Making A Hidden Hinge & Hidden Power Lift Bridge For My New Model Railroad

This is my new and improved Hinged Lift bridge. Everything goes to plan B.
Here's a link to the Dowels: amzn.to/3UQtHXz
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[@dexterdog62]

You just have to love a model railroader who has the confidence to work on his layout in his bare feet!

[@chrisenglish3837]

Very nice - for longevity and stability, I would strongly recommend you glue a couple of beams (even a box frame) under your bridge. A 4, 5 or 6 cm strip from you plywood edge fixed is ideal.

[@ScottRails]

I was thinking of aluminium L bars along each edge.

[@garethdavies2973]

If u connected the 2 outside dowels together under the cork on the bridge then on the dowels on the main board connect one of the power feeds to one and the track feed for say a meter before the bridge it would act as an isolation switch when bridge was open and hopefully stop anything driving off the end. Might help save some tears. Alternatively microswitches could do the same thing

[@colinframe7095]

I am imagining that you sat there for hours watching the loco run back and forth! Good to see trains running again!

[@ScottRails]

Damn, you know me too well. hahaha.

[@YourLocalRailfan]

I could never beat the amount of effort you put into your layout lol

[@darrellnorton2208]

As all bridges should be made 😅. Nice idea with the springs 👍

[@russ4723]

Should pre-tin your wires, it will help speed up soldering :) Lift bridge is looking good!

[@achb-railway]

... and pre-tin whatever you're soldering them to...

[@o.northland4942]

Happy to see you took the right wood for the bridge! Looks good, bravo! Greetings from berlin (I am Dutch but live already since 20 years in Germany)

[@WindmillJunction]

Excellent job GENIUS - good job Dave 😊 - top.

[@johnbanicki7232]

Very nice! I have a lift out bridge I need to rebuild you have given me some new ideas to try. Thanks for sharing.

[@dundasjunctionmodelr.r-jam8267]

Dave that is the one reason I elevated my hinges , helped with track clearance, looking great, almost done

[@ScottRails]

Haha, yes, just a wee bit of track to lay and we'll be running trains.

[@ModelTrainOutsider]

Very nice re-working from the original design and clever wiring bit! Well-played!

[@ScottRails]

I'm a visual learner. I prefer to see how things work (or don't work) in three dimensions rather than 2 dimensional theory.

[@don-823]

This is very inspiring as I am building my layout at the same time. I Like the lift bridge with the effortless spring hinges. Good job.

[@stevewicker984]

What a great idea! Thanks for sharing!

[@LocomotionMotion]

That's a really neat install. Thanks for sharing the walk through it's very inspiring

[@bearzlla]

I love that soft close feature! Great job

[@dundasjunctionmodelr.r-jam8267]

Dave after watching this video, I have another idea that I will try using the same hinges you used

[@datcruse]

Thanks for quick response and reference to your other video. Only a Glaswegian could engineer something so inventive. Now I'll go and waste another thousand hours of my life fixing my layout. David

[@ScottRails]

I actually edited my first comment to say I had addressed that problem later in the original video. I was a bit concerned it wasn't going to work at first.

[@railmus]

Instead of springs you could melt some solder into the female dowels.

[@davidkoehler136]

Now I have watched this twice....Brilliant! I will suggest you wire in a fail safe for trains moving right to left , if some one opens the bridge the power should automatically be cut off about 8"s before the opening. I neglected to do this and ran an engine on the floor

[@ScottRails]

Yes, I will be doing this, thanks.

[@paulmarmion358]

Great idea I’m impressed I will be doing mine now the same way 👍

[@monsvillerailways5736]

Nice work Dave. "This is how you lay self adhesive Cork" Oops 😅 Can't live with Bumps... are they not part of nature? Dowels and wires. 👍 Happy modelling

[@ScottRails]

haha, yeah, that was annoying. Hey, if I want natural bumps, I'll add them myself, lol.

[@MrNunorgg]

Nice Job. Good Outcame!

[@terrytraina6080]

Good job! Full speed a head no stops till accomplishment!! .take care d man¡!

[@LyntreeTown20132]

great job on the bridge

[@harleymemphis9190]

good job now add a some upper angles few cross truss and tada thank you for the video Happy Rails

[@markriley3412]

That's brilliant Dave!

[@darrellnorton2208]

Watching the end of the video with the train going back and forwards. . . How long were you actually there doing it and thinking. . Thats brilliant 🤔😁😂😂👍

[@ScottRails]

I'm still there, lol.

[@darrellnorton2208]

@@ScottRails lol

[@FITZROYTH]

Good job Scott you might finish your track laying before me. I’m working a drop down and lift out bridge.

[@TimsBitsnPieces]

Well done.. it turned out nice.....

[@TRXperienced]

AWESOMENESS!!!

[@avlisk]

I've sent you a couple of links to other lift bridge ideas, but I have to admit that you don't need any help. Your design is the best!

[@ScottRails]

Thank you. I did look at them, and maybe stole a couple of ideas, but some folk make the power connection overly complicated.

[@avlisk]

Those hinges are the key, I think. @@ScottRails

[@jamesfitch6431]

Very good. I love it. I'm embarrassed to show you my lift bridge... the only thing I would add is a 2x2 running underneath in the middle for support. Eventually someone will lean on it or the 2x2 will help keep it from warping. You did a professional job.

[@ScottRails]

I was thinking of a couple of aluminium "L" strips along each edge. Thanks for the compliment.

[@solargarage]

Looking good.

