My 1/10 scale covered bridge project

[Hoosierdady]

I've been wanting to build one for a while now, and with the Turkey Run comp in Greenville, KY around the corner I figured what better time than now. The goal was to complete the project using stuff around the house and up to $50 in store bought materials. I hit the number on the head .

My daughter and I tackled the project over the weekend. Here are the freshly assembled side panels. We used balsa wood for the wider side panels. That was my first mistake because I found pieces at Home Depot that I could've used that were a little cheaper.


After a trip to HD I had enough material to finish the base of the bridge. I made it right at 14" wide, big enough to fit nearly any class of scale rig thru. I made a slight miscalculation on the spacing which can be seen on one end.


The colors of choice are Sedona red stain for the sides and flat black paint for the bottom. I used Gorilla wood glue on the joints as well as CA glue to hold them in place while the Gorilla glue cured. I also used thin wire nails to add extra strength.


After the stain and all dried I assembled the rafters and roof joists. It'll be getting LEDs and some other scale touches so I added a small platform up top to mount the battery box and switch.







Overall dimensions are 14.5" wide, The sides are 12" tall to the lowest point and it's right at 3 foot long. I've got some 1/4" thick rough cut wood with some bark on the edges to make the wood shake shingles out of for the roof. I plan on knocking that out some time this week.

[LRTd5]

Obviously you and your daughter are a great team!

Thats a really well done and nice bridge. Where can I order one ?

Regards

[Alpha Male]

She's a very handy girl to have around. Either of my sons would surely have glued themselves to the bridge.

[fried daddy]

Well done

[Knytemare]

Phenomenal!

[Hoosierdady]

Originally Posted by LRTd5

Obviously you and your daughter are a great team!

Thats a really well done and nice bridge. Where can I order one ?

Regards

Thanks, she does really well.

Originally Posted by Alpha Male

She's a very handy girl to have around. Either of my sons would surely have glued themselves to the bridge.

I agree, she's a daddy's girl. Always wanting to help fix stuff around the house. She helped out with the glue and staining as well as holding the pieces still while I drove the nails.

Originally Posted by fried daddy

Well done

Originally Posted by Knytemare

Phenomenal!

Thanks guys

[DRW-FJ40]

Nice looking bridge! Yes, that balsa can get expensive. If you have a table saw, I've found that 1/4" or 1/8" poplar craft board at Lowe's can be cut into nice size building strips very economically.

[Hoosierdady]

Originally Posted by DRW-FJ40

Nice looking bridge! Yes, that balsa can get expensive. If you have a table saw, I've found that 1/4" or 1/8" poplar craft board at Lowe's can be cut into nice size building strips very economically.

Thanks. Lesson learned on balsa wood. I snapped three pieces last night handling the bridge . I think I may end up replacing it eventually with poplar.

I had some 1/4" and less thick wood that I ripped into pieces roughly a inch wide. Then once I broke a few pieces into smaller pieces I started glueing them in place.


Several hours later I had this. I glued the pieces in place with CA glue and then brushed Gorrilla wood glue across the backside to add strength.



After 13 hours of work I had one side done .


I made the shingles crooked and alternating in size to give the look of a old weathered bridge.



I also picked up a set of warm white battery powered LEDs to string along the main beam down the middle of the bridge.



Next up, the next side.

[Hoosierdady]

I took these pics in my backyard the other day. I'll get some better ones soon.

[Alpha Male]

Looking good. I really like the bridge - the roof looks like it was a labor of love, lol. If I had a place to use one I would do the same thing. Probably makes a cool display stand inside as well.

Do the truck tires tend to hit the upright beams as they traverse the bridge? Maybe they would have been better on the outside with the horizontal sections of wood inside where the trucks pass though. If that makes any sense at all.

Keep up the good work!

[Hoosierdady]

Originally Posted by Alpha Male

Looking good. I really like the bridge - the roof looks like it was a labor of love, lol. If I had a place to use one I would do the same thing. Probably makes a cool display stand inside as well.

Do the truck tires tend to hit the upright beams as they traverse the bridge? Maybe they would have been better on the outside with the horizontal sections of wood inside where the trucks pass though. If that makes any sense at all.

Keep up the good work!

Thanks, it was definately a PIA. As for width, a wide AR60 based rig is close but definately passable. There's roughly 1/2" on each side, so no closer than some gates really. A class 1/2 rig passes thru easilly.