Been applying Archer rivets to some scratch built bridges, but looking at them they are so barely visible, so I was just wondering if anyone has used these and after painting and weathering your model are these even visible enough to warrant the tedious task of applying them. Thanks for any insight.
I've also used Archer N-scale "bridge rivets" on a couple of kit-bashed bridges I've built from prototype photos of the actual bridges at Echo Curve in Utah. Before I painted the bridges, the rivets were difficult to see, but after I painted and weathered the girders, they were much more visible. However, compared to the cast rivets on surfaces of the other bridge components of the kitbashes, they are quite a bit smaller, especially height-wise.
I am contemplating using HO-scale rivets for my next bridge project if I can find them in the right spacing. There are quite a few more sheets available in HO-scale than in N-scale so I may be able to find larger rivets with equal spacing. I am also considering using Micro Mark's HO-scale rivet decal sheet, as it's quite a bit larger than Archer's and is also considerably less expensive.
Photo (1) - Archer "bridge rivets" applied along the top surface plate on the near bridge after paint:
Photo (2) - Prototype "Lincoln Memorial Highway" bridges at Echo Utah showing prominent rivets on top girder of south bridge:
Maybe it's the lighting, but the Archer rivets don't appear to be as "tall" as the prototype's on the top of each bridge span...and the lighting is different.
Although I'm not 100% happy with Archer's products (especially the ultra thin, ultra fragile decal film), I am about 90% satisfied with these bridge models so far, even with the low Archer rivets.
Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore
