GEC's Scratchbuild Summer '09 Challenge

[Green_Elite_Cab]

Before i get ahead of myself and start building another electric locomotive, I should probably have the infrastructure. This means Catenary. I will try to build the standard PRR catenary i know and love.

Some of you may say "wait one moment GEC, didn't you already have catenary?" that was just an experiment, and it was the only one fully built. I've never seen anyone model a wire cross span, and there was question of its ability to hold up. I personally believe that a wire cross span can be as sturdy but also more flexible, and they are quite common in the areas i model, it is not always 100% K-braced. As we can see in the picture, a wire cross span works.

However, this was just a mock up. Notice how it doesn't have any of the insulators or other important details, and the solder joints are pretty ugly. I plan to use thinner wire and more concealed solder joints, but i think i can make something that looks good. I think Tichy Trains makes PRR Style Catenary insulators that would be perfect for this.



For reference, a K-brace PRR catenary bridge looks like this.



So, here i have my wires, my jigs, and my tools. I have plenty of old rail that looks fine as a catenary bridge. These won't be super detailed amazing catenary structures (to do so would probably cost me as much as the Model Memories kits, not to mention the pieces are harder to find), but they will be sturdy and look good enough.