CADplans
Elite Member
Railroad track would be a lot stronger than a railroad tie,,,:thumbsup:
Railroad Tie Support Weight
- Thread starter RalphVa
- Start date
- Views: 16209
4570Man
Super Star Member
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2015
- Messages
- 18,447
- Location
- Crossville, TN
- Tractor
- Kubota M59, Kubota L3800, Grasshopper 428D, Topkick dump truck, 3500 dump truck, 10 ton trailer, more lighter trailers.
I doubt that. Railroad track is pretty floppy.
CADplans
Elite Member
the gap is only 6 feet,, people build woodsplitters out of rr track,, they are not the best, but, they are WAY more than 2,000 pounds,,,
4570Man
Super Star Member
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2015
- Messages
- 18,447
- Location
- Crossville, TN
- Tractor
- Kubota M59, Kubota L3800, Grasshopper 428D, Topkick dump truck, 3500 dump truck, 10 ton trailer, more lighter trailers.
There’s a big difference a load bearing joist and the force involved in a wood splitter. And yea it’s probably strong enough to span 6’ but so is a lot of other easier obtained stuff.
CADplans
Elite Member
Hey, Ralph, buy these,, I will ride with you to pick them up,,
Concrete pipe for sale - heavy equipment - by owner - sale
Can we use the Corolla with a U-Haul rental trailer to bring them back?? :confused2:
Concrete pipe for sale - heavy equipment - by owner - sale
Can we use the Corolla with a U-Haul rental trailer to bring them back?? :confused2:
Tractor Seabee
Elite Member
- Joined
- Oct 5, 2011
- Messages
- 3,896
- Tractor
- Kubota BX25
I built a 12' span bridge with 15" switch ties #3 grade. Set 3 stringers on 12' ties parallel to the bank embedded in compacted crushed gravel. Anchored the stringers to the sills with 12" steel form pins. Ties are set on edge versus flat. Decked it over with 2" rough-cut fir planks nailed down w/6" spikes. Drove my 1 ton dully with 5000# of gravel over it for a test. Never moved or bowed. whole project cost less than $400.
#3s are 3 good sides and not rotted. I buy at a RR salvage place and get to select the ones I want. Most of their stuff comes from abandoned lines, realignments, and repairs. Once they have been in service they are never re-used. Stay away from the ones at the big box stores, lumber yards, and landscape places. They buy the culls of the used market.
Where the OP lives there should be a similar place to buy. There are a lot of railroads still operating back there. Heard that they are starting to use composite material from recycled plastic for ties now; also piling. No rotting or borer problems. I have used piling for retaining walls in days gone by.
Ron
#3s are 3 good sides and not rotted. I buy at a RR salvage place and get to select the ones I want. Most of their stuff comes from abandoned lines, realignments, and repairs. Once they have been in service they are never re-used. Stay away from the ones at the big box stores, lumber yards, and landscape places. They buy the culls of the used market.
Where the OP lives there should be a similar place to buy. There are a lot of railroads still operating back there. Heard that they are starting to use composite material from recycled plastic for ties now; also piling. No rotting or borer problems. I have used piling for retaining walls in days gone by.
Ron
goeduck
Super Member
I have two bridges on one of my properties made of old railroad trestle timbers that easily support 10,000 lbs. Yet I still cross most of the time at a Ford. The creek has a hard bottom, is about 30 feet wide at that spot and about 12 inches deep.
oosik
Epic Contributor
Ralph - if you are talking about a true, big, 'ol greasy, gooey rr tie. Good Lord, yes. They will most certainly support a 2000 pound load across a six foot span. I have eight of the "real things". Randomly spaced on my mile and a half fence line. They are all ten feet long and would weigh in the neighborhood of 400# to 450#.
I would not even have second thoughts about putting a 2000# load on one railroad tie. Yes, they are from differing type trees but I'm talking about a timber that is 8" x 10" x 10' long. Not some wimpy, wanna-be, that you can buy at the local lumber yard.
I would not even have second thoughts about putting a 2000# load on one railroad tie. Yes, they are from differing type trees but I'm talking about a timber that is 8" x 10" x 10' long. Not some wimpy, wanna-be, that you can buy at the local lumber yard.
Diggin It
Super Star Member
^^ The #2 ties at the big box store for $15 or so are the real thing, but they're past life for the RRs. They have spike holes, they're split, partially rotted and full of gravel who knows what else. I use them for a few things as long as they're flat on the ground. I don't think I'd try to use them to support a vehicle over any kind of span.
