Rail Costs

[3609]

Hi People

Has any body ever made a mould for mild steel, say in the profil of L.G.B. Rail. Because the club that I am in, has done it for brass rail in 12Ft lengths and we get our sleepers made as well and it  cuts our rail prices by two thirds. What if this could be done for mild steel, then the money you save could put batteries in all your loco,s. plus it would look so real, rusty all over with two shiny ribbons of steel on top reflecting the sun shine.

just a thought/ some imput please.

regards 3609 from down under. 

[EMPIRE II LINE]

Hi People

 What if this could be done for mild steel, then the money you save could put batteries in all your loco,s. plus it would look so real, rusty all over with two shiny ribbons of steel on top reflecting the sun shine.

just a thought/ some imput please.

regards 3609 from down under. 

An article in GR, what issue I don't remember. But a few years back, maybe Rene' could tell you.....hey Rene you out there.

Gent called his line. The "Gopher Canyon" if memory serves me right. He lived in Arizona I believe. He had been there done that. I'll try and find it later if'en Rene don't chime in here before I get back to ya.

Anyway the gents sentiments were in the article "Don't let your freinds use steel rail" or something to that effect, if I remember right. It Was a neat layout, in a relatively compact yard....

Byron 

[cabbage]

What you also have to remember is the ductility of brass compared to that of steel... While it is quite easy to extrude via pressure either brass or aluminium -steel would have to be cold rolled.

regards

ralph

[Rene Schweitzer]

Whoa, I just took a trip in the way-back machine! The Gopher Canyon was in the December 1997 issue.

[FJ and G]

I'm making my own rails using an RTV mold I made from a RealTrax rail, code 235 I believe

I started out making the rails in resin, but found the neck to be insufficieently strong so I've added metal powder and wires to the mixture.

 

I've also cast rails in solder but need to perfect the technique a bit more. It's a lot cheaper than buying rails and it's more fun to cook up a batch of rails.

 

I've taken a hiatus from RR projects to do some writing and then will get right back on track 

 

 

 

 

 

[kstrong]

The success of steel depends largely on where you live. I have some friends who had a railroad in suburban Denver laid with some steel rail, and after three years outside, showed only minimal spots of rust and conducted very well. On the other hand, I have a friend who lived in the southern tier of New York State--considerably more humid--whose steel rail rusted to completely unusable in (I believe) two years. By "completely unusable," I mean it no longer resembled rail, just two rusty threads. Now, the rails weren't from the same manufacturer to start, so it's hardly a scientific experiment--just two completely different experiences with similar materials.

Will steel rail work for you? The answer may lie in your car. How long does it take for a scratch in the paint to start to form rust? Going back to the CO/NY example, the truck I had in college had a scratch that went un-rusted for the three years I went to school in CO. It rusted within 6 months of arriving in NY.

Later,

K

[Anonymous]

Of corse Dave I like to see your workings as they inspire me and I would bet others on different ways and not the same ole, same ole. Keep it up buddy and give a good rubbin to BB.

[Curmudgeon]

Many years ago Llagas had steel available.

He was selective on where he sold it.

Some person took a batch and built a line on the coast of California.

Two years was a lot longer time than the rails lasted.

 

[3609]

Hi Guys

3609 again, I live not that far from the ocean and mild steel nails 3mm thick have sat on concrete around the base of a fence for at least 4 years and aquired surface rust, that was cleaned up.This is what gave me the idea of making rails out of m/s. The brass rails I have are at least 9mm base, 3mm shank, 5mm head.The cost of the m/s rail should be a lot cheaper, so if you got 5 years out of the rails and then replaced them, you would still be a lot further ahead than if you had paid for brass. And you still would have all your sleepers. Anyway after 5 years you need to change your lay out. This keeps the interest going. Battery power and r/c is the way to go. May be brass switches, that's a different situation. All the soft metal prices are just going to keep escalating, what then, give it all up. Mild steel may not be our savour but come on guys think of something with all the skills and knowledge out there, where is the solution. If young people can't afford the hobby. Then it will pass away with our generation, that is so sad, imagine H.O. Rules.       {  DONT THINK ABOUT "N" GAUGE }

THINK OUT SIDE THE SQUARE.

