Mantec Bridging Ladders
- Thread starter aluke0510
- Start date
Drover
Adventurer
Rovers north
77cruiser77
Observer
Those are for sand and cool factor. They are not rated for bridging your vehicle over a ditch
http://www.lrseries.com/shop/product/listing/4127/DA2284-MANTEC-BRIDGING-LADDERS-PAIR.html
Looking for these not just a sand mat. These are great for bridging a ditch or making a step lower angle. They also work excellent as a sand mat... I should have brought a set back from Namibia when I was living there. I have seen some built like ladders but I wander how well the perform in the sand since there is less surface area for floatation...
Looking for these not just a sand mat. These are great for bridging a ditch or making a step lower angle. They also work excellent as a sand mat... I should have brought a set back from Namibia when I was living there. I have seen some built like ladders but I wander how well the perform in the sand since there is less surface area for floatation...
Jr_Explorer
Explorer
Marsden Mats are steel, are 16" X 10' and weigh 65 lbs. Allegedly they made an aluminum version but I'd bet they'd be pretty pricy if you could even find them. The steel ones are very tough but I don't think at 10' they'ed hold an entire vehicle in a bridging configuration without bending. Cut in half and bridging say a 3' gap they may work fine. But they are NOT a light weight solution! LOL!
4x4BNB
Adventurer
"Bridging ladders"or "waffle boards" like these can be had off ebay. I believe there are two thicknesses. 1.5 and 2 inches.
I found a company, probably off the expo here, that will make a custom sized bridging ladder for far less than you can find on ebay. American grating....http://www.amgrating.com/default.aspx
I had them make me a 12 inch by 5 footer that I eventually cut down to 4 feet...it fits in the luggage rack above the drivers area off my rig...
Hope that helps....
Oh...came in REAL handy last week when the entire right side of my rig sank in the snow....just jacked up each tire and placed a waffle board underneath and ... Viola
Thanks but those classify more as a sand mat option than a bridging ladder. This stuff comes in a lot of weight ratings/designs and thicknesses and can be had locally usually for 25% of what these sell on ebay for. It is used in a lot of industrial, chemical, and mineral processing plants instead of steel grating for its chemical resistance and cheaper cost. But nothing comes in a strength to support a vehicle over a 4ft ditch...
Really looking for a bridging ladder not a sand mat. It must support 1.5tons over a 4ft span.
Thanks, again but these are not really what I am looking for. BTW at a 5,000lb vehicle assuming non perfect weight distribution the most these would have supported was 1ton, not overly comparable to 1.5ton (unless somehow you had half the weight of the vehicle somehow positioned on 1 piece of grating over a 4ft ditch. The other concern is how many cycles at that weight in bridging mode have they seen? 200 or maybe 5? When fiberglass flexes it gets structurally damaged and after repeated cycles could fail leaving bent drive shafts, or worse.
I guess I'll be paying shipping from England or South Africa... For a shop to build these out of a high strength aluminium is going to cost more than buying them and having the delivered here.
Ok. Let us know how they work...be very interested to kno
I already know these work fantastic. Best thing for bridging if you don't need to bridge more than 4-5ft span. Any more and you have to with something custom anyways but I have never run into that need. For sand they are awesome. The ramp up seems to dig in a bit more than mats and won't slide backwards; probably pretty comparable or maybe a bit better due to added surface area on sand to the grating... Used them in Namibia when I lived there and loved them. My regret now is for not bringing a set back...
I am also looking for the Mantec bridging ladders. I have been thinking of trying these or something like them: http://www.discountramps.com/car-trailer-ramps.htm?CAWELAID=650489292&catargetid=1389811204&cadevice=c&cagpspn=pla&gclid=CNX8s4q67LoCFUQ6QgodbyIAXA
I think they would need some additional traction aid added to the surfaces, but may work.
I think they would need some additional traction aid added to the surfaces, but may work.
I have thought about something like those. Those look like a bit more durable design than most. I don't know if the "set" into sand as good though, as in dig in set flat. The Mantec seem to do well for that since they don't have a wide flat base on the bottom allowing them to sink in and find a good footing, setting... Would undoubtably be fine for bridging. And the angled bit seems to want to keep them from sliding backwards too. Push back on the the angle makes them want to dig down in but the flat top prevents it so they stay put rather than sliding backward...
Would be great if we could find a company or enough people to import a lot of them. would cut shipping cost a lot.
For delivery of one set here it is going to cost about $400. If we could fill a small airfreight container maybe just 800 for like 30sets. A sea freight container well I don't know what to do with that many...
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