Posted: Wed Dec 27, 2006 12:50 pm
Tony,
Here is some data that can partially answer your question.
There is a small booklet published by Schiffer Military History titled BRIDGEBUILDING EQUIPMENT OF THE WEHRMACHT 19.9-1945 by Horst Beiersdorf hat you should look for. Go to the Schiffer web site.
Best regards
Ron Klages
Military Bridging Equipment
• A MATERIAL
Whole pontoons carried on Pontoon Wagon Pf. 8 and Pontoon Wagon Pf. 9, horsedrawn, makeshift motorized, or motorized.
With the equipment of a bridge column, rowed ferries could be built of:
2 pontoons with 5 planks and simple attachments with load limit of 3 tons
2 pontoons with double attachments with load limit of 4 tons
3 pontoons with 9 planks and double attachments with load limit of 7 tons
There were 26 pontoons to a bridge column and each was 8 meters long, 1.5 meters wide and 0.85 meters tall.
There was a trestle device with 8 wood spars each 4.11 meters long, 0.1 meters wide and 0.32 meters tall. 16 trestle legs were required, also wood, 4.5 meters long and 10 to 15cm thick
There were 8 shore planks of wood 4.1 meters long and 56 crash planks 4.75 meters long. These linked the shore planks with the trestle spars
There were 140 spike planks that were 6.1 meters long and 0.1 meters wide and 0.15 meters tall. They were laid from pontoon to ponotoon.
Finally there were 630 planks, made of wood, ythat were 3.75 meters long, 0.26 meters wide and 0.035 meters thick that made the roadway over the pontoon bridge.
• B MATERIAL
Half pontoons carried by Trestle Wagon Pf. 10, Pontoon Wagon Pf. 11 and Ramp Wagon Pf. 12, motorized and horsedrawan was possible.
The bridges consisted of a fixed and a floating part; supports in the fixed part are trestles, in the floating part half or whole pontoons, depending on the type of bridge: ramp parts or crossing parts linked the fixed and floating parts of the bridge. Bridges that are built only on fixed supports are called trestle bridges.
With the equipment of a Bridge Column B, the following can be built:
8 ton bridges to a length of 83 meters
16 ton bridges to a length of 54 meters
Possible bridge widths are:
Trestle and pontoon stretches to 3.14 meters
Ramp parts to 3.14 meters
8 ton bridges were built on half-pontoons
Trestle and pontoon stretches had 8 stretch carriers, 2 rack carriers, 2 ubnderpieces and a simple covering
Trestle stretches had 12 stretch carriers, 2 rack carriers and 2 underpieces
Pontoon stretches had 124 stretch carriers, 4 rack carriers and 3 underpieces
From Bridge material B the following ferries could be built:
4 ton ferries
8 ton double ferries
8 ton simple ferries
16 ton ferries
These ferries could be:
Motor ferries special boats carries were available
Rowed ferries
Trail or cable ferries
The equipment of a Bridge Column B consisted of:
16 half-pontoons
8 trestles
2 ramps
8 shore-planks
8 crossing rails-16 ton
2 motorboats
• C MATERIAL
Allowed bridges and ferries to be built up to loads of 4 tons. The following could be built:
Landing stages on small float sacks
Landing stages on half-pontoons up to 70 meters
Bridges on whole pontoons up to 140 meters
2 ton ferries
4 ton ferries
single special ferries
double special ferries
4 ton bridges
special bridges of 84 meters with 42 meters of it floating
• K n.A. material
Consisted of ready made box carrier device for heavy loads up to 16 tons and tracked vehicles to 20 tons.
With a half-platoon material one could build :
1 bridge of 16 ton load limit with 19.2 meter support width or
1 bridge of 16 ton load limit with 14.4 meter support width or
1 bridge of 16 ton load limit with 9.6 meter support width or
With a full-platoon material one could build :
1 bridge of 16 ton load limit on floating intermediate supports with
38.4 meter length or
33.6 meter length or
28.8 meter length or
24 meter length or
with the materials of a fulll column then one could build
1 bridge of 16 ton load limit on floating intermediate supports including a double block of 78.8 meters in length
• D MATERIAL
Bridging material for reconnaissance units that could be carried in trucks
• G MATERIAL
Bridging devices for mountains
• H MATERIAL
Heavy self-carrying bridges with pontoon support that was taken over from the Austrian and Czech Armies.
