All about armor beds

Even 50 years ago, in many homes of Soviet people, there were iron beds with a shell mesh. A variety of options made it possible to choose a suitable model of such metal furniture for both adults and children. Today, they have almost completely disappeared from modern residential interiors, so lovers of retro furnishings are eager to install original metal beds in their homes, which have undergone restoration. The article presents materials that will tell everything about armored beds to those who are interested in such vintage bedroom furniture.

Despite the fact that the old armored metal bed looks quite modest without restoration, today there are many people who would like to purchase such a product for their home.

At the same time, a bed with an iron mesh is inexpensive, this is especially noticeable if the purchase of metal beds is carried out in bulk.

It is not for nothing that such models of metal furniture are used in many government organizations:

• in army barracks;
• in medical hospitals;
• in summer camps for children;
• in boarding schools;
• hostels.

This type of bed has a simple design. The backs are made of metal tubes of different diameters, between which an armor mesh is stretched. Cheap and simple models have painted metal backs, finished with chrome elements. On more expensive items, both backs are decorated with a chrome surface and decorations in the form of shiny metal balls.

The mesh is made of springs woven in a special way. Depending on the type of weaving, the bases are divided into several types.

1. Reticulate, in which the springs are in the form of rhombuses, and the tension is carried out using the adjusting bolts with an adjustable wrench.
2. Ring-hairpin, in which the mesh in the form of rings does not require tension, since there are no adjusting bolts in such a design. It is immediately pulled onto the frame during the production cycle.

The armored bed has a number of undeniable advantages, thanks to which it today gets a second life in the consumer market. The advantages of such furniture designed for arranging a bed include:

• strength, reliability and durability;
• low price;
• hygiene;
• simplicity and ease of transportation.

If you do not adjust the carapace mesh, then it can stretch, creating the effect of a hammock, and creak, which is not very comfortable during sleep. All this can be eliminated with your own hands if you know how to properly tension the springs and how to paint the backs.

Due to the great popularity of metal beds with a spring net, manufacturers have developed several types of designs for such sleeping furniture. The classic option is a bed with an armored mesh and metal headboards with chrome plating and comfortable rollers for moving the bed.

Later, inexpensive counterparts with wooden backs appeared, as well as bunk beds, which were usually used in military barracks and in places where prisoners were located. There were also spring models with metal backs for children. They could be used first as a cradle or playpen, and then as a full-fledged sleeping place for a child aged 3 to 10 years.

A number of models with wooden backs had a folding structure and when folded turned into a pedestal. They began to be produced after the Great Patriotic War, when a shortage of housing in cities began to be felt in the USSR, and people had to live in communal apartments.

In addition to models for the home, manufacturers produced medical and military beds on an armored mesh. They did not accumulate dust, bedbugs did not start in such beds, as in wooden counterparts. They were calculated for a long time, which significantly reduced the costs of state organizations for the purchase of furniture in barracks and medical hospitals.

Bunk army beds could have a safety bar on the second tier and a folding ladder for climbing up.

The standard model was a "lorry" bed with an armored mesh, on which one or two adults could sleep. The single model had a width of 80 cm and a length of 180 cm. A one-and-a-half metal bed with a carapace mesh had a length of 2 meters and a width of 1.2 to 1.4 m. The lorry was popular in the USSR in the first half of the 20th century.

A single bed of this type was usually bought for a child in a nursery. The standard used in its production made it possible to purchase durable and high-quality furniture for children to grow.

Besides, there were double beds, the size of which was 2x1.6 m. Such models had high backs with nickel-plated or chrome-plated surfaces, which were effectively decorated with metal balls and knobs.

Today, manufacturers continue to make such beds from metal on a carapace mesh. These are functional budget models that are designed to equip a children's bed or objects of mass accommodation for a fairly long period.

The metal backs of these beds are now covered with enamel or powder paint. Beds can be:

• single-tiered;
• bunk.

The latter are equipped with a special ladder and limiters.

There are models with backs and frame made of laminated chipboard. All modern metal beds in the budget segment have a single structure, the width of which does not exceed 80 cm. Usually they are used for arrangement:

• hospitals;
• children's boarding schools;
• barracks;
• hostels;
• hostels.

For the home, they buy bunk metal beds in the nursery. These robust structures are non-allergenic to children like the chipboard and MDF models, and ensure a safe night sleep thanks to the durable metal safety restraint.

Today you can buy inexpensive new single models of such metal beds with armor mesh, as well as vintage beds from the times of the USSR. Such models began to appear actively on free message boards on the Internet, as well as on commercial sites selling vintage items, among which you can find metal beds with armor nets.

To choose a quality model among new beds of this type, you must follow the rules and recommendations of experts.

1. Preference should be given to models whose backs and bases are coated with a powder or polymer coating - it will last longer than enameling. Powder and polymer paint is presented in a wide range of colors, so you can choose beds that will fit optimally into the interior of an apartment or a country house.
2. The frame must be made of strong steel and the backrest tubes must not be less than 32 mm thick. If in old models this parameter can not be checked, since Soviet beds are really made for centuries, then new models can also be made from less durable alloys. A viable alternative would be aircraft-grade aluminum beds.
3. Better quality is a mesh with a fine mesh. It sags less under human weight and is more suitable for restoration.
4. The height of the legs from the floor to the base must be at least 50 cm for an adult bed and at least 25 cm for children's models. The mesh stretches during use, so there must be room so that it does not stretch to the floor.
5. The best fastening of the mesh frame to the backs is the wedge-shaped fixation, in which a metal frame is put on the protruding elements of the sidewalls in the places of the holes on it. On modern models, manufacturers often use a cheaper and less reliable bolted connection.

It often makes sense to get a vintage bed from the Soviet era and just do a little facelift.

Beds from the times of the USSR are often sold in good condition. If the metal mesh is slightly loose, it can be tightened using the adjusting bolts. To remove the damaged decorative layer, the bed will need to be disassembled and cleaned. After that, the metal surface should be tightened and painted in the desired color, which will decorate the appearance of the restored Soviet product. If the chrome parts of the backrests are well preserved, they can simply be cleaned.

This is what restored Soviet-era metal beds look like in a modern interior.

• A restored Soviet bed in a bedroom in a retro style.

• An example of staining the backs in white.

• Red paint for the headboard helps to create accents in the bedroom.

• Instead of staining, the back of the headboard can be decorated with such a removable fabric cover.

The presented examples will help you choose the best design option for a metal bed of the Soviet Union era.