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1-76 Girder Bridge


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Inspired by @BIG X and his pontoon bridge, I have dug out from the stash this venerable old kit I picked up somewhere a few years back. However I'm not going to build the original Airfix boxed version but instead the Dapol rebagged version, so I can keep the Airfix boxed one intact :)

 

DSC_0623.JPG

 

Here are the parts from the Airfix box

 

DSC_0624.JPG

 

and the instruction sheet from the Dapol version

 

DSC_0625.JPG

 

 

I'm tempted to do some sort of diorama of a rusty old abandoned bridge, but the deck when placed end to end is 13" long and about 2/5 " wide, which means the diorama base would beed to be something like 18" by 6" which is starting to get quite large. 

 

I'm supposed to be moving house in the next month or so, which means I have to start packing things up soon, so I'm not sure how much progress this will see in the near future...

 

For our esteemed GB leaders:

http://www.vintage-airfix.com/airfix/series-trackside/girder-bridge-p-390.html

Airfix Catalogue information: Series: 2 First Issued: 1959 Catalogue Ref - 1st Edition (1962): 207

 

 

Edited by Kallisti
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Thanks, as a side note, this was a favourite kit for the people who made Thunderbirds. if you look closely you'll see it EVERYWHERE, from Thunderbird 1 launch bay:

 

3.jpg

 

9.jpg

 

 

bNVfZqn.jpg

 

Thunderbird 2 launch bay

 

Pp314.png

 

 

Thunderbird 2 itself:

 

TB2inner4.jpg

 

00008M2TS_2009112022_03_00.jpg

 

(note that this is showing 2 different Thunderbird 2 models!)

 

...and then there is the Mole, which sits on an upside down Girder Bridge

 

DSC_2759.JPG

 

 

 

 

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16 minutes ago, Ventora3300 said:

Go for it! This is the bridge I always wanted for my electric train set layout but it never materialised...!

I never even made it as far as train set - never mind a bridge for it.  Oh we were so poor... :winkgrin:

 

1 hour ago, Kallisti said:

Inspired by @BIG X and his pontoon bridge, I have dug out from the stash this venerable old kit I picked up somewhere a few years back. However I'm not going to build the original Airfix boxed version but instead the Dapol rebagged version, so I can keep the Airfix boxed one intact :)

 

DSC_0623.JPG

 

Here are the parts from the Airfix box

 

DSC_0624.JPG

 

and the instruction sheet from the Dapol version

 

DSC_0625.JPG

 

 

I'm tempted to do some sort of diorama of a rusty old abandoned bridge, but the deck when placed end to end is 13" long and about 2/5 " wide, which means the diorama base would beed to be something like 18" by 6" which is starting to get quite large. 

 

I'm supposed to be moving house in the next month or so, which means I have to start packing things up soon, so I'm not sure how much progress this will see in the near future...

 

For our esteemed GB leaders:

http://www.vintage-airfix.com/airfix/series-trackside/girder-bridge-p-390.html

Airfix Catalogue information: Series: 2 First Issued: 1959 Catalogue Ref - 1st Edition (1962): 207

 

 

I will be watching this one for sure.  I know what you mean about the size though - these bridges can be very deceptive.  Mine was over 2ft long before I 'customised it' and it's still 16 inches long now.  It would be nice to see a bit of 'rusty' weathering - I suffer with the common problem of being too scared to properly weather my kits - for fear of ruining them.  I'm still learning and I'm sure I'll get there in the end.  Good luck with it.

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2 minutes ago, Kallisti said:

Thanks, as a side note, this was a favourite kit for the people who made Thunderbirds. if you look closely you'll see it EVERYWHERE, from Thunderbird 1 launch bay:

 

3.jpg

 

9.jpg

 

 

bNVfZqn.jpg

 

Thunderbird 2 launch bay

 

Pp314.png

 

 

Thunderbird 2 itself:

 

TB2inner4.jpg

 

00008M2TS_2009112022_03_00.jpg

 

(note that this is showing 2 different Thunderbird 2 models!)

 

...and then there is the Mole, which sits on an upside down Girder Bridge

 

DSC_2759.JPG

 

 

 

 

WOW and double WOW - you live and learn as they say - brilliant background info.

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Hi Kalisty.

You jogged the memory, so I looked in the stash, and down at the bottom was a brown paper bag , inside was a box just like yours, with sharp edges, even after many years of storage.  On the front was a price tag from Hambling's, the price was 25p.  Unfortunately, I never got into model railways.

 

Robin.

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26 minutes ago, Robin said:

Hi Kalisty.

You jogged the memory, so I looked in the stash, and down at the bottom was a brown paper bag , inside was a box just like yours, with sharp edges, even after many years of storage.  On the front was a price tag from Hambling's, the price was 25p.  Unfortunately, I never got into model railways.

 

Robin.

As you can Robin - you don't need to be into model railways - this kit can be transformed into loads of things :thumbsup: 

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Yet another Airfix kit that I know very little about. This GB is also turning out to be a real education lesson as well, what aviation modeller would have known about all these other great Girder Bridge applications? I fear that my stash will grow to something quite silly after this GB is through. Can everyone please stop this great Classic Airfix kit building right now!!!! My wallet can’t take anymore. 

 

Cheers.. Dave 

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14 hours ago, Kallisti said:

 

I'm tempted to do some sort of diorama of a rusty old abandoned bridge, but the deck when placed end to end is 13" long and about 2/5 " wide, which means the diorama base would beed to be something like 18" by 6" which is starting to get quite large. 

