Starting my bridge!!

[LD1]

If overhead welding is what you want to avoid, you could use a 3" wide strap that's wider than the 2x6 then it's not an overhead weld....only the 6" or so stand-off in the middle is. Which that weld to the bottom of the tube would be under compression and not nearly as critical.

Or if using rebar....you could always weld the rebar to a 3" wide by 4" long piece of flat stock. Then weld the flat pad to the 2x6.

If you yousef the cable....how would you attach the turnbuckles? As thin as the tubing is.....I would trust the tension with a bolt to anchor the cable. The idea of the rebar or strap is distributing the force over a larger area.

But if your gonna guard-rail it anyway....you can truss the top like an iron bridge or sides of a landscape trailer as mentioned.

Lots of ways to make it stronger....but without knowing a budget....or what scraps you have on hand....hard to say what will work best for you.

 

[LD1]

This is my last resort. I have another bridge with poles/cross bracing/etc in the center. I’m trying to see if it’s possible not to use them.

It's certainly possible....if you want no poles.

Even just welding a 1/4"x4" strap top and bottom direct to the 2x6 (basically making an I-beam but with the tube for the web)....you would nearly quadruple the strength.

I really wish I had seen this post before you had the bridge in place and I would have advised you before you set the beams

 

[Doorman63]

It's certainly possible....if you want no poles.

Even just welding a 1/4"x4" strap top and bottom direct to the 2x6 (basically making an I-beam but with the tube for the web)....you would nearly quadruple the strength.

I really wish I had seen this post before you had the bridge in place and I would have advised you before you set the beams

Re:cables
Flat stock “sandwiching” the tube
1/2 or 5/8” bolts with spacers top and bottom
Bottom bolt would have cable looped thru……no welding on ends.
Center spacer is cut from a 4x4x1/4” tube approx 3” long….allowing a good weld from above on both sides.




Flat stock I can get. I could do the same set up so no overhead welding.

Trying to keep my budget low……under $1000 including concrete.
So far I’m at $180 for the Timbers. Steel is free!

 

[Mark_G]

This is a curiosity question, could a utility trailer or decked trailer for hauling vehicles be used as a bridge? Take the wheels etc. off and rest on supports on each side? Seems like an easy bridge idea for relatively short spans.

 

[LD1]

This is a curiosity question, could a utility trailer or decked trailer for hauling vehicles be used as a bridge? Take the wheels etc. off and rest on supports on each side? Seems like an easy bridge idea for relatively short spans.

Yes it can. And alot of people use a trailer for building bridges

 

[rich1023]

If you subscribe to "mother nature's journal", you will be able to exact the positioning of your bridge over troubled waters. Erosion has a way of surprising us, determining which bank might fade and which might feed is a 50/50 science at best. My $.02 would offset center to the downslope side, also influenced by the bank trend in your photo. Rickrack could help save erosion if you have access. Good luck on your project, stay safe!

 

[1700E Dreamer]

Looks good

 

[WoodChuckDad]

I wonder how much the steel would have cost. Till you said it was free, I was wondering why you went that way. Looking forward to seeing how you do this.

 

[Doorman63]

Thanks for all the well wishes everyone.

No progress since a couple weekends ago. The bridge isn’t at our full time residence.

We are going this weekend.
I’ll (hopefully) be making some mock-ups for the bridge decking and driving one wheel of the tractor and pick up on them to see how the wood responds.

I’ll build a small tube steel frame with the correct spacing and lay it on the ground. If the mock-up fails……nothing gets broke or wet!

 

[51allis]

It's certainly possible....if you want no poles.

Even just welding a 1/4"x4" strap top and bottom direct to the 2x6 (basically making an I-beam but with the tube for the web)....you would nearly quadruple the strength.

I really wish I had seen this post before you had the bridge in place and I would have advised you before you set the beams

Been following this build as I have a very similar landscape on the back of 20A and eventually want to build a bridge that would hold about 7000#. If anything my creek might be like a 2ft wider (longer span for the bridge). You had mentioned "I" beam...I have an old 14'x70' mobile home that is basically garbage except for the steel I beams under it (its an old one with the 1-1/2" outside walls). Those I beams are about 12" to 14" high and the steel in them is 5/16". Could I repurpose those I beams to build a similar bridge that would hold the weight I need?