So I guess it depends on the engineers that build the bridge and the technique which was used. But even knowing that, I'm pretty surprised to see a Tiger on a wooden bridge. I guess the Germans were pretty damn good at constructing brigdes:) I know that bridges are designed to stand even bigger weights because of a safety margin. Those that colapse or get destroyed while being a bit overweighted are usualy badly designed and built. Also back in the past big tanks or trucks columns where used to see if a bridge can sustain big wieghts. I'm even pretty sure they do it now. So my hat's of to you Marevic1 and jackhammer81 and good luck with all your dio's. Cheers!

dsc.

I have been wanting to pull that pic out for a long time and post it. On the other hand I wanted to do a dio of it too then pull it out for everyone that thought it was crazy to put a tiger on a wood bridge. :-) I was really amazed when I came across it.I also have the pics of the panther falling thru the bridge and even tanks as light as the pz3 falling thru them too. So as you say it depends on who andhow the bridge was built. Glad you guys enjoyed the pic. Cheers Kevin

Hi Guys,
I too have a copy of the pic (stored somewhere on my hard drive), which gave me the initial idea.
By the way, it's almost all finished now. Just stuck on what to put under the bridge (water or ice) and how to do it. Nearly there.....
:-)

I personally think the Grey is too 'Bright' as well...

I also think the bridge needs to be 'dulled down' as well.

One thing that I would ask (and as i'm a Tiger 'beginner', forgive the question) but would the Feifel air filter be appropriate in Russia? I always assumed it was for tropical use...

One last point, which is becoming rather tedious, before posting can people look at the guidelines on the Critic's Corner? People post here to get feedback on their models, suggestions, details they may have missed etc. It doesn't mean nit-picking nor, and this is the problem for me, mean that it turns into a love-fest either. I don't thnk the "Wow! This is perfect!" is particularly in the realms of 'constructive' criticism...Jim

LOL I really don't believe that is your second build.....you can't fool me here lol

But if it is your second build, I'm truly looking forward to your future projects as this looks really really cool.

Ok time for my comments:

The grey is too light, I've got to agree with Jim on that. It's almost winter camouflage. What I would do is use a filter to darken it up a bit. If you do that, your excellent painting work will not be lost but it will just look darker. Try it on a spare model first btw for practice.

Weathering is ok, but don't forget to weather the decals as already said by the others.

Also don't forget the tracks (but you already mentioned it yourself so no prob here I think)

Well that's about it. Great job so far, I hope you can use my comments to make it even better!

Oh and Jim, I also agree on your point about the Critic's Corner! You're 100% right.

Martin

Wow! Looks excellent to me. I love the condtions in which you photographed it. It looks like a real photo taken on a sunny winter day.

Congrats on an extremely realistic tank,
Eddie

I'm a bridge engineer. I mostly design new bridges in concrete and steel, but have seen some really bad looking bridges from the 1920s thru1960s (mostly steel) that look like they shouldn't be taking any load due to deterioration, but they still do - so nothing surprises me anymore.

I can easily see the diorama bridge supporting the Tiger. Arches are strong and the span in the diorama is small. Wood bridges would be more likely to fail, but I'm sure some would be adequate.

There are two points in the Tiger's favor, despite the heavy load. One, there are many wheels on the tank to help distribute the load. Two, the tank would be traveling at a small speed over a small, narrow bridge. This would reduce the bounce or impact load on the structure. For today's US Highway design codes, this is a load reduction of around 30%. Today's bridges are designed with a factor of safety of more than 2, some components as much as around 5.

Generally, today's failures are due to somebody's mistake in design, plan detailing or construction. There are so many safety factors built in to the design codes that spectacular failures are thankfully rare.

Re: Bridge Strength

I just came across a Verlinden Productions Allied road sign that says "Engage 1st gear and maintain constant speed over bridge"

I explained the effect of slow speed in the previous post; the constant speed would mean no braking. Braking creates a force around 10-15% of the vehicle weight by today's US codes. This force is parallel to the roadway surface, so essentially only affects the columns.

As Tom said,

some bridges can take amazing loads.. He is a bridge enigineer, I hoped to be one one day, but unfortunately that is no option. Mind you, the age of a bridge does not say it all.

I don't think the Romans designed for 10+ tons vehicles, but some of their bridges still function today. One of the most famous is the bridge at alcantara in Spain.

Supposedly there was a bridge in the Alps of Roman or medieval origin, which the Germans were unable to blow (withstood the blasts) and after a torrent it was the only bridge in quite an area still capable of holding Shermans...

As far as the dio itself is concerned, the quality of the work is outstanding... but for the bridge, to me it seems not like the type used in Russia. It feels more like a bridge from theBalkans and west there of (including Germany, and Western-Europe).

Hi all,

after a bit of a break from this project, I've started on it
again today. The terrain is packing foam covered with
plaster strips.

I've just painted the base colors (which is why it is so shinny). Still need to detail it with lighter colors and do the washes.

Have painted differing shades of brown in preperation
for the resin water.

Anyway, let me know what you think.

That looks excellent now, I really like the weathering on the tiger and the bridge. Well done I really like it.

Hi all.

First of all, I'd like to thank all of you for your comments and discussion. It's been great.

Now for the next update. I have finally taken the plunge and made the water (using resin). My first attempt!!!
I've now learnt that when using resin, keep out of the cold!

After initial pouring, the water look creamy, but after it set a little, I worked it with an icecream stick which seemed to fix it. It turned out a little more muddy than
I would have liked, but being my first attempt, I'm happy with the result.




Now back to weathering the terrain....

Very nice bridge

Awesome work.....excellent!!