Bridge diorama

I recently dismantled a Märklin train layout which included some metal Märklin 7163 and 7161 bridges. The quality of these products from the 1960s is amazing, each bridge section is stamped from metal parts and has the Märklin M-track integrated into each section. I decided to make a diorama for my son to provide a way for him to display some of his trains, as well as show off the beautiful metal bridges.

I had some very warped 7064 bridge piers that were designed to support the bridges, so I decided to use those which still had a usable faces.

There were also some old analog signals and I decided to update one of the signals with LEDs, and drive it with a RemoteSign ESP. See here for how I convert signals to use LEDs

I had some pine planks which had been part of a bed for 40 years and decided to use them as a base, layering them so as to create a small valley.

I screwed the planks together and fastened the bridge piers in place.

The piers seem to have shrunk over the decades and needed to have the space between their lugs made wider to get the tracks to fit.

I smoothed out the slopes with drywall joint compound and added some dried chunks to look like rocks.

I added additional planks at the ends and raised the roadbed so that it was at the same level as the bridge.

I decided to add a small Blockstelle at one end which would house the small RemoteSign ESP controller, the classic Faller B-121. I made a hole in the top plank at the Blockstelle end and fastened it down with two screws that can be removed if wires need to be accessed later.

Installed the electronics...

Gave the valley a base coat of green and brown acrylic paint.

Added some vegetation

Added some EnviroTex Lite resin left over from my lake.

In order to get the epoxy water off the edges and clean up the sides of the diorama, I ran both edges through my table saw!

Added vegetation

Just in case he wants to sit an illuminated train on the bridge one day I wired up one track and threaded the wires into place.

Underside of one of the bridges:

I had some actual Märklin 7299 M-track screws!

There seems to be two versions of 7299, flat and Phillips, I used the newer Phillips ones.

I added some details such as a distance marker and added some ballast:

I then added my son's set Märklin 42751 and his BR 86 from Märklin set 29536

The signal and light in the Blockstelle are powered by a single USB cable. The signal goes green (Hp1) for 2 minutes and then goes back to red (Hp0) for 5 minutes continuously. They can be controlled over wi-fi too.

Kaiserschlucht valley

I have a large valley running through my train layout, using up a lot of space in the middle of a rural area and forming the valley which demands a large bridge to carry the mainline across the valley.

I have now finished making the valley and the rivers and streams that flow through it.

Crossing the bridge at night

I am making progress on the landscaping below the big bridge. I decided to run my ICE 3 train to see how it looks at night.. and here is the result...

related links: The building of the bridge

Review: FALLER 120535 Bietschtalbrücke

The most obvious product choice for a large impressive bridge is the Faller Bietschtalbrücke kit 120535.

Another backdrop

I have now added the backdrop behind the new mountain.

The Rheingold and Würtembugerin pass each other on the mainline.

Under the bridge

I have now 'completed' the landscaping underneath the bridges thus allowing me to progress with laying tracks on the bridges.

Here are some images in the vicinity:

Building a mountain

My layout will have a long double line loop around the middle of the room and this loop will have two bridge areas to add interest. I am really keen to get this big mainline loop connected as it will finally allow me to run trains properly instead of running trains in one direction and then having to reverse them back again. Many consists do not reverse well so getting a loop of track will greatly enable my running capabilities.

Construction of roadbed

For the big loop of my mainline, I need to run a double mainline around a room where there are no walls to fasten any benchwork to. In addition, the track has to maintain a constant gradient of 1.6% along the length of the loop.

I wanted to minimize the 'bumps' that can appear when track transitions from one support to another so I have decided to use 3/4" plywood that is firmly screwed onto vertical 2x4 pieces of lumber. I am hoping that the strength of the 2x4 lumber will prevent any sagging and warping over time. Here is an example showing how the tracks will sit on a wide roadbed.

Making a curved bridge ramp from Märklin 7268

I decided that I needed the track to curve slightly on the approach to the big bridge but the ramps I had were all straight and the curved ones that are available are too tight so I decided to make a curved one from a straight one (Märklin 7268).

First I clipped the guard rail off each side. Each side clips on in 4 places: