dated Jan 13 2013):

http://basrr.blogspot.com/

 

 

 

Very nice looking job, but I could not find the 'complete how to'  ?

  • Member since
    February 2009
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Posted by railandsail on Saturday, August 31, 2019 12:10 PM

BigDaddy

Marklin of Sweden has a good video on creating a modern stone bridge.  No reason why you could not use his foam techniques to create the Thomas Viaduct

I've reviewed that and there is just too much custom carving work involved.

 

 

 

  • Member since
    June 2004
  • From: MD
  • 143 posts
Posted by freeway3 on Saturday, August 31, 2019 12:00 PM

I grew up not far fron the Thomas Viaduct, and used it as a basis for my model.  My (previous) model RR is long gone, but my abandoned blog lives on:

viaduct1

viaduct2

...and a couple of under construction shots:

viaduct3

viaduct4

I made hydrocal castings from silicone molds, using CAD modeled & 3D printed (SLA) masters.  More (and larger) photos and a complete how-to on my blog (the how to posting is on the second page, dated Jan 13 2013):

http://basrr.blogspot.com/

 

 

Ed

  • Member since
    August 2011
  • From: A Comfy Cave, New Zealand
  • 6,251 posts
Posted by "JaBear" on Saturday, August 31, 2019 5:14 AM
Thanks Dave. I drew the lines with pencil before I started “carving” but if you click on the photo to enlarge it, you’ll see that my hand was not that steady at all!! Which actually aided me in obtaining that slightly irregular quarried stone look, I was trying to achieve.LaughLaugh
Cheers, the Bear.Smile

"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."

  • Member since
    July 2006
  • From: Bradford, Ontario
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Posted by hon30critter on Saturday, August 31, 2019 3:19 AM

JaBear!

That is a great piece of modelling! The accuracy of the joint lines is amazing!

I have to build some stone piers for the club because the commercial offerings aren't tall enough. I don't think that my hands are steady enough to carve the joints myself so I'm hoping I can find some suitable molded styrene sheets. If it looks half as good as yours I will be happy.

Cheers!!

Dave

I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!

  • Member since
    August 2011
  • From: A Comfy Cave, New Zealand
  • 6,251 posts
Posted by "JaBear" on Friday, August 30, 2019 5:04 AM
Once upon a time, when I had time, I built this viaduct using 4” x 2” pine covered with 1/8” MDF, and card. I was lucky enough to have a fellow model railroader with a commercial laser engraver do the top brick work for me. I did the stone work with a dentist’s drill bit and a Dremel type hand tool.
 
Stone viaduct by Bear, on Flickr
 
It may be more robust than you need but then it is part of a modular exhibition layout.
Cheers, the Bear.Smile

"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."

  • Member since
    July 2006
  • From: 4610 Metre's North of the Fortyninth on the left coast of Canada
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Posted by BATMAN on Thursday, August 29, 2019 5:59 PM

I was following a guy that built a massive viaduct out of extruded foam, it looked really good. The pier on the right is one I made out of extruded foam while watching the hockey game.

Brent

"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."

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    December 2015
  • From: Shenandoah Valley
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Posted by BigDaddy on Thursday, August 29, 2019 5:51 PM

Marklin of Sweden has a good video on creating a modern stone bridge.  No reason why you could not use his foam techniques to create the Thomas Viaduct

Henry

COB Potomac & Northern

Shenandoah Valley

  • Member since
    July 2006
  • From: Central Vermont
  • 4,565 posts
Posted by cowman on Thursday, August 29, 2019 5:37 PM

I think I  would use extruded foam.  I  have seen stone piers made from it, that were scribed to look like stone.  The foam is easy to cut and form, also strong enough to hold trains.  Hot wire/knife make smoother cuts, carving and and sanding make a mess, but don't create noxious fumes.

Good luck,

Richard

  • Member since
    February 2009
  • 1,983 posts
Stone Arch Viaduct / Bridge
Posted by railandsail on Thursday, August 29, 2019 10:05 AM

Stone Arch Viaduct / Bridge

I've included both names as I have seen folks address them with either name. I think what I am trying to create is principally a viaduct, but yesterday I inserted a bridge in a portion of it. I did it in a straight track portion, so I could alternately allow for it to be included in the final trackwork, or perhaps not.

The bottom deck of my layout is to represent principally the city Baltimore, home of America's start with the railroad industry. There is a neat stone arch bridge there in the suburbs, the Thomas viaduct that is even more famous as I read more about it. I wanted to include such a viaduct on my layout as a landmark representative of Baltimore.

I recently became aware that I had several photos I had posted of this viaduct that were not actually the Thomas viaduct, even thought they look very similar. One was a double track affair, the Thomas one, and one was a single track affair located in another state. I'll get into that later.

Turns out I have need of both a single track portion and a double track portion. How to construct them is another big question mark for me. I am making a mock-up using foamcore board right now, and it is presenting even more challenges than I originally anticipated.

Thomas Viaduct

from  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Viaduct

The Thomas Viaduct spans the Patapsco River and Patapsco Valley between Relay, Maryland and Elkridge, Maryland, USA. It was commissioned by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O); built between July 4, 1833, and July 4, 1835; and named for Philip E. Thomas, the company's first president.[3]

At its completion, the Thomas Viaduct was the largest railroad bridge in the United States[4] and the country's first multi-span masonry railroad bridge to be built on a curve. It remains the world's oldest multiple arched stone railroad bridge.[5] In 1964, it was designated as a National Historic Landmark.

 

Interestingly, it was commisioned and built so early on by B&O's first president,...and its still in use TODAY !!

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