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I wanted a bride on my layout to spice things up, even though it'd just be on the table top.  In the end due to price and availability, I went with the Lionel Truss Bridge, 6-12772.  They aren't bad for being plastic, but now they're going to be a pain.  They didn't come with the wire clips or screws to mount to the piers like the manual said they did.  I was going to use the screws to mount to the table.  Guess now I have to find my own and glue the wires in place.  Just as well that they came screw less, because if they had, I would of had them installed and track laid already.  But this morning I just discovered that they are too short, and some of my rolling stock doesn't fit in them, namely the RailKing double stacks.  My scale hi-box car doesn't fit either.  So now I have to take them off of the metal base (The main reason I bought them was they had a metal base that I could put the track on.) and figure out how to raise them up so things fit under them.

What's the tallest O gauge item from rail height so that I can make sure I get them high enough, and how has anyone else increased their height?

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If you're doing steam era modeling, you'd probably be safe with 5" between the rail head and the overhead obstruction. However, when you factor in the increased ride height of hi-rail (and some 2-rail equipment) and more modern equipment, this jumps up to about 6". Most of the Lionel bridges (and signal bridges) go back to the Postwar era (steam), pre-dating excess-height box cars, double-stacks, auto racks, and Superliners and have limited clearance. On the signal bridges, you just put blocks under the piers. on bridges, you usually need to find an alternative bridge designed for modern equipment or convert said postwar bridge from an overhead truss bridge to an under-track truss bridge.

I feel your pain. Most of the bridges were made before the jump to scale size cars. I have a old Miami Valley Bridge that I put together in the eighties. All was fine till I bought premier MTH car carriers. The cars were 1/4 inch too tall. Then Lionel came out with their scale auto racks. They almost made it through. I finally ending up making the decision to remove all the bottom cross braces above the track inside the bridge. That gave me enough room......Paul

Well, Lionel got back to me about the missing screws and wire clips, they'll be sending them to me.  As for the height, I'll plan on 6.25 above the rail head.  I'm thinking that best would to be getting some angle iron from Home Depot and drilling it to match the bridge screw holes.  And since I put the two back to back, I can now put them both on the same angle iron and make it one long bridge.

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