Marston airport runway mats.....

[Patrice DEBUCQUOY]

Hello,

Here is what I have (taken from TM 5-255 "Aviation Engineers" April 1944)

8QClZke.jpg 5LFtP0g.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/8QClZke.jpg | https://i.imgur.com/5LFtP0g.jpg

Hope it helps,
Cheers,
Patrice.

[Bob Carriere]

Will need to post pictures of the ends on my mats which are slotted and offset in height to ease connection.....Got mine from Robin in Kingston.

Thanks Patrice that manual TM 5-255 is a good clue for more research.....

Seen them used as fence for pig pens but never to store empties....Hanno must have had a good party to save that many empties.....

We have tried using the mats we have to connect at 90 degrees but the spacing of the slots are totally different...... the USA training film on U tube shows the plain end models which they stagger the joints for greater strength.

Mine will serve dual purpose....day time stored inside the 2B1 cargo box vertical/sideways just before the fender wells and the vertical spare tire mount we fabricated.....located side ways..... so they will be trimmed to 79 inches long. At night flat on the fender well boxes laid flat and locked together as a sleeping cot with an air mattress. The front headboard of the cargo box is taken up by the 10:50 spare tire and two small barrells
(60 liters each) of extra fuel strapped in solid.

For occasional soft ground mats use, we are considering welding 3/8 cheap or old rusted nuts to improve traction....one quick zap with the MIG welder inside the hole of each nut....will buy bulk!!!

I did consider storing them externally on the sides of the box but they will interfere with the canvass tie down ropes....... but remain open to suggestions........ Maybe will carry 4 pieces and devise a clip of some sort to tied them together end to end........
In the Western area of PQ we propose to 4x4 in, soft sand and loose gravel is very common in the low areas and bare solid bed rock on the mountain tops........all eroded by the ice shields......... winching can be a problem as solid tie down spots are hard to find....... trees have very superficial root systems......which leaves you with carrying 4 foot sections of re-bars to create chained ground anchors similar to artillery units or burying you spare tire or a log....... what a way to waste a full day......

You can tie down to other convoy members, but two jeeps sideways are needed to pullout a bogged down CMP....... and you loose popularity points very fast..... and on some occasions I propose to travel alone and travel more cautiously..... no cell connection or services.

BC

[Bob Carriere]

...found the publication and was able to download.....

Bob C

PS...lots of bed time reading.....but...... the USA pattern does not address how to tie them end to end which must be a later version or other country..... maybe UK????
with the help our resident engineer .......Grant will design something!!!!!!!

[Jacques Reed]

Found this photo in "Battleground South Pacific" by Robert Howlett and photos by Bruce Adams published in 1970.

Caption reads "Marsden Matting designed for muddy airfields planks the footway of a military bridge still in use at Milne Bay".

I imagine many of the relics in the book photographed 55 years ago are now long gone or deteriorated beyond recognition. I bought the book in Rabaul in 1975 when it was a recently published book.

There was a lot of Marsden matting around post war. As a young boy in the fifties in the US I saw it even being used at the Delaware Bay and Cape Hatteras beach areas.

Cheers,

[Mike Cecil]

I think the image might show an Australian Steele Bridge which has been re-clad in Marsdon Mat/PSP. The original decking was timber.
Mike

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally Posted by Patrice DEBUCQUOY

Here is what I have (taken from TM 5-255 "Aviation Engineers" April 1944)

Nice find, thanks for sharing it here.

[Alex van de Wetering]

I was also looking into these recently.....trying to find a way to recognize ww2 made examples from postwar ones....Anyone?

Bob, I do seem to remember the ones with the slots in the ends of the plates are a postwar improvement. Not sure if this is British or US design.

I have also seen them in different length sizes (also presumed postwar) and even ones in plastic or aluminium, which seem to be of very recent manufacture for the 4x4 world.

Also steel ones which don't have the large holes "open" but closed with 3 very small drainage holes.......no idea when these were made.

[chalky]

Slightly off topic but tractor on bridge is either a BMC Mini 9/16 or a Nuffield 4/25.
Former had a dieselised Mini 950 engine and was not a sales success as seen as underpowered .
Latter had the well proven BMC 1500cc diesel and sold better.

[Lang]

Some time ago I was reading about air operations in New Guinea in WW2. There was mention that those small "plugs" holding the mats together were popping out and causing punctures to aircraft tyres.

Must be why the longer ones I have seen were brought in and driven into the ground to stop them popping out.

Many New Guinea. Solomons and Indonesian steel strips were made of crushed coral which often was hard enough by itself after setting like concrete but the steel mats were put on top to stop dust, tyre wear and the corrosive effects of salt-water rolled coral mud in wet weather.

After the war many steel strips were covered with either more coral or gravel on top of the steel then bitumenised.

[Lang]

Here are some instructions. Note they say one 600mm (2 foot) pin per sheet to stop horizontal movement.

[Bob Carriere]

Thanks Lang

Seems that the ones I have may be post war......... at both ends I have 3 1.5 inch slots and the top surface is recessed to allow for overlap....so some kind on flat bar fastener must have been used....... this would link mats lenghtwise as well as sideways...... I have not been able to see any pictures of the ones I have.......

Cheers