The Carolina Sandhills Lines in HO Scale

[davefoxx]

I really haven’t done much on the layout for a week or two, but last night I lengthened the highway guardrail I’ve been building by another six sections.  I figure another actual 12” (or seven more sections) of railing ought to get it to the bottom of the hill.  The screwdriver was handy to punch holes in the foam scenery to work the posts into the ground without breaking them off.  Once I get the entire guardrail built and planted, then I’ll pull it out and paint with something to give it that galvanized look.  I also need to clear coat the road and bridge, so that they can be permanently set, which will allow the determination of the final elevation of the guardrail height.



DFF

[wazzou]

Dave, I'm interested in seeing a little more detail of your guardrail construction method.

[davefoxx]

It’s just a Pikestuff Highway Guardrail kit.

DFF

[davefoxx]

DFF

[davefoxx]

Oh, and in case you’re wondering what’s going on with that bent guardrail end on my layout in my previous post, here’s the look I’ll be going for.  I remember when the leading edge of guardrails were bent down to the ground in the last century, rather than the blunt ends seen now.



DFF

[Chris333]

HOers have all the good stuff.

[davefoxx]

HOers have all the good stuff.

The grass is always greener on the other side, isn’t it?  But, I will admit that the Pikestuff kit does add a nice detail to this scene.  I still have to finish the road and, of course, the foliage adjacent to the highway, but I am happy with how this has come together.



DFF

[Vince P]

Looking killer Dave love the guardrail and the end you plan to plant I remember those days

[wm3798]

For N guardrails I've trimmed 2 ribs of Evergreen  corrugated siding in long strips.  It's not perfect, a little thick and flat on the back, but once painted and placed with some scenery it's passable.
Plus for $3 you get 122,000 miles of guardrail.  Suck it HO!
Lee

[davefoxx]

Suck it HO!

Lee

We prefer to be called HOers, not HOs. 

DFF

[garethashenden]

Oh, and in case you’re wondering what’s going on with that bent guardrail end on my layout in my previous post, here’s the look I’ll be going for.  I remember when the leading edge of guardrails were bent down to the ground in the last century, rather than the blunt ends seen now.



DFF

With guardrails like that you get accidents like this:

[C855B]

With guardrails like that you get accidents like this:
...

Which is why this is no longer recommended practice, to the point where replacement protocols are in place in most jurisdictions. That vid clip is more along the lines of the driver getting his just desserts. The reality is the buried-end configuration provided a launching ramp for off-road excursions at highway speeds. But, honestly, it was an improvement over the previous method, where the guardrail was structural its entire length and the end became a spear that penetrated the passenger compartment. The current blunt-end protocol is designed for energy absorption. Still not pretty, but survive-ability dramatically improved.

[davefoxx]

Yup, no longer practice, but it was in the mid-1980s, which is my modeling era.  Also, while I recognize that you may not be able to tell from the photos posted to date, this guardrail starts just at the north end of the main thoroughfare through town, and the speed limit zone of 25 mph would just be ending about where that guardrail starts.  I wouldn't expect any high speed crashes here, and if they did, I brought the guardrail down almost to where it's just a flat area on the other side and not the steep embankment.

DFF

[CRL]

Oh, and in case you’re wondering what’s going on with that bent guardrail end on my layout in my previous post, here’s the look I’ll be going for.  I remember when the leading edge of guardrails were bent down to the ground in the last century, rather than the blunt ends seen now.



DFF

This the first method of preventing guardrails from skewering the passengers of cars that hit the guardrails. Unfortunately, they would sometimes flip the vehicle. The blunt ends you see now are engineered to collapse in a controlled manner and absorb energy.

I lost an older cousin in the late 1950’s to an old style guardrail.

[davefoxx]

I'm sorry for your loss, @CRL.  On a lighter note, back to the risks of @wm3798's adding a roundabout to his Hi Rail layout:

DFF