• I MATERIAL
Device for heaviest loads with pontoon support
• IZ MATERIAL
light dismantable bridges, self-carring, loaded on trucks
• sS MATERIAL
heavy ships’ bridge
• T MATERIAL
Czech bridge device. Whole pontoons, carried on trestle or pontoon wagons, horsedrawan or motorized.
• Bässler Bridge
Bridge material with swinging trestle as fixed support, loaded on trucks.
Some TOE info:
KStN. 733 Br.Kol. B(mot.) dated 1.10.1937
Stab with
1x le.PKW with 1 officer and 1 enlisted man
3x motorcycles with 1 NCO and 2 enlisted men
1.Platoon (Pontoon) with
1x le.gl.PKW with 1 officer and 1 enlisted man
1x motorcycle with 1 enlisted man
8x m.gl.LKW with 2 NCOs and 16 enlisted men
8x Pf.11 trailer
4x SdKfz 6 m.Zg.Kw. with 1 NCO and 9 enlisted men
4x Pf. 10 trailer
1x m.gl.LKW with 3 enlisted men
1x SdAh. 13 trailer with 1 boat
2.Platoon (Pontoon) with
1x le.PKW with 1 NCO and 1 enlisted man
1x motorcycle with 1 enlisted man
8x m.gl.LKW with 2 NCOs and 16 enlisted men
8x Pf.11 trailer
4x SdKfz 6 m.Zg.Kw. with 1 NCO and 9 enlisted men
4x Pf. 10 trailer
1x m.gl.LKW with 3 enlisted men
1x SdAh. 13 trailer with 1 boat
Ergänzungs Platoon with
2x motorcycle with side car with 2 NCO and 2 enlisted man
1x le.LKW with kitchen and 3 enlisted men
1x m.gl.LKW with fuel drums and 3 enlisted men
2x m.gl.LKW with 2 NCO and 7 enlisted men
2x Pf. 12 trailer
1x m.gl.LKW with 4 enlisted men
1x SdAh 15 trailer(ferry cable)
Train Section with
1x le.LKW with 1 NCO and 2 enlisted men
The bridging equipment carried was:
16 half-pontoons
8 trestles
2 ramps
8 shore planks
8 crossing rails-16 tons
2 motorboats
1 ferry cable on a spool
If the trilers were horse drawn then each double axle wagen required 6 horses
KStN. 737 Br.Kol. K(mot.) dated 1.10.1937
Stab with
1x le.gl.PKW with 1 officer, 1 NCO and 1 enlisted man
3x motorcycles with 1 NCO and 2 enlisted men
1.Platoon (Pontoon) with
1x le.gl.PKW with 1 officer and 1 enlisted man
1x motorcycle with 1 enlisted man
12x m.gl.LKW with 3 NCOs and 26 enlisted men
2.Platoon (Pontoon) with
1x le.gl.PKW with 1 officer and 1 enlisted man
1x motorcycle with 1 enlisted man
12x m.gl.LKW with 3 NCOs and 26 enlisted men
Ergänzungs Platoon with
2x motorcycle with side car with 2 NCO
1x le.LKW with kitchen and 2 enlisted men
1x le.LKW with 3 enlisted men
1x m.LKW with 3 enlisted men
Train Section with
1x le.LKW with 2 enlisted men
KStN. 734 Br.Kol. C(mot.) no date
Stab with
1x le.PKW with 1 officer, 1 NCO and 1 enlisted man
2x motorcycles with 2 enlisted men
1.Platoon (Pontoon) with
1x motorcycle with sidecar with 1 NCO and 1 enlisted man
3x m.gl.LKW with 1 NCO and 6 enlisted men
3x Pf.15 trailer
3x SdKfz 6 m.Zg.Kw. with 9 enlisted men
3x Pf. 14 trailer
2.Platoon (Pontoon) with
1x motorcycle with sidecar with 1 NCO and 1 enlisted man
3x m.gl.LKW with 1 NCO and 6 enlisted men
3x Pf.15 trailer
3x SdKfz 6 m.Zg.Kw. with 9 enlisted men
3x Pf. 14 trailer
Ergänzungs Platoon with
2x motorcycle with side car with 1 NCO and 1 enlisted man
1x le.LKW with kitchen and 4 enlisted men
1x le..LKW with 1 NCO and 3 enlisted men
Train Section with
1x le.LKW with 2 enlisted men
Here is some data that can partially answer your question.
