• Our booking engine at tickets.railforums.co.uk (powered by TrainSplit) helps support the running of the forum with every ticket purchase! Find out more and ask any questions/give us feedback in this thread!

Problem of Carrying a 18 m long Rail

Status
Not open for further replies.

gkhn1811

New Member
Joined
19 May 2020
Messages
1
Location
Adana
Hello everyone,

We have a problem about our railway construction project. We need to carry our 18 m long rails by using 14 m long trucks and the exceeded 4 m of the rail will be cantilever outside of the truck. Will there be any
deformation problem on our rails that will cause constructional problems. You can see the following image as our situation.



1589870730178.png
 
Sponsor Post - registered members do not see these adverts; click here to register, or click here to log in
R

RailUK Forums

GRALISTAIR

Established Member
Joined
11 Apr 2012
Messages
7,806
Location
Dalton GA USA & Preston Lancs
Not all rails are carried by road. Steel is used because it is very good at absorbing induced stresses. When you think about a multi hundred tonne train running over theses rails at 125 mph any induced stress caused by transport is extremely low by comparison.
 

DarloRich

Veteran Member
Joined
12 Oct 2010
Messages
29,182
Location
Fenny Stratford
Logically, I doubt a slow speed, short distance move like that would cause problems.

However, any advice should be checked with your consulting engineers.
.
 

Geoff DC

Member
Joined
27 Jan 2018
Messages
229
Location
Penzance
I'm sure there are Turkish road hauliers with trailers that extend to 18m
But it's a long time since I used to run through Adana on the way to Reyhanli & Bab Al Hawa
 

92002

Member
Joined
27 Mar 2014
Messages
1,124
Location
Clydebank
Hello everyone,

We have a problem about our railway construction project. We need to carry our 18 m long rails by using 14 m long trucks and the exceeded 4 m of the rail will be cantilever outside of the truck. Will there be any
deformation problem on our rails that will cause constructional problems. You can see the following image as our situation.



View attachment 78131
Hello everyone,

We have a problem about our railway construction project. We need to carry our 18 m long rails by using 14 m long trucks and the exceeded 4 m of the rail will be cantilever outside of the truck. Will there be any
deformation problem on our rails that will cause constructional problems. You can see the following image as our situation.



View attachment 78131
Chances are you will introduce stress in the rail from the overhang and may introduce a non flat rail into the railway.

Good chance of the vehicle being stopped by the police on the road. Especially since the overhang doesn't have a warning board.

The easy answer is to get an extendable trailer.

You also should not be handling the rail with a single point lift. Spreader beams are available with special lifting clamps to avoid damaging the rail.
 

BC

Guest
Joined
4 Feb 2019
Messages
104
Looking at the way rail used to get chucked about I wouldnt worry too much....

(see 0:55)

An analysis of the rail and the stresses induced (making reasonable guesses at the Y value and dimensions) show you will be nowhere near anything of concern in terms of deformation of the rail
 

BC

Guest
Joined
4 Feb 2019
Messages
104
I was thinking the same (as someone who can do metallurgy analysis and also can repair and run projectors...) I'd be amazed if there were not knowledgeable people about rail engineering on here.
 

92002

Member
Joined
27 Mar 2014
Messages
1,124
Location
Clydebank
Looking at the way rail used to get chucked about I wouldnt worry too much....

(see 0:55)

An analysis of the rail and the stresses induced (making reasonable guesses at the Y value and dimensions) show you will be nowhere near anything of concern in terms of deformation of the rail

All the rails in the video are bring lifted by a spreader beam. So deformation of the Rail will not take place. The rails in use are 109lb. Modern rails are now 60Kg and heaviertoo.

A single point lift of a rail without a spreader beam will deform the rail and introduce stresses as well as Health and Safety problems of the Rail moving and striking someone on the site.

The only area where a spreader beam is not in use on the video is offloading long rails from the train. This however is done by a hydraulic clamping unit and managed speed of the train. So a safe process.
 

BC

Guest
Joined
4 Feb 2019
Messages
104
I never said anything about single point lifts. That was a different poster..
 

civ-eng-jim

Member
Joined
16 Jul 2011
Messages
396
Location
Derby
Looks fine to me - Can't see any deflection in the rail at all.

At the end of the day it's a steel beam and will have a bending capacity to support its own weight.

A couple of straps would suffice, a spreader beam would be overkill unless it was for a fully-sleepered panel with a mass of nearly 11tons.

Good idea to strap the rails together as shown in the photo to keep them upright and loaded in the stronger axis.
 

92002

Member
Joined
27 Mar 2014
Messages
1,124
Location
Clydebank
Looks fine to me - Can't see any deflection in the rail at all.

At the end of the day it's a steel beam and will have a bending capacity to support its own weight.

A couple of straps would suffice, a spreader beam would be overkill unless it was for a fully-sleepered panel with a mass of nearly 11tons.

Good idea to strap the rails together as shown in the photo to keep them upright and loaded in the stronger axis.