[@Faresplease]

Genius ... lol 🦊 Wile E Coyote

[@caboosech]

Looking great

[@dmillion4527]

Excellent job, very clever. And you just saved me a ton of time and experimenting. Thanks for sharing!!

[@Blue68Camaro]

Nice job... Helped me out with my future lift gate. FYI: You might already know this but just incase, you know how we forget the little details. When you wire in the lift gate you need to kill power before and after the lift. I would say no less 3 feet before and after could be a safe distance.

[@ScottRails]

Thanks, I will get to that when the time comes.

[@HoundOfBaskerville]

Very impressive, may have to steal this when i go to build my layout

[@philkirk4571]

I’m gonna shamelessly steal your idea! 😊. Ingenious and fiddly but so tidy too. I love your humour that helps me enjoy this dull part (for me) part of modelling! Great stuff.

[@ScottRails]

My lawyers will be in touch.

[@philkirk4571]

@@ScottRails🤔🥸😬

[@joeraderblackrockcentralrr]

EXCELLENT !!!!!

[@schadowolf]

Ingenious! Well done, thanks for sharing! Going to utilize some of your ideas as I have a long across the door lift-up/pull-out bridge to install on my layout. Not quite there yet and need to do some additional measuring to ensure its going to work, otherwise will have to extend layout on both sides to accommodate such a design (at present looking at ~5' gap, wanted to keep layout flush with walls, but may have to encroach on open space a tad bit. Enjoy your channel immensely!

[@ScottRails]

Thank you very much.

[@HHExpress]

Very nice solution for the Bridge. hope it keeps conducting after you lift it 1000 times ;-)

[@ScottRails]

Once I'm in there, I'm never coming out, hahaha.

[@customwoodworketc1046]

Pur rhe alignment pins in then put the cork on

[@ScottRails]

ooooo, I never thought of that. Thanks.

[@VattenDemonen]

Why not have the track overhang from the board side instead? (the side with the hinges) wouldnt that work? great job by the way :)

[@ScottRails]

No. The rails would hit the bridge when it was in the up position.

[@Faresplease]

... when it comes to those springs, can you secure them into the dowel maybe with liquid solder?

[@ScottRails]

Good idea, but not till I get actuall springs.

[@BriansModelTrains]

Great video. Is their a particular reason you used four instead of two powerred dowels? I was thinking thinking two feeders on each dowel to complete the bus line. I am always amazed by your handiwork. Thank you for sharing.

[@ScottRails]

I want to have the option of isolating the two outer loops so I can run DC on one, and DCC on the other if I wish.

[@BriansModelTrains]

@@ScottRails makes sense. I thought you did it for a reason 😀

[@donaldweiss2031]

Brilliant Dave as usual. Will you use risers on the new layout or dig into the foam.

[@ScottRails]

I'll be digging down for rivers etc this time, but the track will be flat.

[@otoluisvieira2772]

Your video is very interesting. Please, what is the name and where can I buy those metal pins that you put 06 pieces on the bridge. thanks

[@ScottRails]

I got them on Amazon, but you can get them at a hardware store.

[@otoluisvieira2772]

I'm following you from Brazil. There are no such pieces here. What is the name of the product so I can search on Amazon?

[@ScottRails]

amzn.to/3UQtHXz

[@glengreen362]

I find a steady source of springs can be found in disposable retractable pens. I also had a thought. Is it possible when the bridge is raised, to cut off the power to tracks approaching the gap, so that a train running when somebody raised the bridge, doesn't run into the gap?

[@ScottRails]

Yes, there will be a dead zone either end. I need to go raid my family's pen supply now.

[@seventhcircleracing3012]

Bic lighters?

[@avlisk]

Couldn't resist, this video just popped up in my KZbin queue. Note the "power point" connectors: kzbin.info/www/bejne/h6aZq4yjn9SlqZI

[@ScottRails]

Yeah, I've seen that video. Those powered dowels are hard to get and pretty expensive. Also, I plan to be able to isolate the inner and outer loops so I can run dcc on one and dc on the other if I wish, so Larry's wiring wouldn't work for me.

[@plutoyaldnil4750]

Also you are installing a micro switch so that if the gate is up you drop power to all the lines about a foot in each direction just incase correct?

[@ScottRails]

That is correct

[@larrybaughman618]

🤠🖐🚂

[@modelrailroader5619]

That was a very entertaining episode, Dave. MacGyver has nothing on you!!! Where did you get those safety boots?😂

[@ScottRails]

I was born with them. Lifetime warranty too.

[@philkirk4571]

@@ScottRails I’m thinking of sending my safety boots back. They’ve developed arthritis 😒

[@datcruse]

I tried your design with the soft close hinges, but the rails on the hinged end fouled when the bridge was lifted. Can't see a way to prevent this.

[@ScottRails]

Hi. I covered this issue later in the video, around the 18 minute mark.

[@otoluisvieira2772]

I'm following you from Brazil. There are no such pieces here. What is the name of the product so I can search on Amazon?

[@ScottRails]

amzn.to/3UQtHXz

[@arrow1414]

You know, that area is a construction site; so you should be wearing steel toe boots over your talons.

[@plutoyaldnil4750]

? Why did you put cork down then have to fold it back and forth as you dealt with dowels ?????🥴🥴🥴🥴🤯🤯🤯

[@ScottRails]

I didn't realise the dowel was going to be so high. It caused a raised section.

[@johnparker7874]

I fear for your feet!!! Construction with bare feet. At least in India they wear flip flops while pour steel.........