There is a small booklet published by Schiffer Military History titled BRIDGEBUILDING EQUIPMENT OF THE WEHRMACHT 19.9-1945 by Horst Beiersdorf hat you should look for. Go to the Schiffer web site.
Best regards
Ron Klages
Military Bridging Equipment
• A MATERIAL
Whole pontoons carried on Pontoon Wagon Pf. 8 and Pontoon Wagon Pf. 9, horsedrawn, makeshift motorized, or motorized.
With the equipment of a bridge column, rowed ferries could be built of:
2 pontoons with 5 planks and simple attachments with load limit of 3 tons
2 pontoons with double attachments with load limit of 4 tons
3 pontoons with 9 planks and double attachments with load limit of 7 tons
There were 26 pontoons to a bridge column and each was 8 meters long, 1.5 meters wide and 0.85 meters tall.
There was a trestle device with 8 wood spars each 4.11 meters long, 0.1 meters wide and 0.32 meters tall. 16 trestle legs were required, also wood, 4.5 meters long and 10 to 15cm thick
There were 8 shore planks of wood 4.1 meters long and 56 crash planks 4.75 meters long. These linked the shore planks with the trestle spars
There were 140 spike planks that were 6.1 meters long and 0.1 meters wide and 0.15 meters tall. They were laid from pontoon to ponotoon.
Finally there were 630 planks, made of wood, ythat were 3.75 meters long, 0.26 meters wide and 0.035 meters thick that made the roadway over the pontoon bridge.
• B MATERIAL
Half pontoons carried by Trestle Wagon Pf. 10, Pontoon Wagon Pf. 11 and Ramp Wagon Pf. 12, motorized and horsedrawan was possible.
The bridges consisted of a fixed and a floating part; supports in the fixed part are trestles, in the floating part half or whole pontoons, depending on the type of bridge: ramp parts or crossing parts linked the fixed and floating parts of the bridge. Bridges that are built only on fixed supports are called trestle bridges.
With the equipment of a Bridge Column B, the following can be built:
8 ton bridges to a length of 83 meters
16 ton bridges to a length of 54 meters
Possible bridge widths are:
Trestle and pontoon stretches to 3.14 meters
Ramp parts to 3.14 meters
8 ton bridges were built on half-pontoons
Trestle and pontoon stretches had 8 stretch carriers, 2 rack carriers, 2 ubnderpieces and a simple covering
Trestle stretches had 12 stretch carriers, 2 rack carriers and 2 underpieces
Pontoon stretches had 124 stretch carriers, 4 rack carriers and 3 underpieces
From Bridge material B the following ferries could be built:
4 ton ferries
8 ton double ferries
8 ton simple ferries
16 ton ferries
These ferries could be:
Motor ferries special boats carries were available
Rowed ferries
Trail or cable ferries
The equipment of a Bridge Column B consisted of:
16 half-pontoons
8 trestles
2 ramps
8 shore-planks
8 crossing rails-16 ton
2 motorboats
• C MATERIAL
Allowed bridges and ferries to be built up to loads of 4 tons. The following could be built:
Landing stages on small float sacks
Landing stages on half-pontoons up to 70 meters
Bridges on whole pontoons up to 140 meters
2 ton ferries
4 ton ferries
single special ferries
double special ferries
4 ton bridges
special bridges of 84 meters with 42 meters of it floating
• K n.A. material
Consisted of ready made box carrier device for heavy loads up to 16 tons and tracked vehicles to 20 tons.
With a half-platoon material one could build :
1 bridge of 16 ton load limit with 19.2 meter support width or
1 bridge of 16 ton load limit with 14.4 meter support width or
1 bridge of 16 ton load limit with 9.6 meter support width or
With a full-platoon material one could build :
1 bridge of 16 ton load limit on floating intermediate supports with
38.4 meter length or
33.6 meter length or
28.8 meter length or
24 meter length or
with the materials of a fulll column then one could build
1 bridge of 16 ton load limit on floating intermediate supports including a double block of 78.8 meters in length
• D MATERIAL
Bridging material for reconnaissance units that could be carried in trucks
• G MATERIAL
Bridging devices for mountains
• H MATERIAL
Heavy self-carrying bridges with pontoon support that was taken over from the Austrian and Czech Armies.
