Take Me To the River...

[wm3798]

Uh, Ian, shouldn't "Police" be misspelled?

That looks pretty good...is that the natural finish?

[DKS]

Why not try anchor bolt cement. Not that heavy and works great. I'm now building all my bridge piers and abutments with it.

Ian, I really like the mottled coloration in the center area of the abutment. Is that the natural color of the material, or did you create the effect?

EDIT: Simultaneous posting. Looks like Lee wants to know too.

[Ian MacMillan]

That is the natural color. The only thing I have done is apply 2-3 coats of Dullcoat. When using wood for forms it picks up the grain and is out of scale so I use styrene. However since the styrene is so smooth when the concrete comes out of the mold it has a shine to the surfaces. I hit it with a coat of Dullcoat, add my weathering and then hit it 2 more times.

Here is a highway bridge pier that is has been installed and hit with the first coat of dullcoat. Weathering and graf is up next.

[Pomperaugrr]

I really like the "cold joint" on the wing wall of the abutment!   



Eric

[DKS]

That is the natural color. The only thing I have done is apply 2-3 coats of Dullcoat. When using wood for forms it picks up the grain and is out of scale so I use styrene. However since the styrene is so smooth when the concrete comes out of the mold it has a shine to the surfaces. I hit it with a coat of Dullcoat, add my weathering and then hit it 2 more times.

Would it work better if you sanded the styrene first to kill the sheen?

[pfs]

Very nice indeed.

[bbussey]

The anchor cement is great stuff.  Can't beat the real thing.  I had an RP mold made, which had the appropriate finish.

[wm3798]

Well, I've got three of the four done in plaster, so as good as it looks, I'll have to roll with it and accomplish the color and texture thing with some paint.  I also prefer to make my abutments out of styrene, so I can blend everything later.

Lee

[up1950s]

Wow , great results Lee , Bryan , and Ian .

[Ian MacMillan]

Would it work better if you sanded the styrene first to kill the sheen?

Yeah, but I'm lazy....its 30 seconds quicker to just dullcoad bomb it

[wm3798]

That was a pleasant diversion to the Amoskeeg Northern...  Now, Back to the Casselman River...



The piers are poured and the the bridge is set in place.  And I think I'm going to change it around a bit.



I'm not happy with the left side of the bridge.  I trimmed the 40' girder span a bit short due to the tight (15") turn between the future curved turnout and the bridge.  This creates an abutment that's unrealistically tall and shear.  I think I'm going to cut back the roadbed a bit more, and move the 2 40's from the right side to the left, along with the pier, and replace that with another 80' span.  The curve on the right end is shallow enough that this should work.  The two 40's will get me around the tight bend on the left, and open up the gorge some more, letting the tall pier on the left to actually stand in the river.

Even so, I'm really excited about the way this is shaping up.  I've got a bunch of running to do this weekend, but I might squeeze in some foam cutting if I can...



Lee

[wm3798]

The Curved Turnout is Here!  The Curved Turnout Is Here!!

[asciibaron]

The Curved Turnout is Here!  The Curved Turnout Is Here!!

they don't exist.

[Bob Bufkin]

Next thing you know, you'll be getting your new phonebooks.

[DKS]

The Curved Turnout is Here!  The Curved Turnout Is Here!!

they don't exist.

There is no spoon.