Author Bio
Jeff Wilson has written more than 40 books on railroads and model railroading. He spent 10 years as an
associate editor at Model Railroader magazine, and he currently works as a freelance writer, editor, and
photographer, contributing articles to MR and other magazines. He enjoys many facets of the hobby, especially
building structures and detailing locomotives, as well as photographing both real and model railroads.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Basics of bridge design
Chapter 2: Culverts and beam bridges
Chapter 3: Wood bridges and trestles
Chapter 4: Stone and concrete bridges
Chapter 5: Steel truss and cantilever bridges
Chapter 6: Plate-girder bridges
Chapter 7: Bascule, swing, and lift bridges
Chapter 8: Abutments and piers
Chapter 9: Bridge details
Reviews
The Model Railroader’s Guide to Bridges & Trestles
Author Jeff Wilson, with more than 30 prototype and model railroading books to his credit, has sufficiently covered the basic designs and uses of bridges and trestles in this 112-page reference book. He gives the basics of bridge design, talks about culverts and beam bridges, wood bridges and trestles, stone and concrete bridges, steel truss and cantilever bridges, plate girder bridges, bascule, swing and lift bridges, abutments and piers, as well as bridge details.
Paging through this book you’ll see dozens and dozens of great black and white, and some color photos, of railroad bridges which are then explained and detailed in the text. Since this is a reference book, you’ll find only prototype bridges and structural details shown throughout the pages. But what a commendable compilation of photos and drawings, along with detailed explanations of the various types of railroad bridges. Any modeler can greatly benefit from having this book in their library, even if their layout is already built. Knowing the reasons for various types of bridges helps modelers know if they’ve constructed the correct bridge for a certain situation.The prototype railfan will enjoy paging through the book to learn more about this subject, as well.
With the comprehensive text, and the numerous photos of the various types of bridges, this is a book worth having in your train library.
—By Don Heimburger, Heimburger House Publishing Co.