The Gas Vans: A Critical Investigation - Holocaust Handbooks

308 SANTIAGO ALVAREZ, THE GAS VANS
In order to make as large a floor surface extractable as possible,
the grate is to be mounted sufficiently high to cover the wheel cases.
Hence only some 75 mm in internal height are lost (in contrast to the
designs in a) and b)). In contrast to this is the advantage that the grate
can be made as wide as the door. The narrow lateral ledges not covered
by the grate (ca. 250 mm) are to be filled up to the height of the grate
and to be sloped toward the center of the vehicle. Together with the
walls, this wooden structure is to be covered with smooth sheet metal.
The protruding parts of the rear wall are to be beveled with sheet metal
from the door frame to the side walls. This beveling is supposed to prevent
a jamming of the load. For extracting the grate a cable winch
(Spill) is to be mounted underneath the rear end of the vehicle. The cable
is to be attached in a sheared way to the grate section located at the
rear wall of the driver’s cabin. The other end of the cable sports a ring
and is to be attached in a removable way on the inside, close to the
door. After opening the door the cable is to be attached to the winch
drum using the ring. The separation between cable and winch is necessary
in order to prevent a leakage of the coachwork with regards to the
needed feedthrough of the cable.
When tightening the winch (manually), the grippy grate also pulls
along the load lying on the sheet metal covered lateral ledges. This all
the more so as the lateral ledges slope toward the grate. In order that the
load does not fall over the last grate [section] toward the rear wall of the
driver’s cabin, it is to be equipped with an angled gridwork of 3 to 400
mm height.
The wheel guide rails and the lateral guide rails are to be mounted
in such a way that they slant downward from the wheel cases toward
the vehicle’s end. The lateral U-shaped iron rails are to be left open at
the top at their end for half a grate section width. This enables the grate
section moving out beyond the end of the vehicle to tip down.
In order to prevent that the grate falls down with the load and
comes to rest beneath it, the grate sections are to be attached to one another
in a hinge-like manner (door hinge). The entire grate is then a part
of an endless belt. Nevertheless, the sections can be detached easily.
Each extracted grate section is to be bent beneath the vehicle so
that subsequent sections can follow. If the load rests against the already
extracted sections, these are to be cleared by moving the vehicle.
The last section is to be equipped with lateral pivots. The pivots
are to glide into a forked track as soon as this section exits the vehicle.