• I MATERIAL
Device for heaviest loads with pontoon support
• IZ MATERIAL
light dismantable bridges, self-carring, loaded on trucks
• sS MATERIAL
heavy ships’ bridge
• T MATERIAL
Czech bridge device. Whole pontoons, carried on trestle or pontoon wagons, horsedrawan or motorized.
• Bässler Bridge
Bridge material with swinging trestle as fixed support, loaded on trucks.
Some TOE info:
KStN. 733 Br.Kol. B(mot.) dated 1.10.1937
Stab with
1x le.PKW with 1 officer and 1 enlisted man
3x motorcycles with 1 NCO and 2 enlisted men
1.Platoon (Pontoon) with
1x le.gl.PKW with 1 officer and 1 enlisted man
1x motorcycle with 1 enlisted man
8x m.gl.LKW with 2 NCOs and 16 enlisted men
8x Pf.11 trailer
4x SdKfz 6 m.Zg.Kw. with 1 NCO and 9 enlisted men
4x Pf. 10 trailer
1x m.gl.LKW with 3 enlisted men
1x SdAh. 13 trailer with 1 boat
2.Platoon (Pontoon) with
1x le.PKW with 1 NCO and 1 enlisted man
1x motorcycle with 1 enlisted man
8x m.gl.LKW with 2 NCOs and 16 enlisted men
8x Pf.11 trailer
4x SdKfz 6 m.Zg.Kw. with 1 NCO and 9 enlisted men
4x Pf. 10 trailer
1x m.gl.LKW with 3 enlisted men
1x SdAh. 13 trailer with 1 boat
Ergänzungs Platoon with
2x motorcycle with side car with 2 NCO and 2 enlisted man
1x le.LKW with kitchen and 3 enlisted men
1x m.gl.LKW with fuel drums and 3 enlisted men
2x m.gl.LKW with 2 NCO and 7 enlisted men
2x Pf. 12 trailer
1x m.gl.LKW with 4 enlisted men
1x SdAh 15 trailer(ferry cable)
Train Section with
1x le.LKW with 1 NCO and 2 enlisted men
The bridging equipment carried was:
16 half-pontoons
8 trestles
2 ramps
8 shore planks
8 crossing rails-16 tons
2 motorboats
1 ferry cable on a spool
If the trilers were horse drawn then each double axle wagen required 6 horses
KStN. 737 Br.Kol. K(mot.) dated 1.10.1937
Stab with
1x le.gl.PKW with 1 officer, 1 NCO and 1 enlisted man
3x motorcycles with 1 NCO and 2 enlisted men
1.Platoon (Pontoon) with
1x le.gl.PKW with 1 officer and 1 enlisted man
1x motorcycle with 1 enlisted man
12x m.gl.LKW with 3 NCOs and 26 enlisted men
2.Platoon (Pontoon) with
1x le.gl.PKW with 1 officer and 1 enlisted man
1x motorcycle with 1 enlisted man
12x m.gl.LKW with 3 NCOs and 26 enlisted men
Ergänzungs Platoon with
2x motorcycle with side car with 2 NCO
1x le.LKW with kitchen and 2 enlisted men
1x le.LKW with 3 enlisted men
1x m.LKW with 3 enlisted men
Train Section with
1x le.LKW with 2 enlisted men
KStN. 734 Br.Kol. C(mot.) no date
Stab with
1x le.PKW with 1 officer, 1 NCO and 1 enlisted man
2x motorcycles with 2 enlisted men
1.Platoon (Pontoon) with
1x motorcycle with sidecar with 1 NCO and 1 enlisted man
3x m.gl.LKW with 1 NCO and 6 enlisted men
3x Pf.15 trailer
3x SdKfz 6 m.Zg.Kw. with 9 enlisted men
3x Pf. 14 trailer
2.Platoon (Pontoon) with
1x motorcycle with sidecar with 1 NCO and 1 enlisted man
3x m.gl.LKW with 1 NCO and 6 enlisted men
3x Pf.15 trailer
3x SdKfz 6 m.Zg.Kw. with 9 enlisted men
3x Pf. 14 trailer
Ergänzungs Platoon with
2x motorcycle with side car with 1 NCO and 1 enlisted man
1x le.LKW with kitchen and 4 enlisted men
1x le..LKW with 1 NCO and 3 enlisted men
Train Section with
1x le.LKW with 2 enlisted men