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Reply to "Continuing Saga …"

I followed all the steps in yesterday's post and finished the bridges except for the final step, installation. I did the painting outside. It was a nice hot day with a mild breeze and the Krylon paint dried very quickly (like in a baking oven).

 

The rivets, while being somewhat understated, look pretty good and I would be inclined to buy more of them from MicroMark for future structural projects. I finished the walkways for the second deck truss and added the rail stanchions. The "Blacken It" worked perfectly on the .032" brass wire so I didn't have to paint the brass and worry about it peeling. I'm now ready to start installation and will maybe get to it tomorrow. Part of the second truss walkway is going to be on a short piece of curved track that just enters this bridge. This curve was one of the reasons why I had to use a deck instead of through truss.

 

Bridges Complete 1

 I haven't weathered the bridges yet and will do so by using some judicious applications of rust. My railroad is a Class 1 pike and they keep their infrastructure in pretty good condition, so I don't intend on any massive weathering or creating anything "backwoods-looking", but I also want it to look reasonably realistic.

 

Bridges Complete 2

 

I'm glad I chose to use "rattle-can" paint instead of the airbrush. This job took a full large can of Oxide Red Primer. The Bowser handrail stanchions worked out nicely and weren't too expensive. The Plastruct bridge kits build a very substantial structure that should do very well in service. While it's a bit "hefty-looking", I think it looks pretty good for a major railroad bridge.

 

I dropped the deck plate bridge and lost the pin holding the bottom half of one of the bridge shoes. I looked for it, but it was gone so I machined one on the Taig Lathe. You can just make out a piece of shiny brass at the hinge point. I paint it before installation.

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  • Bridges Complete 1
  • Bridges Complete 2

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