Well it is all but done and thought I would ask, What do you think? Having had almost no experience scratch building anything like this. Was a lot easier than I thought. But this is just a steel bridge. Shaun
Nice work. My only criticism would be it looks a bit tall. Most of the bridges of that make I have seen would only be about half as tall, if not a little shorter. Are you working from a specific prototype that is similar? Most modern diesels are between 15-16 feet tall, so I'd estimate your bridge sides at about 11-13 feet...
Congratulations on having a go at something you haven't done before. This is how you grow in this hobby. I would agree with Primavw that it's somewhat tall, probably about 1/3rd that height would be more prototypical, especially as the span is not great, also a capping along the top and bottom to complete the frame around the panels. It's always hard to criticise a first attempt, cause we don't want to discourage, but this is constructive criticism, not being picky.
I do agree that it did seem tall. I did not look up a picture before starting so I did not have a prototypical picture to use as a reference. I appreciate the feedback, after all it is hard to improve without it. Thank You, Shaun
Shaun, good for you to take the initiative to make something yourself. One recommendation I have, however, is to take a few minutes before embarking on a project such as this to do a quick online search. Google and Google Images are very powerful modeling tools, because in seconds you can obtain more than enough reference material in order to build something the way it would appear in real life. It can also help you make choices as well; for instance, you may have a plate girder bridge in mind, but given the surrounding terrain, a railroad might instead build a culvert. Just some food for thought for your next DIY.
I agree 100% with DKS. Sometimes the research is most of the fun, and it's nice to look at a scratchbuilt model you've completed and know it's a model of a specific prototype somewhere. Keep up the effort. It's always a learning experience. Cheers! Bob Gilmore
Thanks for the input. The main reason for choosing this type was the simple build. The more I look at the terrain and the span I would have to agree that a culvert type would have bee more prototypical. I have two more bridges to build, and have already looked up images for them. It seems that I am on the right path though. Thank You all for the input. As this was my first attempt I was very pleased with the outcome, but knew from the start that it would not be perfect. Shaun
