The Pratt Truss was designed by Thomas and Caleb Pratt in 1844. It became popular for railway bridges because it was able to have long spans. The Pratt has many variations, most with their own unique name. For instance, the Baltimore, Pennsylvania, and the Parker are all based off the Pratt.

This is the updated design of my Short Pratt Truss Bridge made from popsicle sticks. The only difference was the addition of 4 more popsicle sticks in key areas. I doubled up the angled sticks on each end, and made the lateral bracing into an X shape rather than a zig-zag pattern

This is a popsicle stick bridge I built using the Pratt Truss design. This bridge is 13.5 inches long, 4 inches tall, and 3.75 inches wide. This bridge weighed about 70 grams and held 73 pounds before breaking. I used 46 popsicle sticks to build this bridge. That gives it an efficiency score of 474

I found pictures of some old trusses I built for Science Olympiad bridges. Most of these were built in the 2003-2004 school year. I thought I would post them to give examples of how these trusses could be used in model bridges

It’s taken me just under 48 hours to get this far. Although i wouldn’t say its completely finished.. it’s a good as. I might just polish it off with a lick of paint and other aesthetically pleasing type things. As you can see, I’ve modelled it on the Pratt Truss. Although, I didn’t do any “real” plans, just rough drawings

Video of a large Pratt truss bridge being loaded to failure

Built by Bill H. Here is the email Bill sent me: I started making bridges about a year ago and have pictures to share with you. For the first bridge I used a set of plans that I found free on the internet from a guy who was in the army. The bridge plans were [...]

Learn all the main types of trusses used in real bridges, and see how to apply them to model bridges. Learn the history of each common truss design. This page is designed to help you make an educated decision about what truss design you should use on your bridge.