For the past two weeks I have embarked on a construction project involving a covered bridge built along the left side of my grandson's track. His track is up off the floor so I can add stuff to his without compromising walking space. I'm building it out of balsa wood. Found a place on line that sells the stuff by the stick, the block, the sheet, in all sorts of sizes. I'm trying to remain as true to scale on a 1/48 scale as I can without making this project impossible to complete. I may be wrong, if I am please chime in and correct my thinking, but since 1 inch equals 48 inches, or as it is well known to all, 4 feet, and 1/4 inch equals 1 foot, then doing the match I summized that 1/16 of an inch probably comes to somewhere in the neighborhood of 3 inches. If that's the case, then 1/8 would be 6 inches, 3/16 is 9 inches, thus bringing us to 1/4 which is 12 inches. So for every 16th of an inch you gain 3 inches of length. That being the case, finding a measurement that equals and exact 2x4 or 1 1/2x3 1/2, using that oddball board forming method which has become the norm, is practically impossible.
I barely know how to deal in 16ths, don't get me started on 32nds and you might as well institutionalize me if you expect me to drop down into the 64ths arena. So trying to stick to scale, my support poles and roof beams and any and all beams that would have been a 6x6 on a real bridge, are actually 9x9's. I used 3/16 inch cube balsa sticks. The bridge I chose for my muse is a bridge out of north Carolina that was built to be a vehicle bridge or walk bridge. Instead of completely covered it is an open air design with a roof. I figured the less cutting I had to do to cover it, the better. Each pole appeared to be about 20 feet apart, or 5 inches, and in between each set of poles, the architect designed a diamond-shaped trim. I used 1/8 cubes or 6x6 for those.
Not as square or true to plumb as I would like but for the most part the measurements match and keep in mind this thing only has to be tall enough to keep the train from taking out each roof support beam as it makes it's first and what would be last trip through the bridge. I tested my heights before I got too far into this, we are good.
The problem is that to get a height tall enough to keep tragedy from happening, I put myself danger close to the ceiling where the roof line is concerned. I want a pitched roof and I managed to get one, but building it is a chore working that close to the ceiling. Super glue makes for having to decide real quick where you want something and you have to get very good at setting things into place before it decides, "sorry mack, this is where it goes". Patience is a requirement for this thing. Something I am in vast supply of but for some reason unable to utilize. My wife ignores the cussing bless her heart.
