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Have you ever wanted to build your own suspension bridge, but didn’t know how? Curious how I built my own in just 40 hours on a shoestring budget?
I’ve put together a Quick Start Guide that shows out everything you need to start making your own backyard suspension bridge. Interested? Download it from this page!
When I began thinking of how I would make a suspension bridge around $500, I just started sketching things on paper. And quite frankly, most of the design stuck in my head as I constructed the bridge. I didn’t follow any blueprints or diagrams, I just “made it” in a good old-fashioned DIY way.
You may have found my site through searching on the Web for DIY Suspension Bridge or something like that. Maybe you found my video on YouTube. When I was looking for do-it-yourself suspension bridges on YouTube (and on the web), I didn’t find anything that was like what I wanted to create, so I gleaned some ideas off a couple videos, talked with a very smart DIY’er, and got to work.
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Hi, I;m really interested!
Curious as to the state of your bridge today. Have you had any problems? Any suggestions as to better materials? How much foot traffic is on the bridge?
I’m trying to span the same distance over a creek.
Thanks
Chris Acosta
The bridge is holding up very well. It does not get a lot of traffic, however. If you wanted to increase durability of the bridge, I would suggest getting galvanized eye bolts that are a closed loop, instead of the open-ended ones I used in my project. That would help improve the longevity of the bridge.
Thanks!
-The Timber Frame Guy
this is awesome; just what I was looking for, I’ve got half of the span on my creek.
If I increased the wire to 1/2 dia. and boards to 1 inch, do you think it would handle 1500 lbs? I have a field down below my property with no access to mow. Thanks in advance.
Best,
Mark
Hi Mark,
I would recommend using better hardware instead. Use closed eye bolts for securing the cables.
If you plan on having the same width as the bridge built in the video, 1″ boards would probably be fine. Anything wider and I would look at reinforcing them or building small platforms with a frame underneath instead of using plain boards.
Hope that helps!
-The Timber Frame Guy
will it hold a 4 wheeler?
Thank you for your Quick Start Guide. We are using this guide to help us build a rope bridge at a center for foster children. We are grateful for your help and we wanted to let you know that your guide will be used for a good purpose. Thank you.
I installed the bridge over a 48 ft span. Looks great and works nicely though a little bit too flexible for older people to use. Much of the flex seems to come between the points where the diagonal cable intersects the bottom cable. I’m going to try running some vertical rope members between the diagonal members to see if that stiffens it. I’ll let you know.
Thanks very much for your ingenuity and for putting the plans up on the web. I’ve sent you a donation.