Using Bachman EZ Track and am trying to install a bridge on one section of 11" radius turn.
Is a bridge available for this or do I have to make my own? Can the track be removed from the roadbed to allow for the use of piers / trestles?
Bridges are not curved, they are straight.
Curved does not engineer out too well.
Well, yes but… what they really do is use several straight bridges a few degrees off of each other.
You are building in N scale, so that makes it easy, You use HO scale bridges (however many you need, and lay the curved track on these. The weight is transmitted to the structure as if it were a straight bridge, but instead of two tracks, there is one curved track.
Anyway, take a close look at the prototype bridges, and see what you can build with what you can get.
ROAR
LION got your bridge straight.
I think most of the pre-ballasted track has the ties molded into the plastic, thus not removable. I would buy some sectional track that does not have the build in roadbed. You could even have a different radius if you didn’t want the bridge to follow such a sharp curve. I don’t know if anyone makes bridge track in N, I expect they do, but it may not be curvable.
Good luck,
Richard
Think Ill just reroute the river!
Make your own bridge.
I have built several, using scale dimension lumber. Walthers sells it, made by Northeastern Scale Lumber.
Wilton.
Now that is one good looking bridge
Daff- don’t be afraid to try making your own. As Lion said, most prototype bridges are made of straight segments, and it’s a fairly easy process to make some cits with a razor saw and glue the pieces back together. The one exception to the "straight segments"rule is stone viaducts. Several of the European manufacutere (Vollmer, Faller) make models in HO scale, so it’s worth checking inN. Try the Walthers catalog or website.
Daff,
Thanks for your kind words. The inspiration for this bridge came from a photo in the February 2012 Model Railroader, page 87. Here’s another bridge I made
It takes weeks to do one of these, if you only have a photo and your imagination to go on. But for a custom fit application, it’s worth it.
Wilton.
Making your own from “scale” girders, check out some prototype bridges. Or check into Micro Engineering steel viaduct, they offer kits and any variety of add-ons. Even if you do fabricate your bridge the ME bridge flex track would be a good choice to transition Don’t know what era or style bridge you are looking to do,and I model HO and not familiar w/ all the N scale products that are available to you.
Even though there are very few curved bridge kits on the market there are curved bridges in the real world. I am finding that looking at pics on the internet helps to visualize what prototypes really look like and how to build them.
I need to make a bridge over a stream that looks exactly like the second picture, trying to find the proper scale girders that the C&O RR used just about everywhere to go underneath the ties. Other than that it looks pretty simple.
Using EZ track you could either leave the roadbed in place and just support it with girders, then piers, or whatever you like. Or you might be able to remove the rails and lay it down on wood ties, or somehow solder rails to the ends of the EZ track. Endless possibilities- it just depends on how realistic you want it to look and how much time and effort that you want to put into it.
These two pics are exactly what I was going for. Out of a tunnel and across the bridge. Part of my problem has been resolved. I used Atlas track with no road bed and it works fine. That will give me the see thru look from the top down and now I can model some tressels / supports to go along with it.
Thanks all
You do realize that these bridges in HObbyguys’s photos are not curved don’t you? The track on top of them is curved. If you look at the first photo at the bottom of the girder, you will see that it is straight. Many short sections installed at an angle makes a curved bridge, as was said before.
Elmer and others are right, “curved bridges” are actually built on short straight structures. The ties and the rails are the only parts that actually follow the curve exactly. But this makes it easier for us modellers because its easier to glue together straight girders and supports than to try and actually curve them.
In the pic you will see the “bridge” ties, next to laying your own timber and handlaying/ spiking the rails, the Micro Engineering bridge flex is as close as you will get to this. You need to transition from the EZ track anyway for any open decked bridge, I would suggest checking out the ME product.