"Pseud O. Nym" <pon@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
news:Xns9AB868E68DEE3blurryvision@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>I have a large backyard and I do all the yard work myself. It is
> approximately 1.7 acres. There are many obstacles including one
> corner of a 5-acre pond and the stream that feeds into the pond.
>
> I am considereding building a small railway to be used for
> practical purposes ..... such as hauling loads of leaves to the
> curb for trash pickup, etc.
>
> Does anyone know of a website that could give me some guidance.
>
> One idea that I am entertaining is the use of chain-link fence
> toprail for the rails and small bicycle wheels without tires for
> wheels and treated 4x4 timbers for cross-ties. I am thinking
> of attaching the rails to the cross-ties by drilling a 1/4-inch
> hole in the top side and a 1/8-inch hole in the bottom side
> and securing the rail to the cross-tie using a large
> self-tapping deck screw. The rails could be made more stable by
> cutting a shallow v-shapped groove into the cross-tie for each
> rails to sit in.
>
> Any suggestions would be appreciated.
>
> PON
>
Do a Google Search on "Live Steam Railways" and you will find lots of
links.
Most will be for model railroads to haul people, but some will be more
"practical".
You don't mention motive power; are you planning just a single car "train"
to pull yourself, or do you envision multi car trains with some form of
locomotive?
Several early logging outfits used pole roads with track made from
consistent diameter logs laid parallel as rails. Manufacturers made steam
locomotives that road on wheels that looked like automobile wheels without
tires. Your approach sounds similar. If you are just thinking of a
single
track line, you can probably make your scheme work, but if you envision
multiple routes, switches for these double flanged wheels may be a
problem.
4 x 4 ties sound like overkill. 2 x 4 would be cheaper and should be
adequate. I think the galvanized pipe may be more expensive and harder to
bend than other materials. A live steamer I know had good luck and low
cost
using 1/4" x 3/4" steel bar stock as rails. He mass produced ties on a
jig
that let him cut gauged 1/4" wide and 3/8" deep slots in each tie. The
bars
rested in the ties, and he found it adequate to only drill the bars every
5
to 10 feet for a hold down. Another friend who likes to economize doesn't
bother with the cost of pressure treated lumber. He collects used motor
oil
from his friends that change their own oil and soaks his ties made of
construction scraps in the oil as a substitute for creosote.
Good luck. Geezer
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