RAILROAD CONSTRUCTION 



.87 



Steel Rails. — Rails are classified according to their weight in 

 pounds per lineal yard, and those of a given weight are now made 

 of a uniform size. 



The chief parts of a rail are the head, the web, and the 

 flange base. The head contains 42 per cent of the metal, the 

 web 21 per cent and the flange 37 per cent. 



WEIGHTS AND DIMENSIONS OF STANDARD RAILS 1 



Rail part. 



A 



B 



Cand D. 



B 



F 



G 



Weight per yard in pounds. 



Dimensions in inches. 



2M 



il 



4lt 



n 



2tl 



III 



From the International Library of Technology, Vol. 35B, §57, p. 9. 



Rails are sold by the long ton. Although the standard rail 

 length is 30 feet, shippers reserve the right to include 10 per 

 cent of from 24- to 28-foot rails in a given 

 order. 



Narrow-gauge roads use 25- or 3 5 -pound 

 rails; and standard-gauge 35- or 45-pound 

 rails on spurs, and from 45- to 70-pound 

 rails on main lines. The lighter rails are 

 an advantage on spurs because they can 

 be handled more readily. 



The long tons of rails of different weights 

 required per mile of road may be found 

 by multiplying the weight per yard by 1 1 

 and dividing the result by y} Ordinarily the weight of the rail 

 in pounds per yard should equal the number of short tons carried 

 on all the drivers of the heaviest locomotive that is to be used. 



Fig. 8 1. — A Standard Rail 

 Head. A, the head. 

 B. the web. C, the flange 

 base. 



Example : weight of rail, 60 pounds per yard; then 



60X II 



= 94 tons, 640 pounds. 



