Experiments With A 500 Foot Rail

Experiments with a 500 Foot Rail

A continuous steel rail 500 feet long is being experimented with on the Michigan Central. Because of heat expansions and cold contraction, experts long ago pronounced the continuous rail a failure. In view of almost solid sentiment against the "continuous" the Michigan Central experiments will be watched closely. To secure the unusual length 30-foot rails are placed end to end with no allowance for expansion, and the splices are screwed tightly with machine-made bolts. This arrangement gives a practically continuous rail for 500 feet, or as much longer as desired. Some provision is made for expansion and contraction. This is accomplished by placing especially designed slip joints over the places where the shorter rails meet. These cover openings of from two to four inches, but the slip does not allow the wheels of the cars to drop into the hole.