I have nothing against the actual manuals. I love collecting them, really, and eventually reading through them. What I dislike is when people decide to sell these documents which are in the public domain and FREE to any and all who want to see them as long as they've been declassified. It really bugs me when people take these free documents and decide to stick a $20 or more price tag on these things. I understand it's all a business and people are free to do what people do (even if it's completely ripping off us) but it just really bugs me. That is all and thanks for putting up with this... spiel.

That said... Does anyone know where I could find a Tech manual for the M1 Bailey Bridge?

https://www.google.com/#q=Tech+manual+for+the+M1+Bailey+Bridge
4th selection down...PDF from web.mst.edu/.
Is this what you are looking for?

Cheers,
C.

There is this document which may be what you are looking for.

http://web.mst.edu/~rogersda/umrcourses/ge342/Bailey%20Bridge-revised.pdf

I've already seen that document. I'm looking for the 1940's technical manual for the M1 Bailey bridge. Heck even the M2 Bailey manual from the 40s.

While I too like 'em free from the web, I don't begrudge the folks who sell copies. After all, if I don't want to pay I can always get off my backside and go to the Library of Congress to look at them (if a copy still exists in the system) at great travel expense or I can track one down at a collectors fair - but then I'd probably have to hand over some cash to buy it in hardcopy! The only folks for whom these were truly "free" were the crews that had them issued when the equipment was in service, and they paid with risk incurred through service. The guy who sells copies has had to track down a 50+-year old obsolete paper document in good condition (and these get fewer every year), then he has had to scan every page (time and computer usage), and after advertising (costs) he has to deliver it to you. If that takes the form of a CD he has to sit at the computer and do the burning (time + say 50 cents for the disk?). And he may only sell one copy every few months from an original he paid hard cash to obtain.

Free is nice, but we should never get so demanding that we expect it from others when we ourselves also need to make a living...

Good luck on your hunt.

You can find a 1943 edition of TM 5-277 here :

http://fr.slideshare.net/blancaisabelcig/tm-5277

H.P.