# HO trestle for a friend



## midlifekrisiz

so a co-worker (again) asked me to build him a rather long trestle for his layout that he is working on.

the bridge will be built in 4 sections due to the length of it totaling almost 6 feet

will have a straight section (being built in 3 sections) that will be almost 5 feet in length and then a curve at the end into the yard that will be just around a foot in length

triple laminated stringers





butter tarts and coke a cola to keep the worker happy



was going to make 3 long triple stringers but decided that doing the bridge in 4 sections would be better



a 5 foot straight section would be very hard to transport to the customers house in the end


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## rkenney

:smilie_daumenpos:At 435 scale feet that is a whopper of a trestle.

Be sure to post some progress pictures. We like to see technique.

Looking forward to seeing the finished trestle!


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## midlifekrisiz

435 scale feet! wow didn't look at it that way lol

quick question I have is how long is a bridge tie? I am going to hand lay the ties on the bridge due to the fact that the fast track ties are not near long enough....would you lay new 10 footers spaced the same as the plastic ties then attach the fast track to that with the plastic ties intact or hand nail the track down? (going for best look with this one)


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## midlifekrisiz

here is the three west end straight sections of stringers made so far



here is the start to the bridge ties......these are scale 10' ties which I believe is long enough


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## midlifekrisiz

got a bit of work done on the bents jig today (have to go to hobby store tomorrow for wood) and then started on the 75' suspended piece that will go over the creek that my friend doesn't know he has to make yet 





top and bottom together and a quick look at what ties will look like



cross bracing in top portion



support bracing in one side


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## midlifekrisiz

decided to get rid of the large supports (didn't look right to me)
and went with outer and inner supports instead.



without bolts



with bolts



adding 12' ties to the stringers





all ties placed on span.



edge pieces for ties





took the first jig apart and started on a new one.



so far so good ......more work tomorrow as the weather stinks right now


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## midlifekrisiz

got a bit more work done today one this bridge


finished off making the bent jig for this bridge





proof that I am doing the work lol





and here are 3 out of 4 bents that will support the ends of the center span.


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## The New Guy

midlifekrisiz said:


> ...*Mushroom Tarts with Bacon *and coke a cola to keep the worker happy


Fixed that for you...now you just need someone to fix those for you. 

so now it's a food thread...

trestle work looks good too.


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## midlifekrisiz

changed my mind again and instead of hand nailing the rails I glued the rail plastic ties to the wood ties I had installed on the deck.



after adding the supports for the ends of the ties I started on mounting the bents to the center span.



and wala she's standing



added the walkway and fire barrel stand frames



here you can just make out the wire that I am adding to tie the bottom rails of the suspension center part



will be finishing the wires supports tonight then other than finishing the fire barrel stands I think this part will be done.


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## midlifekrisiz

well after nursing a bit of a cold for a few days i have got back to building this bridge 

details details

adding fire barrel stands





decided to just glue the 12' bridge ties to the plastic ties attached to the brass rail (and yes i clean out the extra glue) i then use a straight piece of stock to press them against along one side to lign them all up 



then once that is dried i clamp them to the stringers



here i mocked up the bridge with one section of track supported by 2 bents just to see what it is going to look like and second one is with 2 pieces of track compleeted on the stringers





now i need to build alot of bents before i go any further with this....get this part standing on its own then i can move on .....so far so good.


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## midlifekrisiz

so wile I am down waiting on parts for my Yamaha Grizzly to come in I sat down yesterday and hammered out some more work on my friends trestle.

the last stringer (and longest) being glued to the tracks



some mock up pics (this thing is long)


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## midlifekrisiz

hey guys what would be the proper spacing for the bents? I have read 14' & 16'


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## D&J Railroad

Are you building this from a template or just designing as you move along?


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## rkenney

Here's a trestle building article from the April 1934 Popular Science. Don't know if it's the most definitive source, but their models were usually pretty accurate. It shows 15 feet.









The work you've done is excellent! 

Article below as a PDF. :smokin:


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## midlifekrisiz

thanks for the specs (always handy)

managed to get the bents onto the curve section of the bridge today and then realized I should add one more piece of curve to the end of the bridge.





then started adding inner bracing to the bents


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## midlifekrisiz

been working on this for a couple of nights in a row after work 

getting all the support bracing in place





starting to look like a bridge now


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## Fire21

That's really really nice!! Tall too!


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## IlliniViking

It's really starting to take shape. Looking good.


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## midlifekrisiz

Fire21 said:


> That's really really nice!! Tall too!


thanks 
it is 50' in height (ish)


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## midlifekrisiz

IlliniViking said:


> It's really starting to take shape. Looking good.


thank you sir


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## midlifekrisiz

picked up some more wood and went to town on the bracing for the curve section.

inside of the curve had to have all the horizontal bracing all cut individually.





outside of the curve piece I was able to score the boards prior to staining and create the illusion that each board is individual


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## DonR

Oh my, the work that went into that trestle. Nice job. More importantly,
the enjoyment of doing it. That's so much a part of this
hobby that is too easily ignored. All modellers should be
encouraged to spend whatever time they can working with
your creativity and you hands. The rewards are
plentiful.

