By Ed Porter

Author  Bio I was building a mountain using white Styrofoam, so after experimenting a bit came up with a quick solution.

Quick and easy track risers

Quick and easy track risers While building my front yard layout I was faced with building trestle bents for the approach to the bridge over a small stream. Well, in reality a bridge was needed too. The garden railroad club I belong to ( http://www.wvmgrs.org ) uses 2x6 risers cut at increasing heights for temporary layouts, and I considered using the same. I was building a mountain using white Styrofoam, so after experimenting a bit came up with a quick solution. My wife, Tina, just picked up a hot wire foam sculpting tool that was demonstrated at a local nursery so this was part of the first project with the new toy. Making the first one The white foam I used is available from your local hardware store. The size is 1 x 4 x .3/4" and comes in a plastic bag of 4 sheets. When I build new ones, I will use the pink or blue foam sheets which are 2' x 8' x 2" as the foam is dense and not as prone to damage like this foam. When I build things I usually just make an approximation and trim to fit. You can see by this picture that my arch is lopsided, but is not noticeable in place. I was also in a hurry as I was running out of daylight. I cut two pieces of the foam to size with a knife and used the hot wire tool to cut out the arch. The sections were assembled with a low temp hot glue gun. A pattern would have helped when cutting the arch, making all of the arches the same size. Click for larger picture Make it Look Real The next step is to burn a pattern into the surface. I used a random rock look, but the square or rectangle cut stone look works well too. Click for larger picture The supports are now ready to paint. Use black acrylic paint sprayed at an angle so the grout lines stay white. The coating was light to accent the pattern of the Styrofoam. The three layers of foam are visible in this picture. The supports are placed at 1 foot intervals. Click for larger picture For tall units a second arch is added. Click for larger picture The same material is used for the bridge, use a wood support underneath, as this bridge has a bit of flex to it when the engine crosses. Click for larger picture Click for larger picture Painted and ready for use. Click for larger picture Ready for Halloween! Click for larger picture Have fun building your Styrofoam structures. Top of Page