Rail lengths

From Festipedia, hosted by the FR Heritage Group

Railway rail is manufactured in standard lengths so that when a rail needs to be replaced for any reason a replacement rail is of the right size. There is always a need to cut "closure" rails to close uneven gaps.

Since joints between are a weak spot, rails are made as long as the current manufacturing technology allows although they cannot be any longer than the end-user can handle.

If new technology allows for longer rails, the new length is typically a whole number multiple of the previous size, such as 15 feet, 30 feet and 60 feet. 45 feet is also a multiple of 15 feet.

Really early rails were 3 feet long (1 yard), and 15 feet and 24 feet are whole multiples of 3 feet.

The earliest rails of 3 feet (1 yard) long, may explain why rail weights are measured in pounds per yard (lb/yd).

To allow rails to be transported, they cannot of course be too long, as they may exceed the capacity of available rolling stock. Since steel rails do bend to some extent, they can be carried on more than one wagon, with suitable bolsters, and are able to follow curves up to a point.

Joints[edit]

There is always a need to join adjacent sections of rail, such as:

Damage[edit]

Rails tend to wear badly as their ends, and if you cut of these ends, what is left is a non standard length of rail. Welding and cutting can produce standard length rails plus offcuts.

Table[edit]

Press up/down arrow to sort data under that heading.

Year Rail
Weight
Rail
Length
Type Material Link Detail Notes
2010 113lb/yd (56kg/m) FB ST Cae Pawb diamond crossing NR SG rail
or bar
FB=Flat Bottom
ST=Steel
2010 080lb/yd (40kg/m) FB Cae Pawb diamond crossing closure/transition rail
2010 060lb/yd (30kg/m) BH ST Cae Pawb diamond crossing FR NG rail BH=Bull Head
ST=Steel
1923 ST Cambrian Crossing No rail weights mentioned
1922 045lb/yd (23kg/m) FB ST Croesor Tramway relay rail Complete
1901 075lb/yd (37kg/m) ?? ST Harbour Station relay rail
1922 041lb/yd (20kg/m) 060ft ? TW ST Croesor Junction A4085 level crossing TW=Tramway Rail
2008 075lb/yd (37kg/m) 120ft ? FB ST Pen-y-mount down loop line with baseplates
2008 050lb/yd (25kg/m) FB ST Pen-y-mount up loop line replaced
with 75lb rails
on baseplates &
Pandrol clips
1836 015lb/yd (08kg/m) ?? ?? Festiniog Railway original rail for horses OO [1]
1865 030lb/yd (15kg/m) ?? ?? Festiniog Railway heavier rail for locomotives
not heavy enough
HH [2]
1866 048lb/yd (24kg/m) ?? ?? Festiniog Railway still heavier rail for locomotives II [3]
1868 038lb/yd (19kg/m) FB Festiniog and Blaenau Railway FB=Flat Bottom
1901 041lb/yd (20kg/m) FB Croesor Junction relay for locomotive haulage RR
1863 020lb/yd (10kg/m) IR ?
ST ?
Croesor Tramway horse haulage IR=Iron
ST=Steel
3066 120lb/yd (60kg/m) 240ft ? Railways are
still there.
1066 No railways then.
1832 003ft ? FI CI
WI
Rail Types FI=Fishbelly
CI=Cast Iron
WI=Wrought Iron
2010 050lb/yd (25kg/m) 024ft DH Day Log/1896-08-28 DH=Double head
1964 050lb/yd (25kg/m) 024ft
030ft
BH Penrhyn Quarry Rail Relay. Some welded

Note: Leading zeros required to make columns sort properly

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "ECONOMIC RAILWAYS". Morning Post (Cairns, Qld. : 1897 - 1907). Cairns, Qld.: National Library of Australia. 7 April 1898. p. 2. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
  2. ^ "THE RAILWAYS OF THE FUTURE". Hamilton Spectator (Vic. : 1870 - 1873; 1914 - 1918). Vic.: National Library of Australia. 14 May 1870. p. 1 Supplement: SUPPLEMENT TO THE HAMILTON SPECTATOR. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  3. ^ "THE RAILWAYS OF THE FUTURE". Hamilton Spectator (Vic. : 1870 - 1873; 1914 - 1918). Vic.: National Library of Australia. 14 May 1870. p. 1 Supplement: SUPPLEMENT TO THE HAMILTON SPECTATOR. Retrieved 27 September 2015.

External links[edit]