BAILEY BRIDGE STANDARD BRIDGE is a new injection molded plastic 1/87 kit by ARTITEC. This is the base kit that can be expanded with their extension set.

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1/87 is a scale with which I'm not familiar. Is that common in railroading?

Yes, it is HO Railroad scale. Why are we reviewing 1/87 railroad scale items here?

Armor dioramas??


I refuse to be defined by, or limited to, one scale.

Would be a lot more practical in 1/72.

Another Artitec image found on line:

Hopefully they will consider making other scales available in the future.

There is both Bronco and Resicast (discontinued) in 1/35, Wespe and Verlinden (discontinued) do one in 1/48, not sure of any in 1/72 other than shapeways.

Because Preiser and Roco do have an extensive, high quality amount of military vehicles and figures maybe!
At least in Europe. And they very well fit to h0 railroad modeling.
I have seen model trains from all historical periods (pls., see for exact definitions on eg. the Roco model train website) transporting army vehicles as in real life.
A friend of mine runs a German DB loc with one passenger car and a row of flatbacks, carrying M109‘s, M578’s and M577 as a memory to our arty unit going to Münster Süd on his 70ies railroad.
On this side of the ocean quite some people are interested in this scale.

HO scale is very popular in Germany. You can easily build entire
bataillons. I also know a gúy who builds HO scale Minitank in the same quality as we do in 1/35 scale.

Some of us do like to cross over and mix genres; I do. UK railways are most popular in 00, which is to a scale of 1:76.4 or 4mm to the foot. Hence Airfix's original military models at this scale, with Nitto and Fujimi following suit. Other manufacturers used the already popular 1/72.

This bridge also has civilian applications, believe it or not, one serves as the road bridge over the River Ogmore between Tesco car park ( on the site of the former Cattle Market) and Quarella Road, near the former Bridgend General Hospital, a popular short cut for ambulances into A&E. The hospital is long gone, but I think the bridge is still there. It is actually known locally as The Bailey Bridge, and I'm sure it can't be the only example.

As Paul and Hans-Hermann said, 1/87 is very popular in Europe. Wespe has perhaps over 100 1/87 military kits; Preiser and others add scores more, as does Herpa, SDV MOdels, Trident, and perhaps more than a dozen other manufacturers. When the Braille Scale sub-forum was created here at Armorama, I suspect 1/87 was not realized as a significant scale for military modeling. It would be a shame not to show modelers the wealth of 1/87 military models, especially since Armorama has such a strong international reach.

I ought to have mentioned that Artitec are already known for their military kits and ships/boats, in N (1/160), H0 (1/87), and TT.
They also have some in 1/72.

these would be great in 1/35, especially when you think about what you could build with the extension kits. Endless possibilities: think Mechano.

I rather think the original designers did!

One thing I might point out; the bridge that Artitec shows as box art is six panels long. The bridge in the original WWII reference photo shown above is also six panels long. However to be substantial enough to carry a Sherman such a bridge would need to be a double. (Twin panels on each side to be correct.) Therefore it would take the basis bridge kit plus the extension set to build the bridge properly to carry a combat armored vehicle the size/weight of a Sherman.

I am not pointing this out implying any sort of mis-representation on the part of the manufacture. Just simply indicating that for the modeler to do a proper, AND CORRECT war time Bailey bridge one will need the base kit PLUS the extension set.

As represented here the Artitec Bailey Bridge in "single, single" format would only be good for Jeeps and foot traffic. For normally overloaded Quartermaster Corps GMC's to use this bridge would be questionable.

Bronco Models CB-35012.

I have read that there are problems/inaccuracies with the Bronco model.

Then too, since the first day of its' introduction the 1/35th scale Bronco kit needed an "extension" set to also be offered. Buying multiple bridge kits just to get extra bridge side panels is an expensive solution that results in the purchase of a lot of unnecessary parts.

An image that might be of interest:


The "double, single" as shown here was the most often constructed Bailey Bridge format. (Meaning each side consisted of two bridge panels, side by side, one panel high, i.e.; double, single.)

Regarding John's comment as to civilian uses for the Bailey Bridge; almost 40 years ago the state of Kentucky was using Baileys (the bridge not the Building & Loan) to provide temporary crossings at key locations where old state highways bridges were being replaced.

A bit more research and remembrance:
The Bailey Bridge at Bridgend is of double sided construction, as illustrated above. IIRC, it is surfaced with a non-slip layer, but I don't remember if the decking is wood. I think so, but I haven't seen it - let alone walked over it - since 1990.

These bridges were invented for military use, and could be easily and quickly assembled, even used with pontoons to build makeshift ferries. I found no reference to any carrying railway track, so as a model railway accessory is purely scenic rather than part of working infrastructure. Primarily a military model, then.

If it were 1/76, there would be an immediate order. In 1/72, tempting. In 1/87? Less so. I'll think about it.

There's a huge on in place outside Boston Mass. Been up for a few years now. I must have drove over it two dozen times the week we stayed in Hull, Ma. a couple summers ago.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/42%C2%B014'38.8%22N+70%C2%B058'02.3%22W/@42.244109,-70.969486,754m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m6!3m5!1s0x0:0x0!7e2!8m2!3d42.2441095!4d-70.9672919

Definitely was used for railroad construction as well. I will try to find some photos. **

I have the 300+ page Manual on the M2 Bridging System in .pdf format. I would be happy to send it electronically to anyone who might be interested but bare in mind it is a 4MB file.

PM me.


**. Sorry I saw the photo of a Bailey Bridge used in wartime railroad service just this morning on the internet and now I cannot find it again. I admit it was rare for them to be used in railroad service and this one was rather massive - at least a triple, double!

The Bailey Bridge System is still available for rent or purchase today from the Maybey Company.

Hi John,

It takes some sleuthing to find reference of Baileys being used for railways. I look forward to Michael's references. My first introduction to railroad Baileys is a photo on the box of the Wespe 1/48 Bailey box, of the Langley Bridge over the Moselle River near Charmes, France. That allowed me to find this US Army publication which describes the railroad use of Bailey's, a.k.a., "Panel Bridges," covered in Chapter 13:

Bailey Bridge, TM 5-277, Headquarters, Dept. of the Army