Where can I get Railroad Track----- LEGALLY?

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Every time I see a post where someone has a picture of a piece of railroad track as an anvil, door stop or any other project there is almost always the question; "Where can I get that LEGALLY?"There seems to be the belief that if you possess RR track at all you are breaking the law. Here is where I get Railroad track, LEGALLY. My local scrapyard sells it for only 15¢ per pound.See the guy cutting full length pieces into small (3') sized pieces? They will cut any length you want.This type of thing happens one or two times a year at this scrap yard in the Dallas area.SO, go check out your local scrap yard often. There is interesting stuff there.Hope this finally answers the legality question.
Reply:I bought some from a scrap yard here in Hutch for 10 cents a pound, while it was cheaper it is nowhere near as nice as that track.Steve from SoCal now in HutchMiller Dynasty 300DX Coolmate3 Speedway TorchMiller XMT 450 MPa plus with D-74 MPa Plus Miller Bobcat 225 NTHypertherm Powermax 45And a whole bunch of machines
Reply:Impressive pile of track!  I've bought track pieces out of the "drops and used steel" section at a metal supplier.  They certainly never had near that quantity, though....
Reply:I was told that rail is always the property of the railroad.......but then there are folks here that believe what they read on the internet about cylinder neck rings too so take it with a grain of salt.
Reply:If the railroad cared they would specify that it could not be resold and recycled only. Lots of places do that that make proprietary stuff they don't want reverse engineered. I've seen cars in great shape being scrapped because the old man died and the wife did not want to see the car going down the road. Specified no parts could be sold ad the car had to be crushed.Lots of people put rules on what they scrap. The railroad certainly would if it was an issue to them.
Reply:It's the property of the railroad until it's sold to someone else. When the rail line through my farm was discontinued the rail track changed hands twice, once to a short line operator and then to a scrap dealer (which coincidentally had partial ownership of the short line). Ownership of the property seems to be gradually shifting back to the local government due to non-payment of land taxes. I've built several railroad anvils with plans for a couple more, all acquired quite legally from the scrappers. My tallest rails are more like 6" though, so that looks like some very heavy rail.250 amp Miller DialArc AC/DC StickF-225 amp Forney AC Stick230 amp Sears AC StickLincoln 180C MIGVictor Medalist 350 O/ACut 50 PlasmaLes
Reply:I worked on a RR replacement/realignment project (last job before retirement). The track belonged to to the company till sections of the job were accepted by RR. I still have 3 - 4 pieces of 135 lb track 1 - 2 ft long around the house, never had a train on them. The rail came in 1600' long pieces, they had an eight miles long stack of it on one end of the job, always cut a piece off the end before use. Anything not on the cross-ties was private property to be sold for scrap. They pretty much let anyone who wanted it, have it. The original, old rail was cut into + - 40' sections, & loaded, ties and all, on flatbeds, 8 ft hi or so, & sold to recyclers, ties for garden/landscaping/etc, iron for scrap. A really good job for me, I lived a mile from the center of the project, 13 miles from either end, for 3 years. (the Sprinter)Only welding on it was 'crucible/thermite' welding, interesting method.-c-What is the sound of one knee jerking?
Reply:i got my first piece by asking the firewatch for the guys doing trackwork on the el that ran next to my shop. he said help myself but had no way to cut it.  he was surprised when i wheeled my torch across 2 lanes of traffic on the queens blvd.i.u.o.e. # 15queens, ny and sunny fla
Reply:Hey Bob Warner, how you doing?  Been awhile since we had any forum conversation.  (I'm "USMCPOP" at other forums.)Still have that Miller MIG welder?"USMCPOP" First-born son: KIA  Iraq 1/26/05Syncrowave 250 w/ Coolmate 3Dialarc 250, Idealarc 250SP-175 +Firepower TIG 160S (gave the TA 161 STL to the son)Lincwelder AC180C (1952)Victor & Smith O/A torchesMiller spot welder
Reply:I don't know what mills roll the track but there are lots of other things that roll on rail track other than trains. This bridge crane my fanny crack is planted in rolls on six inch wide track. Ya might could check in with a local crane maintenance company and see if they have some old track.....Ranger 250 thick stuffHobart Handler 140 not thick stuffthe pane and oxy setup
Reply:[quote]Hey Bob Warner, how you doing? Been awhile since we had any forum conversation. (I'm "USMCPOP" at other forums.)Still have that Miller MIG welder? ]/quote]Still kicking. Still got the MIG. That is one of two tools I will never get rid of.I don't spend a lot of time on the forums anymore. My screwed up body keeps me pretty bummed out all the time but once in a while I can get in a little metal melting.Hope you are doing well.
