on my new layout I would like to add some water to it and have it go off the side of the layout. I only have 1" foam under the layoutI would love to make it into a draw bridge but there are 3 tracks where the eater would go under. unfortunately my tracks are not perfectly spaced apart so going with a factory made bridge wouldn’t work. not to mention I haven’t seen any for three tracks. Has anyone made their own drawbridge from scratch? how hard/easy is it to do? and does anyone have pictures of their creations?
Don’t know of any prototype for a 3 track bridge.
Would two bridges work at your location. A double track and a single track. One could be an older design.
Perhaps they were built by different railroads.
This video shows 3 tracks on two bridges. One bridge is single track. The other is a double track gauntlet section.
You’re right about that. I am not aware of any 3-track drawbridge ready built.
Scratchbuilding a drawbridge is not exactly easy. I recently finished scratchbuilding a double track vertical lift bridge. I have posted several threads on this project.
The closest that I can come to accomplishing something close to what you want to do was building a series of three single track bascule bridges from Walthers Cornerstone kits.
Rich
ya I like the bascule bridge but the tracks are too close together for me to fit 3 of them like that unfortunately. I do like the design though and that is what Im was thinking if I could custom make one to fit all 3 tracks and their spacing that would be the most ideal
That is what I might have to do IF I can get them to fit but it wouldn’t help for a draw bridge
Bridges are attractive scenic elements, but is a draw bridge really justified? Would your water section support larger ships that would need a drawbridge to pass?
A girder bridge would not be difficult. A trio of trestle bridges would work, and most other fixed bridge types would be relatively easy to widen to three tracks.
Hello All,
Is there any way you could merge two of the three tracks together so you would only have a two-track crossing?
Then on the other side have the tracks diverge back to three lines.
A track diagram would be very helpful.
Hope this helps.
Here in Chicago, bascule bridges and vertical lift bridges are used not for the passage of large ships but rather for tall sailed pleasure craft.
Rich
unfortunately no. mine is an oval inside an oval inside an oval. yes I know kind of boring lol
ya that’s kind of what my thinking was for this since I only have 1" of foam to cut away for the water
Hello All,
So, you have three (3) separate concentric ovals that are not connected?
How big is your pike (layout)?
What size are the ovals?
Are you using flextrack or sectional?
Again, a diagram would be extremely helpful.
Hope this helps.
Is that what is called a gantlet (gauntlet?) track? That would be both interesting to model and interesting to operate.
Dave
so my layout is 24" radius with a 9 inch section in the middle of the 180 degree part of the oval on each side then the middle loop is 24" radius with a 6" section in the middle of the 180 degree part then a 22" radius for the inside loop with a 3" section in the middle of the 180 degree bend. they are all connected with #8 switches only on 1 side of the straight part of the oval this is all sectional track with flex track on the opposite straight portion of the oval. I would post a picture of the layout but I am unsure of how to do so here. The over all layout is 5’ by 11’