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Nachrichtengerätekarren walk-around


Funksammler

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To help move the heavy rolls of telephone wire and other equipment, the Nachrichtentruppen used a cable cart, the "Nachrichtengerätekarren". Two extra cable reels, as well as the complete "Rückentrage" cable dispenser with a third reel could be carried along with cable poles, "Baustangen" etc. Original WW2 carts are few and far between and could easily be confused with postwar examples. This walk-around should help identify some of the particular features of a WW2 cable cart:

- chassis with equal high supports for the "Rückentrage"

- straight pull bar with wooden handle

- removable wheels with solid rubber tyres

The photographs also show the rare "Aufspulgerät", a removable chain drive fitted to the top of the "Rückentrage" as the normal drive is unaccessible whith the Rückentrage fitted to the cable cart.

The cable cart shown was found in Normandy in the St. Lo area. It was in pretty bad condition after years of neglect, so what you see is the result of a full restoration. Enough traces of dark grey paint remained so the cart was restored in dark grey. One of the wheels was repaired in the field. Parts were obviously difficult to find at the time as the workshop fitted a new flange so that shorter spokes could be used for the repair. My father and I recovered the cable reels from the Dives river near Chambois when I was a young lad,  one can only imagine the messages that these wires carried during the Normandy battles. 

regards,

Funksammler

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  • 3 months later...

Very nice restoration and photography.  I've never seen one of these carts set up.

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Hello Funks,

Superb Cart and Fantastic Images...Great Collection Piece!

Thanks for showing us on MCN

Best to you....Desert Rat

Edited by Desert Rat
correction to text
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  • 4 months later...

I found another bonkers accessory for the Nachrichtengerätekarren!


If you mount the Rückentrage on your Nachrichtengerätekarren, the wire spools off towards the rear of the cart which is quite logical. If you want to use the cart to spool up the wire though, you have a problem as you would have to push the cart backwards to do this efficiently.


No worries, the German engineers set to work and rather than simply fit another towbar attachment to the back of the cart the Germans chose to design a complicated reversal subframe. The subframe neatly slots into the attachments on the Nachrichtengerätekarren while the Rückentrage in turn is locked onto the reversal frame. Now these leather straps on the supports of the cable cart suddenly make sense, as they are used to keep the subframe secured to the cart.


With the subframe fitted the cable feeds onto the Rückentrage from the front. The Rückentrage is slightly tilted backwards which makes changing the wire spools slightly easier and puts the spooling guide in the ideal position. The Rückentrage is also fitted with an additional driving gear with a handle on each side which can now easily be operated from the rear of the cart. So all in all, the subframe neatly solves a number of ergonomic issues... Although I have not found a manual describing the reversal frame, I suspect the frame and additional drive came together as a "spooling up" set. I also have not found the official name of the set and subframe, but without a doubt this was a wartime innovation.

Interestingly, the backward tilt of the reversal frame was incorporated in the postwar design of the Nachrichtengerätekarren, although in the postwar design, the Rückentrage points permanently to the rear, so the card has to be pushed backwards during spooling up operations.

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regards,

Funksammler

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Hey Funks,

What a fantastic item and superb images.....I would love to have one of these. You Lucky Man!!

Thanks and Best to you.....Desert Rat/ Ian

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  • 3 years later...

Hey would you be interested in selling to me? I’m located in the USA and I’m obsessed with this type of stuff. I have two cable reel backpacks but I have nothing like that cart. Hopefully you’ll consider my offer.

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