Frodo Report post Posted February 25, 2022 Hey guys. My nephew just bought some land that used to have an old saw mill on it many many years ago We found a old abandoned spur RR track in the woods. that is approx 300' long that equates to approx 600' of RR track If anyone is interested in some of this track let me know 3'' piece could be used as a weight to hold your leather in place 10'' piece would be a nice anvil, anything over 10'' might be costly to ship, $16.00 to ship a medium flat rate box MAX weight is 75 lbs Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mulesaw Report post Posted February 25, 2022 Nice set of tracks, I think that you should suggest your nephew to install a sawmill of some sorts again, then maybe he can use the tracks as they are. :-) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Frodo Report post Posted February 25, 2022 3 hours ago, Mulesaw said: Nice set of tracks, I think that you should suggest your nephew to install a sawmill of some sorts again, then maybe he can use the tracks as they are. :-) Problem someone owns the parcel between his land and the rail road . Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chuck123wapati Report post Posted February 25, 2022 2 hours ago, Frodo said: Problem someone owns the parcel between his land and the rail road . thats some cool history wonder what size track it is and the width between? that would tell you the age. I live in rr country also and use two anvils i have made from track. As well the spikes may be high enough carbon to make knives and tomahawks from they are quite a novelty. If i remember right the high carbon spikes had an H stamped on them. I have a spike puller i found years ago lol. looks kind of like a giant claw hammer end you can pound under it with a four /five foot handle. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MikeRock Report post Posted February 26, 2022 What's the spacing between the inside of the rails? 4'8-1/2" is standard in the US, dating back to England and thence back to the Roman roads... long history for a weird number. Narrow gage has many variants, but 3' is fairly common. God bless, Mike Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tugadude Report post Posted February 26, 2022 Funny, just the other day I saw a youtube video where someone constructed an anvil out of a piece of track. He had a wooden form that he built around it and he could change the way the anvil works by removing it and then installing it back a different way. Easier to watch and ignore my feeble attempt to explain it! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DrmCa Report post Posted February 27, 2022 I could be wrong and ways off, in the current economy, but about 10 years ago it was cheaper for me to buy a real anvil with proper square and round horns locally than to buy an equal weight of an RR track but shipped. Is Ruger factory far from you? I know that they smelt lots of RR tracks. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sheilajeanne Report post Posted March 1, 2022 A summary of the history of railroad gauge here. The size of the fuel tanks on the space shuttles was determined by the width of a horse's ass! http://www.astrodigital.org/space/stshorse.html Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Handstitched Report post Posted March 2, 2022 (edited) I have seen a anvil made from a piece of RR at a leather shop in Perth WA ( closed down now) . It was shaped, down to an ' anvil' point at one end. That must taken some cutting/ grinding . That's a great idea, so I thought. It might be cheaper and less work just to buy one. We do have a bit of a railroad history in my town. I have a few pieces in my workshop " museum" , as I call it. A few pieces of clinker from the steam trains that went through once upon a time, some spikes, and a track joiner . They're all welded these days not bolted. That removed the ' click clack' sound that puts people to sleep when traveling. I miss that. HS Edited March 2, 2022 by Handstitched Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Handstitched Report post Posted March 2, 2022 (edited) On 2/26/2022 at 4:36 AM, chuck123wapati said: thats some cool history wonder what size track it is and the width between? I'd be doing all sorts of historical research on those, maybe get a metal detector search the area , if permitted. . What type of trains ran on them, any surviving locals or families of the sawmill ? etc. .So much history in old stuff, and history should be preserved for future generations IMO, no offence to Frodos' nephew. HS Edited March 2, 2022 by Handstitched Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
327fed Report post Posted March 3, 2022 Factory anvils are really high. About 10 years ago my boss asked me to find him one. My friend in the auction business found him one. At the time used(antique) anvils were about $5 per pound. Seems he let me have it for $3 per lb. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
seabee Report post Posted March 6, 2022 Frodo, They do make a nice weight. I have a piece 4" long with leather on the bottom, and I zip tied a work clap light to the top. I move around when I am tooling, or need a little extra light. At age 77, my eyes need all the help they can get. I would like to get a couple more for the shop. Have a great day. Howard Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