Reply:There is some real RR track at the shop or there should be..Wog had some under his speeder outside the  shop  and now that  all his stuff  is gone the track is  still here somewhere Just gotta find it....zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:BOB!!!!!!Welcome back  stranger........zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:I work for the RR so have pretty good connections on getting a piece of track if I want it, but Bob brings up a good point about acquiring it LEGALLY. The good stuff is the ~135 lb/yard mainline ribbon rail that is specifically designed to stand up to the heavy traffic and wear and tear mainline track has to endure. I can't speak for all railroads, but the one I work for recycles the mainline rail either by sending it off to get melted down and turned into new rail or it gets repurposed as yard rail where it's not required to stand up to 20,000 ton trains running 50mph over it 25 times a day. Don't assume that just because you see a piece of rail laying next to the tracks that it is waste that hasn't been scrapped yet, there's short sections of rail staged all over the railroad to be used for repair purposes. Your best bet besides finding a stockpile at your local scrapyard would be to ask a trackman, he'll either be able to tell you where they take scrap to or maybe tell you where to get a piece. We have about 50 miles of rail being replaced right now that will generate a lot of scrap. After they pick up the long pieces with a rail train to get recycled/repurposed, they'll come back through with a loader magnet and pick up all the scrap/old tie plates/spikes, if you find where they're taking that stuff you've hit the gold mine. The spikes make a cool knife, the rail makes a good anvil  and the tie plates make good targets.ETA: If you can find a "frog" that's being scrapped, I imagine a chunk of that would make a heck of  an anvil. The nature of replacing a frog is that they're usually picked up at the same time the new one is put down but I have no idea of where they go after that. You'd have to have a way to cut and handle it, but if you could solve that problem you'd have one hell of a good start to an anvil. For those who don't know, a "frog" is the big chunk of metal that forms the X where two tracks converge with each other.Last edited by Bryan27; 03-19-2016 at 09:11 PM.Powcon 400SM2-PD60 wire feedersMiller XR controlAlumapro push/pull gunSpeedglas 9100xBFH
Reply:Originally Posted by Bryan27ETA: If you can find a "frog" that's being scrapped, I imagine a chunk of that would make a heck of  an anvil. The nature of replacing a frog is that they're usually picked up at the same time the new one is put down but I have no idea of where they go after that. You'd have to have a way to cut and handle it, but if you could solve that problem you'd have one hell of a good start to an anvil. For those who don't know, a "frog" is the big chunk of metal that forms the X where two tracks converge with each other.
Reply:Frogs come in differing shapes and sizes.....The one above is most typical and would lend itself to very decent anvil using the long tapered point side of it.Other frogs allow for crossing that are at a larger angle with lots less sharp a point
Reply:Last frog I hit with a sledge didn't stand up so well .. Looked like hammered ___, never mind .  Don't let the word get out that there are such things as 'rail road frogs', they'll end up on the endangered species list."The things that will destroy America are prosperity at any price, peace at any price, safety first instead of duty first, the love of soft living and the get rich quick theory of life." -Theodore Roosevelt
Reply:My son got about 6 feet of RR track at a scrap yard. It's perfectly legal to own if bought from a scrap yard. We made a couple of anvils. Man oh man is that stuff hard!! For a Hardy hole I bought a piece of 1-1/4" round with a 3/4" square broached hole in it. I welded it in and it worked fine. I also drilled a Pritchel Hole. It's got a nice ring and bounce to it. Did I say that it's hard? Man, it's Hard. I don't know how they do it. We had a lot of fun making these, though. They are really handy to have around and you can use them without worrying about a chunk of it coming off. Here are pictures of how I made the Hardy hole.Ready to weld in the Hardy. The square section was leaded free-machining steel 12L14. It's not the best for welding but once you heat it up, the lead will boil out and then you can weld it in place. It was also a .002 press fit. I had to bore the hole to size after drilling it to 1". Finished item. I've done a bit more clean up on it since this picture. There was a lot of rust that had to be ground off. Last edited by gnm109; 03-21-2016 at 09:55 PM.Miller Millermatic 252Miller Syncrowave 200Liincoln AC-DC 225Victor O-A Set
Reply:Nice work, looks great
Reply:On a related question, if there are loose railroad spikes along a section of track, are they still considered property of the RR company? Is it legal to walk along the track looking for spikes?I have enough other projects to keep me busy but have wanted to throw a spike in a project or two but don't have any yet.Millermatic 252 MIGMiller Dynasty 200DX TIGMiller Spectrum 625 PlasmaAltas 12x36 Metal LatheBridgeport Milling Machinewww.psacustomcreations.com
Reply:Originally Posted by psacustomcreationsOn a related question, if there are loose railroad spikes along a section of track, are they still considered property of the RR company? Is it legal to walk along the track looking for spikes?I have enough other projects to keep me busy but have wanted to throw a spike in a project or two but don't have any yet.