I enjoy running the trains, but am forever coming up with
one more building or shed or trackside equipment that
I can make. I'm not that good at it, but I love doing it.


Don


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## midlifekrisiz

couple updated pics





and here is what the full length will be





sooooo many bents to build


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## Bwells

Excellent workmanship!


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## sstlaure

Holy crap.....really nice job!


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## raleets

FABULOUS work!
I can only imagine the number of hours you've invested in this gem.
Great job.


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## midlifekrisiz

raleets said:


> FABULOUS work!
> I can only imagine the number of hours you've invested in this gem.
> Great job.


couple hrs a night after work and weekends about 3 weeks to do the curve.


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## tjcruiser

Wow ... that's looking FABULOUS. What tedious work!!!

TJ


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## Cycleops

Fantastic! Looks like it's made from giant pretzels.


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## rkenney

That's really good work1 Thanks for the update, I've been looking forward to your progress. It's inspirational.

Trestles are fascinating structures. Site built with the materials on hand. Can't imagine how many lives were lost building many of them.

Some time in the future I would like to build one. I think I'll do a smaller one.


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## jimmyperry_00

Very good work. I have build a couple in the past but nothing near that size. Most impressive.


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## midlifekrisiz

thanks guys 
still a long way to go......pun intended


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## midlifekrisiz

Dirtytom said:


> Built this last year and cannot use. HO scale 75'x32'. Also have the Walters bridge track code 83. Free for a good home.
> 
> DT


Really? you choose my build thread to get rid of your bridge? take it to the freebee section.....how rude


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## Dirtytom

Get a life you Canuck.


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## midlifekrisiz

Dirtytom said:


> Get a life you Canuck.


 :smilie_auslachen:

typical comeback from a clod


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## midlifekrisiz

update coming soon


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## midlifekrisiz

hey guys sorry haven't posted in quite some time but summer came along and riding and camping took the lead.

I am almost finished building this trestle for my friend and I know he is dying to get it into his layout.

here is the update I promised:

building the end straight stretch 



inner bracing 




a look down one straight piece that connects to the curve portion





I had abandoned the original river span that I had made and was playing around with a couple of plastic hi bridges for this span



then decided to keep going with the wood and settled on a Howe Truss span instead of the plastic ones.

start of howe truss













I am quite happy with how this one turned out



just have to finish up the ladders and this portion is done



then finish up all the little details and off it goes to its new owner


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## Fire21

I'll bet you're "quite happy" with that! I know i would be if I'd built it, or was the recipient. Man, that's some FINE-looking work! Try to post a pic of your friend's layout where he places it. :appl:


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## midlifekrisiz

well here I am on the precipice ......almost ready to take this piece of art to the owner.

only the outside tie boards to put in place on one straight section and then it is done....shouldn't take more than a couple of hrs to do tomorrow.



once it is finished I will take some good pics of it with a train on it as well to post up here


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## Magic

Outstanding work. :smilie_daumenpos: :smilie_daumenpos:
Must be a very good friend indeed. 

The through truss bridge is just great.

What is the overall length of the span?

Magic


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## midlifekrisiz

ok here we go guys ...this will be the last time you see this bridge till it is installed in his layout (hope he has been building)


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## Fire21

Man, that's sweet! Congratulations! :appl:


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## midlifekrisiz

Magic said:


> What is the overall length of the span?
> 
> Magic


well Magic ......if I have this right 1 foot in life size = 87 HO scale feet and this trestle is 6 feet long which would equal a scale bridge of 6, 264 HO scale feet.....a long bridge indeed.


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## IlliniViking

Great job, that bridge is awesome and I have no doubt it will look amazing on the layout. Can't wait to see it in it's final location.


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## DonR

Now that is an HO spectacular. Gotta be one of, if not THE, longest
trestles in the hobby.

Don


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## midlifekrisiz

midlifekrisiz said:


> well Magic ......if I have this right 1 foot in life size = 87 HO scale feet and this trestle is 6 feet long which would equal a scale bridge of 6, 264 HO scale feet.....a long bridge indeed.





woooohohoho did I ever screw up in my measurement calculation there lol make that 522 foot long bridge ( insert face palm)


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## Wood

Mid life.... Super job and thank you for the build and post as you go. Lots of information and learning gained. 

Thank you and great job. :smilie_daumenpos: :smilie_daumenpos: :smilie_daumenpos:


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## santafealltheway

Wow! Looks amazing!


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## Dirtytom

Master builder at his best.

DT


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## SBRacing

Wow, I may scrap the old bridge and doing something like that. Truly amazing!


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