 

[cabbage]

Believe me, I really DO think outside of the box...

I also live at about 350m above sea level in an area of the UK famous for the number of reservoirs... Other than 18/10 alloy stainless steel -mild steel will corrode with extreme rapidity in the highly acid soil and damp conditions of the Peak District. This is why my 32mm track is Nickel Silver and the track that I am making for my Gauge 3 layout is Brass -sat in white metal chairs pinned onto oak sleepers with copper nails. I expect it to take me three years to produce enough Gauge 3 track to make it all the way around the garden.

I am expecting a lifespan of at least 15 years for my work.

regards

ralph

[kstrong]

... so if you got 5 years out of the rails and then replaced them, you would still be a lot further ahead than if you had paid for brass. And you still would have all your sleepers.
Anyway after 5 years you need to change your lay out. This keeps the interest going.

Not really, because you're going to be replacing the rails more than once or even twice, so your savings is quickly nullified. Spread over a period of time, perhaps, but ultimately it's more expensive to continually have to replace a part than to buy a part that won't wear out. There's already a "cheap" alternative to brass; aluminum. Dad laid his railroad with aluminum rail 27 years ago, and the rail is every bit as good today as it was back then. But I'm also not saying don't try the steel. You won't know if it works for you until you try it yourself.

Having said that, I think you'll find changing the rails every 5 years to be more of a chore than you really want to take on. Think of it like painting your house. You can use cheap paint every 5 years, or expensive paint every 10 to 15. For me, time in the garden is scarce enough. I'd much rather spend it running trains and maintaining the garden than replacing the rails on which things run. There's enough in a garden railroad that is continually changing to keep things fresh without having to change the track, too. Think of the track as a skeleton on which everything else (garden, landscaping, buildings) is hung. If you continually change the skeleton, the flesh never has a chance to grow. And it's really not until things flesh out that a garden railroad really takes on an individual character. Most established garden railroads haven't moved any rails in a good number of years. (Added to, perhaps, but not wholesale change.)

...If young people can't afford the hobby. Then it will pass away with our generation, that is so sad...

I disagree. When I was growing up, it was my dad's generation that was supposed to be the last bastion of model railroading. I--and kids my age--were supposed to be sucked away by video games never to return to the tracks. True, some of us got sucked away during our teens and 20s, but we're back. I get a lot of e-mail from beginners, most of whom are in their mid 30s/early 40s--the generation which our elders said was doomed to never return. The simple truth is that people in their teens and 20s have vastly different priorities. I was one of a small handful of 20-somethings in the various train clubs I belonged to, but now I'm far from the only 30-something. (Okay, so what if we're using Train Simulator to plan our garden railroads... Nothing said we had to leave video games behind. )

And it's not "affordability" that's bringing us back. A kid in day care really cuts into the train budget. Yet we find a way to enjoy the hobby. Some of the most memorable railroads I've seen have been built by folks who scarcely have a dime to put food on the table, but still manage to put track in the back yard. It's that will and desire that drives the out-of-the-box thinking of which you speak. Take the gentleman in California who sprayed his Bachmann track with an epoxy coating so it will last outdoors. Everyone said it wasn't worth the trouble, but he did it anyway, and he's enjoying the fruits of his labor. He's now relaxing on his back deck with a glass of wine in one hand and a train throttle in the other. How we get there--or how many say that we're crazy--doesn't matter.

Later,

K

[FJ and G]

here's steel rail on the CSX main in Crystal City VA. If you look close, the date is 1940. The rails, which appeared in great shape, were replaced last year so I took the photo before they could be ripped out. These rails saw about 80 trains a day for 67 years and undoubtedly will be used on a secondary line for 67 more.

As an experiment, I layed some 027 Lionel tubular track outside for 2 years and they are rusty but still in good shape. OTOH, my nextdoor neighbor's iron smoker has completely rusted thru.  Back in early 70s I had a Malibu. Kept it until about 1980, when it rusted thru in many spots.

It's seems hard to predict what types of steel will rust and which will not. Undoubedly its due to conditions of exposure, how its used, mineral makeup and process that its made.