Reply:I thought that might be the case. A couple of years ago I made a anvil for a friend out of a piece of rail that he helped remove from a marina. I wish I would have thought to ask him to grab some spikes.Millermatic 252 MIGMiller Dynasty 200DX TIGMiller Spectrum 625 PlasmaAltas 12x36 Metal LatheBridgeport Milling Machinewww.psacustomcreations.com
Reply:Originally Posted by docwelderi got my first piece by asking the firewatch for the guys doing trackwork on the el that ran next to my shop. he said help myself but had no way to cut it.  he was surprised when i wheeled my torch across 2 lanes of traffic on the queens blvd.
Reply:A couple of years ago, i got a 40 lb box of spikes on ebay for not much more than shipping. i thought i was going to screw around with making a forge. never got to that project yet. i also got some rail on ebay at the same time. got a crappy mini anvil mostly done, and something else came up. damn procrastination.Millermatic 211Everlast 200DX Thermal Arc 181iKlutch ST80i lunchbox stick welderLincoln Weld-Pak 100Century Stick welderPowermax 30 plasma cutterHenrob 2000 torchLogan 200 lathe (60 years old)Clausing 6339 Lathe (for sale)
Reply:Originally Posted by yesindeedWas that the old el over Jamaica Ave , or the 7 line over queens blvd?These spikes work out to about $2 each, including free shipping.  http://www.ebay.com/itm/LOT-OF-6-OLD...oAAOSwoudW1koTMillermatic 211Everlast 200DX Thermal Arc 181iKlutch ST80i lunchbox stick welderLincoln Weld-Pak 100Century Stick welderPowermax 30 plasma cutterHenrob 2000 torchLogan 200 lathe (60 years old)Clausing 6339 Lathe (for sale)
Reply:Originally Posted by docwelderit was the #7 line. aka the orient express. diagonally across from the old chicklets factory that blew up (welding related). my shop was on the corner of 33rd/rawson. the jamaica ave el- J line runs outside my house.
Reply:Ask these guys how much they are.http://keystonespikes.com/wordpress/...ckmine-spikes/I have bought the 2.5" spikes for mini RR spike knives. Been a while but I think they were about $1 each.Worth asking the question.
Reply:Originally Posted by yesindeedI remember when i was a kid they were cutting the end of that line down, over jamaica ave out towards 168 street.  they were using a torch on something up top and i was stopped at a light. it was a shower of sparks raining down into the street, and when i got home, my convertible top of the Eldo had brown scorch spots on it.
Reply:I got me a few pieces today. They were working on the track downtown and I was in the area so i walked up to a guy that looked like the foreman and asked him if there was a legal way for me to get some of the old track they were removing. He asked how much I needed and I said enough to make a few anvils out of. He pointed at the curb and said there's a few short pieces there you can have. Score. One's about 20.5" and the other about 15". I gave one to my Dad to use and I kept the other. It's really dirty but this is it after a little cleaning. Still lots more to go before I start cutting it down. It's 100lb track. Attached ImagesMillermatic 180Hypertherm PM65 083300CandCNC Dragon Cut Linux 620-4 Bundle with Linux Computer Precision Plasma Magnum HD 5x5 Gantry kit
Reply:Nice score!
Reply:You know you can buy track and spikes new.  The Rail Road companies can't claim ownership, especially if you have the receipts.