You talking about this photo?

You talking about this photo?

When I look at prototype photos, it's not too far off the mark ...

Or this photo ...

Joe - Thanks for the reply

Joe - Thanks for the reply and info.

Be aware that not even

Be aware that not even adjacent tracks will be weathered in the same pattern. Rowena, on the UP along the Columbia River, is now used to storage surplus cars and sometimes maintenance of way gear.

The UP maintains its storage

The UP maintains its storage tracks better then the mainline tracks are kept up around here..

And then there are the ties

Ties will often vary too.  Here you see that a few of the gray "oldies" have been replaced with new ties, which in this instance, are of a larger size.  Note the derail switch (red target showing) on the siding.

Interesting

Interesting to note the differing tie width length. A lot of vintage photos I see seem to have ties that are closer to 7 foot then 8+ foot.. and it looks lilke the grey ties above are around 7 foot (using track guage as measure..). Was that common?

I can find a lot of info about WHAT ties were made of in my time period, but not much on how long they were other then the to try to guess from photos..

Chris

Here are some sizes

Quoting from Kalmbach's How To Build Realistic Reliable Track:

"Mills began turning out ties to specific dimensions in the late 1800s, and by the early 1900s a typical tie was 6" thick, 8" wide, and 8 feet long.  By the 1940s the standard had grown to 7" thick, 9" wide, and 8'-6" long.  Today, 9-foot-long ties are common."

Regardless, there was variety among railroads' practices, and of course, narrow gauge railroads normally had smaller ties than standard gauge.  Ties on open-deck bridges were larger, particularly thicker, and spaced closer together, than ties laid in ballast.

I have read that to. I have

I have read that to. I have read references for some larger railroads that used 8' or 8'6" ties on different parts of their railroads depending on which division it was (For instance B&O). By early 1900s I think they are referring to the USRA period and late not so much 1900-1910..

There was some interesting discussion on the topic on Early Steam Yahoo group but most of it was about how they were cut (rounded or not) and how/if they were preserved.

On the bright side, I know the MEC used cedar in that time..

Chris

Ties, ad nauseum

When I was buying ties for the Soo, a standard tie length was 8 foot 6 inches, plus or minus one inch. Grade 3 was 6x8 cross section, grade 4 was 7x8 and grade 5 was 7x9.

The width (second number) could vary plus one inch, minus ¼ inch We didn’t buy grades 1 or 2, which were 6x8, but with less than full face (width) in the tie plate area.

All ties were to be only of hardwood species – oak, maple, birch, ash, elm.

We also bought some “swamp ties” which were oversized length – nine or ten foot, to help spread the weight across… you guessed it, swampland.

Here’s more than you will ever want to know: http://www.rta.org/Portals/0/Documents/Tie%20Basics/TieGuide%20Revised%209%2005.pdf

Milt Spanton

Updated Tie Basics PDF link detail

Just a point to note: the link location on the RTA.ORG site has changed. The PDF can now be read or downloaded from here.