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Old 05-05-2003, 10:39 PM
Bob Warner's Avatar
Bob Warner Bob Warner is offline
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SO, does HC really stand for High Carbon in a railroad spike? Now we know.

The following post was posted in a blacksmithing forum by Dave Brown and is about a post made by Mike Blue. I do not know either of these people but it sure appears that Mike Blue decided to go find the REAL answer to this question. Here are the posts without modifications.

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The following post was made by Mike Blue, a knife maker and member of the Guild of Metalsmiths over in Minnesota. Because of the number of times the topic of railroad spikes comes up here I thought it appropriate to spread his post around.


So without further ado, here 'tis


Dave Brown
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I want to post this small essay for two reasons. There is some continuing pressure to maintain a myth about the steel content of track spikes. And, I was wrong about the markings and steel umbers I quoted to a fellow at the NMM conference this weekend. I want to dispel myths with hard science and publicly apologize or both of those errors.


I received back a fax from a fellow working for Wellington industries, a division of Sheffield Steel.
According to the American Railway Engineering Association's Specifications for Soft-Steel Track Spikes. Original document, 1926, revised last in 1968. Two classes of track spikes are given specifications. Two sizes of track spike are identified, one of 5/8 inch square shaft and one of 9/16 inch.


The AREA document identifies both low carbon and high carbon spike specifications.


Page 5-2-1. "A low carbon track spike will not contain greater than 0.12% carbon nor greater than 0.20% copper. Page 5-2-2. Section 6a.
Bending properties: The body of a full size finished spike shall stand being bent cold through 180 degrees flat on itself without cracking on the outside portion of the bent portion. Page 5-2-2 Section 11. Marking. A letter or brand indicating the manufacturer shall be pressed on the head of each spike while it is being formed. When copper is specified, the letters "CU" shall be added.
Page 5-2-3: Specifications for high carbon steel track spikes 1968.
Carbon not greater than 0.30%, nor greater than 0.20% copper. Page 5-2-4. Section 6a. Bending properties: The body of a full size finished spike shall stand being bent cold through 120 degrees around a pin, the diameter of which is not greater than the thickness of the spike without cracking on the outside portion of the bent portion.
Page 5-2-5 Section 11. Marking: A letter or brand indicating manufacturer and also the letters "HC" indicating high carbon, shall be pressed on the head of each spike while it is being formed. When copper is specified, the letters "CU" shall be added."


The supplemental fax from the Wellington fellow indicates, "Because of the bending tests required, the carbon content will not be greater than 0.30%. After all, brittle spikes would not be desirable as a track spike. A bent spike still holds the rail while a fractured spike would not. The consequences for the industry would be too great to consider. However, we refer to them as high carbon, they are not within the range of steels known as high carbon or hypereutectoid according to the steel industry standards, and have not been since at least 1926, when most track spikes were previously manufactured from wrought iron."


I am satisfied since I have learned something different from what I had assumed. I hope this information can be incorporated into the body of knowledge of bladesmithing.


With what I have learned about the superquench solutions, it may be possible to harden a track spike and make a knife from it. I have my doubts about whether it will survive the bending test listed above.


Mike Blue


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