Question: field forge in the age of the motorized transport?

[former user]

with all that nice field forge models up to the late 19th century available - I wonder how a 20th century one could be represented as a gaming piece.
My research so far (pictures later) have revealed only improvised installations that appear to have been unloaded from transport and set up for work.
So it would appear that representing them on the battlefield could be rather a scenic piece or vignette and nothing in the way of the elaborate animal pulled trailers we know from earlier times?

Am I right or did such trailers exist? They invented field kitchen trailers after all....

[Comsquare]

Not completely sure about that, but found this on ebay:
http://www.ebay.de/itm/P3B92-Feldschmiede-Schmied-1-Weltkrieg-AK-1917-/380692959164
Looks like the forge (Esse) itself is on the trailer.

[Michi]

with all that nice field forge models up to the late 19th century available - I wonder how a 20th century one could be represented as a gaming piece.
My research so far (pictures later) have revealed only improvised installations that appear to have been unloaded from transport and set up for work.
So it would appear that representing them on the battlefield could be rather a scenic piece or vignette and nothing in the way of the elaborate animal pulled trailers we know from earlier times?

Am I right or did such trailers exist? They invented field kitchen trailers after all....

When I did my duty in cold war times we used to have a maintenance lorry that was very much a field forge based on the bed of a 5ton MAN 630 L2AE, simply called "Werkstattwagen". It was fully equipped with everything needed by both smiths and locksmiths to do their work. You had to remove the canvas to stand upright while working of course...

[former user]

THX very much - this one is great


and yes, THX too, I would have expected just that kind of workshop truck - but maybe not in the early period of motorization - would make it simple for early WW2 as well
this looks like the unloaded version of it, Isonzo front


this one is unrelated, but interesting too - pidgeon cart

[former user]

so, for the german army, WW1 and WW2 horse pulled field workshop it would be the "leichter Heeresfeldwagen" in the "Packwagen mit Feldschmiede"  version, a two horse allrounder first discontinued in early WW2 and then reeintroduced for Russia due to weight issues of the "modern"  steel version, the "Pferdemörder"

[tin shed gamer]

The British workshop lorries carried anvils and small forges(not all of them)They tend to look like large removal vans who's sides drop down to form a platform at roughly chest to neck hight.
I'm just in the middle of writing a tutorial on how to build an 8"howitzer and traction engine when thats done I could run through one if your interested.
Mark.

[former user]

THX for the offer, but I do not understand what do You mean by that:

I could run through one if your interested.

[Comsquare]

THX for the offer, but I do not understand what do You mean by that:

Me neither, but if that means that you could give a closer pic of how they looked liked/worked, I would be very interested as well.
Being a blacksmith by profession I'm allways interested in "how they did it in the old days"

[Etranger]

I've seen a picture somewhere of a British Great War truck kitted up for use as a 'mobile field forge' so presumably other countries ran to something similar. Blacksmiths/farriers were included in the official organisations for cavalry units and they would have needed equipment.

Not quite the same thing, but there's a Daimler Mobile Workshop in these images http://www.daimler.co.uk/html/History/greatwar.html

[former user]

no question about the need for farriers, I was asking myself when they actually abandoned having a special trailer. and why

[tin shed gamer]

Im not actually sure on the when.But the why might have more to do with technology and industrial scale of the war.The types of mobile forge varried from small gas powered barrel kilms to fire pits on a frames which looked more like a bbq.
Also alot of prefabrication ,more make it fit than made on the spot.
It was something That was looked at for the 1st Corps range,but its such a small area and has such a varried approach,that I couldn't honestly come up with a standardised kit.
As for offering.I've been having a little fun in my spare time writing tutorials on the forum.The first was for a Fokker Fvii plane in 28mm,and as asked I'm now writing one on Traction engines,and 8"howitzers as they require the same methods.
and could do the same for a mobile workshop.

[former user]

OK, that sounds very interesting

if You fancy showing Your approach to it, I would be certainly watching  on the edge of the seat, and I am sure others as well

[tin shed gamer]

The first stage of the Traction engine will posted this week and finished in roughly two weeks(work permitting).So I'll take a run at after that.

[former user]

we are on the seat of our edges