 

 

Do it, you know you want to

401341634.jpg

401341633.jpg

401341645.jpg

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I've been doing some searching for real bridges and found some useful inspiration, including one girder bridge upside down!

 

rusty-old-bridge.jpg

 

I like the look of this one a lot though

 

cover.jpg

 

 

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Last night I did some initial clean up and assembly - this is an old kit and the moulds have been passed around and look to be in a bit of a state to be honest. there is a lot of flash and the mould lines are quite pronounced and need a lot of work:

 

Out of the box on the left, cleaned up on the right

 

DSC_0627.JPG

 

DSC_0628.JPG

 

There is a large ejector pin mark in the plastic which the flash has mostly hidden in the centre but you can see where I've applied a dab of filler on the right. Speaking of ejector pins, they are pretty much everywhere, most noticably on the underside of the deck

 

DSC_0626.JPG

 

Some of these are quite deep pits but I don't think they'll be visible in the end so I'm goign to leave them alone. Here is the top side of the deck after its been glued together and you can see stress marks in the plastic from the ejector pins beneath

 

DSC_0631.JPG

 

More ejector pin fixing

 

DSC_0633.JPG

 

Finally, one side has been assembled! Some rivet surface texture has been lost due to sanding the ejector pins, but I don't think its worth trying to replace.

 

DSC_0629.JPG

 

There are a few minor sink marks in the stanchions and particularly the strengthening plates, but if I try to fill those I'm going to loose a LOT of rivet detail, so I think it will be okay.

 

 

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No progress yesterday apart from packing about 25 boxes of books and 6 enormous boxes of kits from the stash in readiness for the upcoming move. I get the keys this coming Friday and the first job is to covert the shed into the mancave... I have until the end of July when I have to vacate my current house so I ahve plenty of time, so hopefully I can make some progress on the bridge in the meantime while my back recovers!

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Good luck with the move Kallisti. The end of July might sound a little distant, however this year is just hummimg along. As things go it’ll be over before you know it - which means another round of GB voting!! 

 

Cheers.. Dave

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I lived 2.5km's from this one as a boy in a town called Villiers Free state.As a matter of fact there is two of them that span the vaal river.Image courtesy of geosites.

 

Regards:

Shaun

 

40497569.jpg

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Possibly a little bit closer in design to the Airfix Girder Bridge, Girder Bridges of this type such as over the Comet River near Comet in Central Queensland are fairly common throughout Queensland Rail

 

 

 

40952101010_abc78bee8e_b.jpg

 

 

 

27893887717_cb72e84d79_b.jpg

 

 

 

 

Edited by Rob S
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To give you an idea of the power of nature I believe that although the Bridge above didn't go under in the 2011 Floods the water was certainly lapping at the Rail much the same as the similar Rail Bridge over the Nogoa River slightly further West at Emerald in this historic photo

 

StateLibQld_1_15522_Railway_bridge_in_Em

 

 

Edited by Rob S
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  • 2 weeks later...

Well another week has gone by and no progress on the Girlder Bridge but at least the shed at the new house is now insulated and carpeted and ready to start being filled. The main problem I see is its not big enough! In my current shed I have 5 bookcases/shelves, 1 workbench, a chest of drawers and a spraying table. I think I'll be able to fit AT MOST 3 bookcases/shelves along with the others. I've invested in a much more powerful paint extractor unit so hopefully this will cut down on the dust in the new shed.

Sadly I also appear to have somehow picked up a cold as today my throat feels freshly sandpapered, eyes are running and I'm sneezing continually/ I thought it was hayfever yesterday but today I feel pretty awful... maybe this is a sign that I need to sit down, so some modelling and listen to the cricket/watch the England match...

Edited by Kallisti
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15 minutes ago, Kallisti said:

Well another week has gone by and no progress on the Girlder Bridge but at least the shed at the new house is now insulated and carpeted and ready to start being filled. The main problem I see is its not big enough! In my current shed I have 5 bookcases/shelves, 1 workbench, a chest of drawers and a spraying table. I think I'll be able to fit AT MOST 3 bookcases/shelves along with the others. I've invested in a much more powerful paint extractor unit so hopefully this will cut down on the dust in the new shed.

Sadly I also appear to have somehow picked up a cold as today my throat feels freshly andpapered, eyes are running and I'm sneezing continually/ I thought it was hayfever yesterday but today I feel pretty awful... maybe this is a sign that I need to sit down, so some modelling and listen to the cricket/watch the England match...

Oh no - you've installed a 'carpet monster' :lol:

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If I had the choice I would have gone with good old 'lino' - but SWMBO wouldn't have it - I know my place...

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  • 2 weeks later...

A week and a bit later and I'm pleased to say I'm fully recovered from the cold, apart from a slight persistent cough. Apparently there are a lot of people falling ill with colds at the moment, office air-cons seem to be the culprit!

 

As for the house move, the entire content of my shed has now been transferred over to the new house and shed and the rest of the normal house move is planned for later this month, so all is going to plan... so far. 

 

Doesn't look like I'm going to be able to build things just yet, but I will be able to attend the Romsey show next weekend having sadly missed Smallspace last Sunday... 

 

Watch this space!

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  • 4 weeks later...

Well the move has been completed and I'm finally unpacking and sorting things. I've even been able to set up my modelling table again, but I'm starting another project before returning to this as I really want to build my Wingnut WIngs Sopwith Camel for the WW1 GB :)

 

I will be back for this soon however.

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