If a Helath and Safety Inspector seen you lifting a rail without a spreader beam, you would be charged. Rails should only be lifted singely. Not strapped together. The spreader beam takes the load and converts the single point lift into a two point lift as well as keeping the rail straight. Any bending of the Rail starts cracks which later break through the rail. A spreader beam is the only approved method. The only acrptsble way of offloading two rails is from a train.
 

BC

Guest
Joined
4 Feb 2019
Messages
104
I'm sorry but thats simply not correct. A cantilever which is what this is at the end of the day is a common engineered structure and they take many millions of load and unload cycles without issues. Whilst rail may be quite hard and not especially compliant, 4 meters stuck out the back of a lorry with the support point on timber where there are no stress rises is not going to spontaneously start cracking from the gauge or anywhere else after a short road journey.
There are good H+S reasons for not doing single point lifting because the rail will slip and turn unexpectedly but it's not going to affect it structurally like this.

(just out of interest, does anyone know what is the typical hardness and bulk properties for a rail including the steel makeup and modulus values etc. It's piquied interest and I cannot find anything immediatly online)
 
Last edited:

civ-eng-jim

Member
Joined
16 Jul 2011
Messages
396
Location
Derby
In the time we've been talking about it, I expect the original poster has done the job, gone home and put their feet up safe and sound.
 

themiller

Member
Joined
4 Dec 2011
Messages
1,056
Location
Cumbria, UK
Given that the lorry in the photo is Turkish and the OP is from Turkey, I assume this thread concerns work within Turkey. If so, the requirements regarding Health & Safety regulation and Road Traffic Act requirements may be different from the UK.
 

kentuckytony

Member
Joined
23 Aug 2010
Messages
283
Location
Edgewood KY USA
Hello everyone,

We have a problem about our railway construction project. We need to carry our 18 m long rails by using 14 m long trucks and the exceeded 4 m of the rail will be cantilever outside of the truck. Will there be any
deformation problem on our rails that will cause constructional problems. You can see the following image as our situation.



View attachment 78131
Just wondering, are Ozgul and Nazgûl related?
 

Puppetfinger

Member
Joined
18 May 2018
Messages
103
A lot of rail is brought into the UK by truck, a French haulier called Capelle does a lot of this, and have the trailers that can extend up to 22m long for this kind of load.
 

92002

Member
Joined
27 Mar 2014
Messages
1,124
Location
Clydebank
I'm sorry but thats simply not correct. A cantilever which is what this is at the end of the day is a common engineered structure and they take many millions of load and unload cycles without issues. Whilst rail may be quite hard and not especially compliant, 4 meters stuck out the back of a lorry with the support point on timber where there are no stress rises is not going to spontaneously start cracking from the gauge or anywhere else after a short road journey.
There are good H+S reasons for not doing single point lifting because the rail will slip and turn unexpectedly but it's not going to affect it structurally like this.

(just out of interest, does anyone know what is the typical hardness and bulk properties for a rail including the steel makeup and modulus values etc. It's piquied interest and I cannot find anything immediatly online)
Sorry to say the solution is an expandable trailer. A four metre hangover will allow the rail to flex and eventually crack. No matter how short the journey is.

There are many types of rail, but they are quite hard and harder. To allow the rail to take the wear and not the train wheels. The rail steel is quite brittle and does not take kindly to flexing.

The use of a spreader beam keeps the rail upright.

If the work is taking place within the EC then similar legislation will be in place there too under EC and UIC rules.
 

BC

Guest
Joined
4 Feb 2019
Messages
104
Thanks for that, most useful. I'm surprised that the rail isn't harder than that on the running surface though although I suppose there is a lot more rail to wear than there is tyre on the wheels.
 

civ-eng-jim

Member
Joined
16 Jul 2011
Messages
396
Location
Derby
Thanks for that, most useful. I'm surprised that the rail isn't harder than that on the running surface though although I suppose there is a lot more rail to wear than there is tyre on the wheels.

If you have a search for posts by member Daniel Pyke from British Steel, there are a few threads on rail grades and hardness et cetera.
 

themiller

Member
Joined
4 Dec 2011
Messages
1,056
Location
Cumbria, UK
Isn't it just the rail head that's hardened? It's not necessarily relevant to this thread, though as we don't know the spec. for the rails in question.
 

CJK64

Member
Joined
1 Jul 2019
Messages
103
If the load overhanging the back of a lorry exceeds 3m, police have to be given 2 days notice and an attendant is required.
From what you are saying, you have 4m overhang, if you take that without informing the police or having an attendant you are looking at a pretty hefty fine.
 

Joseph_Locke

Established Member
Joined
14 Apr 2012
Messages
1,878
Location
Within earshot of trains passing the one and half
Iron Horse have (or used to have - can't seem to find them trading) a rigid HIAB truck with three stout goal post trestles of descending heigh that allowed the rails to pass over the truck cab, reducing the overhang (but making it taller) when loaded with 60' rails. I think it carried a light beam to facilitate a two-point lift.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Top