The new wider north lift tower is done. There are 32 pieces altogether and it measures 1.5 long x 2.1 wide x 5.5 inches tall. Now it's ready for the winch pulley, safety ladder and a few other details. Next is the south tower which will be the same dimensions. Joe
This afternoon I found the spacers needed for the center hub for the lift winches from my collection of odds and ends box. They are 0.5 diameter and 1.00 inches long. The total length of the winch will be 1.2 inches. All I need to do now is order a couple of safety ladders for each lift towers. Joe Joe
This evening I finished the main structure of the south tower, will install the diagonal braces in the morning. After that will start making piers and getting ready for the bridges to be in a more permanent installation. Will take a photo of the entire bridge tomorrow afternoon. Joe
I used one whole package of I beams that had 8 pieces 14 inches long each and only had a piece 0.10 inches long left over. Was really sweeting that I wouldn't have enough to finish. Altogether there's 9.33 feet of I beams involved to make both towers. You wouldn't think looking at them there is that much material in the assemblies. Joe
Just finished the south lift tower, it looks the same as the north tower. It's ready for details, the winch end plates are in the mail and I expect to receive them around Monday or Tuesday. I need to order the safety ladders and get some rust colored thread for the cables between the winch and counterbalances. Will post a photo of all three bridges a little later. Joe
Walla, the Arkansas River Bridge project is on module 05 ready for a more permanent position. Next project is to make the piers out of foam and carve the river banks to prepare for pouring water. I found some drawings and photos of the piers thank you John Dill. Will work on this while I wait for the winch end plates and safety ladders to get to our mailbox. With the south tower in position it extends the total length of the bridges to 45.5 inches. I'm really excited about how this project has come together. Also need to invest some time to install the overhead valance with better lighting. Joe
Thank you guys for the compliments!!! There are several small details I want to do going by the photos of the real bridge. T This afternoon I made the piers the pylons for the bridge using foam. Will carve the stones with a pen and then they will be ready for paint. Took photos of all the pieces outside where the light is great, it's a gorgeous sunny 82 degree day. Next is to make the counterbalances and prepare the bridges for paint. Was wanting to set the whole thing on the piers but it's too windy and it kept falling over. Was chasing some of the parts across the courtyard. Haha. Joe
MK and guys, the total length of the bridges and lift towers is 45.5 inches, converted to real length makes it 606.65 feet The real bridge is 1,764 feet long and the longest span is 196 feet, converted to N scale makes it 132.30 inches long (11 feet) with the main span being 14.70 inches. As you can see I've modelled only a portion of it and my main span is a lot longer than the real bridge. Sometimes you have to take liberties with the model railroad stuff but that's what makes it fun to make a model to portraiy the real thing even if it's off a bit. The layout room is 11 x 10 feet, so if I modelled the whole bridge I would need a lot bigger room. After dinner I made the counterbalances and I'm working on the piers carving the stones. When I finish all the the pieces of the bridge will be ready to paint. Hope to paint sometime tomorrow afternoon. Joe Counterbalances.
Not trying to throw a monkey wrench in the works...but...are you going to model that building in the middle of the lift bridge ?? Asking for a friend...lol.
