Bridge Milestone

Re: Bridge Milestone - Excellent!

Re: Bridge Milestone

Chuck Hans

A thing of beauty for sure, that will be enjoyed by a lot of folks.

Re: Bridge Milestone

1 Keith Newton

Good work Bill, that’s looking great. I hope y’all are planning a party out there when it is finished.

Re: Bridge Milestone

Hank Knight

That looks terriffic, Bill. What a wonderful project.

Yes

Bill Tindall, E.Tn.

We have a bridge dedication when we open a bridge. This one will be a bash with band playing mountain music and who knows what all.

Re: Bridge Milestone

Wiley Horne

Just beautiful, Bill! It’ll be spectacular from that vantage point when there’s about 10,000 second-feet coming down in a roar, right under your feet!!

Wiley

Re: Bridge Milestone

Ron in Sterling, CT

It looks great Bill. Can't wait to see the final pics. What a fantastic project. My hats off to you.

Ron

Re: Bridge Milestone

Howard Rosenberg

Looking good!

Keep us posted!

Re: Bridge Milestone

Bill Tindall, E.Tn.

like tomorrow on the back side of storm Fred for example

Re: Bridge Milestone

Virgil Johnson

Thanks for your time and effort to the trails cause.

Re: Bridge Milestone

Bruce, a MN Galoot

Terrific job! Is it time for a rest or are you off to the next one?

Re: Bridge Milestone

Bill Tindall, E.Tn.

170 feet left to do to get to the other bank. Two bridges of 83' each underway south of this big one. 10 remain after that, but they are small 50 to 80' bridges.

Re: Bridge Milestone / Plaque

Larry Clinton At Frankfort, (Central) Indiana

I hope you / committee are intending to have a Plaque made honoring everyone that made a significant contribution to completing these trails. Obviously you deserve one! The bridges will be standing and in use for generations after we are gone!!

Re: Bridge Milestone

Bruce, a MN Galoot

Is the same basic design going to be used on all the bridges so that your crew can get used to one method of construction or is each one unique?

Excellent job Bill!

Re: Bridge Milestone

Bill Tindall, E.Tn.

Is the same basic design going to be used on all the bridges so that your crew can get used to one method of construction or is each one unique?

Before my time the group (retired doctors) managing converting the RR bridges to Trail bridges hired a firm that specialized in doing Rails to Trails conversions. Their bridge design was expensive to build. It featured a horizontal 8" wide cap rail. This rail was expensive to install, provided a walk way for the "adventurous" and was impossible to grab to slow and stop a bike that wanted a look over the bridge.



The rail was installed with counter sunk 1/2" lag screws and the post was installed with 1" bolts and lag screws.



Part of our agreement to pay for "our" bridge renovation was that I got say on the design. I have fought the engineering firm at every step. I have redesigned the post attachment, replaced counter sunk lags with engineered self tapping self countersinking "engineered screws", changed the rails from a fortress-like 2 x 8 to a lighter looking 2 x 6 and made the top rail a profiled "hand rail" that a biker can grasp to slow and stop. Almost every part of the bridge construction process and design has been changed. It looks like I took about 50% of the cost out of building the bridge.

New engineered screw attachment

Now the fight begins on what the next bridges will look like. There is a basic conflict. The engineering firm thinks these bridges are "theirs" to design as they see fit. My view is the bridges are ours to design as we see fit and they engineer what we design. As a regular user of this kind of trail bridge I believe I am going to create a better design than someone that never rides a bike across a converted bridge. Not everyone agrees.

I am getting wore down by the recalcitrance and probably don't give a damn what gets decided after our bridge is done. I drives me crazy to see decisions made that are not supported by facts and data. It's engineering and engineering is governed by the laws of physics. Not everyone makes decisions this way.

Bridge dedications

Bill Tindall, E.Tn.

We funded the first bridge to get the trail started. Rather than a plaque I started what will be a signature feature of the trail. Contributors get a bench rock, in this case located at the entrance to the first bridge.

The rock engraver ignored the template created for this rock that featured much more modest font and dogwood blooms flanking the text. Sigh.

Those engineered lag screws

Wiley Horne

Bill.

Wonderful work! I have a couple questions on those screws:

—do they have a trade name? Where can they be found?

—size, diameter x length

—driving them in….torx or straight hex driver? Did you pilot for them, or run them straight in with an impact driver?

Thanks! Wiley

Re: Those engineered lag screws

Bruce McCrory

You can find that type of framing screw at the typical big borg, Wiley. I used them to"enhance" my original ledger under the re-surfaced deck that showed the Camo tool you saw a couple months ago.

Heck of a lot cheaper, and easier to install than traditional half-inch/5/8" hardware that can turn weathered wood into mush after a short time. The trick is to control the drive tool at completion.

BTW, I understand why Bill is so virally anti-engineer. All you need do is look at new codes and the outdoor woodwork completed to them after 5-10 years.

Re: Those engineered lag screws

John in NM

They look like Spax screws. Like Bruce I've used those on ledgers. Good product. I run them through a clearance hole on the ledger but un-piloted in the structure behind the ledger. Buy them at Home Depot or the like.

Re: Bridge Milestone

John in NM

I hear you on the engineers. Some are great, some are a real pain.

We had a roof access problem at my former job, and they got an engineer to estimate fixing it. Many, many tens of thousands of dollars for a complete rework of the fall prevention system.

Took a class with my new job, turns out that a company has already solved that very problem we had at the old one. The training company had lots of examples of solutions including a nice stainless cable system that the spendy engineer (spendgineer?) just doesn't know about. Not my problem now of course, basically for the same reason you mention. Fighting entrenched recalcitrant and overly conventional thinking just wears a person down.

Re: Those engineered lag screws

Bill Tindall, E.Tn.

Bill.

—do they have a trade name? We are using Spax, available at Home Depot. But I negotiated a deal where we are getting them from the factory as favorable pricing. Grex is another manufactuer.

size? they come 1/4 up to 3/8" diameter and up to 16" long.

—driving them in….torx or straight hex driver? your choice, both are made.

Did you pilot for them, no We can bury a 3/8 x 8" into a dry oak tie. 5/16 does not split the ends of the rail boards.

PS, they are a Grade 5 steel

not at all anti-engineer

Bill Tindall, E.Tn.

In fact I love dealing with the good ones. They are data driven. Show them the performance specifications on a Spax Powerlag and they would accept it instantly. It's someone that claims to be but doesn't have the technical chops to design with engineering data that drives me nuts. Over the top guesses cost money that doesn't yield benefit. I don' t like spending money needlessly.