US1698370A

US1698370A - Rail spike

Info

Publication number: US1698370A
Application number: US745662A
Authority: US
Inventors: Kronenberger Ferdinand
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1924-10-24
Filing date: 1924-10-24
Publication date: 1929-01-08
Anticipated expiration: 1946-01-08

Description

7 Jan; 8; I929.

i 1,6983 70 F. KRONENBERGER V RAIL SPIKE Filed 0ct. 24, 1924 INVENTOR 14' 7 'ATTORNEY which follows rnnnmannxnomnmienn, or new atoms, N. in.

RAIL srrim.

Application filed October 24, 1924, Serial in; 745,662,. 1

This invention relates to spikes, and par-- ticularly to improvements in railroad spikes forcausing said spikes better 'to engage the tie, and to be locked in lace therein.

The various Objects the invention will best be understood from the description and from the drawings, in which, i

Fig. 1 is a side view' of arailroad spike of the usual type to which certain features of my invention have been applied.

Fig. 2 is a front view of the same.

Q .Fig. 3 is a-bottom plan view of the same.

Fig. 4 is a side elevation of a preferred form of my invention.

Fig. 5 is a horizontal section on the line Fig. 6 is a horizontal section on the line 6-6 of Fi .4.

Fig.'7 is a bottom plan view of that form of my invention shown in Fig. 4.

Fig. 8 is a side view of a a modifiedform of end. I

Fig. 9 is a similar view showing still another modification.

Fig. 10 is a bottom plan shown in Figs. 8 and 9, and

rail showing one of my improved spikes in position and another "about to be driven down into the tie.

It is well known, that if the fibres of wooden tie have been cut completely across by the end of the spike as said spike is driven into said tie, the cut ends of said fibres are bent downwardly and frictionally resist the lifting out of the spike. I

If the fibres have not been cut, the spike forces said fibres apart and splits the tie on its waythereinto. The'life o a tie de ends largely on the number of splits or c 'ecks I therein. If a tie' is not split, comparatively. little moisture reaches the {interior thereof; and the wood :is not exposed to the rotting action of the. water. If, however, there should be any splits or checks in the .tie, the tie rots rapidly and the spike will no longer hold, s1 ncel the fibres have not, the strength to resist any withdrawing force is ofiered to t e withdrawal of the spike than is otherwise possible.

'vention, illustrated in F i front and rear faces 10 and 1 spike embodying view of thespikes In the simplest embodiment of my in- 1, 2 and 3, the 1' of the straight spike 12 have shallow, inclined grooves 13' therein, of'predetermined pitch. Each of said grooves preferably comprisesa face 14 having downward pitch to the rightas viewed in Fig. 2, and lying in a plane substantially erpendicularto the

faces

10 and 11. Said ace 14 enters the spike for a short distance, and meets a similarly inclined face as '15 joining the bottom of said grooves 13 with the

face

10 or 11 of said spike. It will be understood that the angular relation of said groove faces 14 and 15 to each other and to the plane of the spike faces-10 and 11 may be varied as :de-'

sired. Said grooves 13 serve.to receive the cut ends of thoseof the fibres which are free to expand into said grooves after the spike has been driven home. If it is attempted to withdraw the spike by a longitudinal pull, the ends of those of the fibres in the grooves .tend to follow the bottom of the groote, and tend further to cause the spike to twist in the. tie, or if the'twistfibre ends resist the p illin g action and tend to maintain the spike in place in the tie,

; ing action. isprevented in any manner, said Fig. 11 1s a vertical sectlon of a' railroad since the withdrawing force exerted on. the spike mustotherwi'se be sufliciently greatto in Figs; 4'to11 inclusive, the spike is intended to be used in connection with a he plate 16 of the usual 15 e, in which a preferably square hole as-1 is provided in the usual manner.

It will be noted that said bend the fibre ends upward by a sufiicient spikes are twisted toabout a uarter turn or somewhat less, :so that as t e spikes are driven into the tie, said s ikes are forced by reason of the contact t ereof with the side of the hole 17, to rotate through, an angle equal to the twist ofthe spikes. It will also be noted the twist begins at a point in the shank sufliciently below the head 27 ;to allow said shank to engage the hole 17 in the plate. in'the usual manner. f 4 'As illustraatedin Figs. 4, 5, 6 and 11,"the

spike 18, which embodies the preferred form of my invention, is grooved on thefaces 19 thereof by means of the substantially' helical or inclined grooves 20, slmilar to the v ves 13' above-described, the pitch of w 'ch ispreferabl though not necessarily the same as that 0 the twist in the spike, but which itch is opposite in direction to said twist.'

aid spike 18 terminates preferably-in a point 21, which may be rounded, as shown, into substantially conical form, if desired,

to allow said spike more easily'to enter the 1 tie, though the "conical point may be dispensed, with. The helical edges 22 of the spike in which the faces of said spike meet are continued toward the point 21, while each of the faces 19 near said point 'are indented or undercut by the reentrant surface 23 without disturbing the curvature of said edges 22, whereby said ed es are sharpened substantially into helica knife edges 25 continuous with the spike edges 22.

It will be noted that a line. joining the innermost surface of the portions 23 would be substantially-parallel to the'helical edges 22, though it will be understood that said portion 23 may be formed by a pair of substantially flat cuts meeting in a sharp helical edge, if desired.

1 When it is, desired to drive the spike 18 into the tie the head 27 thereof is turned about one-quarter turn away from the rail,

and is then driven in in the usual manner.

: An overhanging round end of the usual type however. may be used instead to obviate the necessity-of starting the spike in this position. The point 21 cuts and compresses the fibres onits way 'intothe tie, while the knife edges 25 cut the ends of the fibres across, along a helical line beginning near the top of the tie and extending downwardly to the end of the spike. Since the fibres are cut, the tendency of a spike to split the wood on its way 'thereinto, is mini- 'mized without making a large hole in the tie. The cut ends of the fibres expand into the grooves 20 in the manner hereinbefore explained --in connection with the form of my spike shown in Figs. 1 and 2.- As the spike progresses into the tie, the fibres'which 1 are cut by the knife edges 25 follow the bottomof the cuts forming said knife edges,

I and are gradually spreadapart and slightly compressed until they reach their final position in one ofthe grooves 20. It will be noted that the spike is forced to turn by reason of its engagement with the sides of the hole 17 .-in the tie plate 16 in its downward progress, andfifor the same reason the spike =cannotbe withdrawn from the tie without being turned in the opposite direction.

In that; form of my mvention shown in Fig. 8 the end 28 instead of being pointed as in t e spike 18or bevelled as in the spike, -1 -i into aseries. of chisel edges'30, w ereby the nod. by means ofthe fibres-areycut when the spike is driven into thetie andithe'cut endsiofthefibresforced.

ooves 29 to follow the line 31 at the junctu re of the

surfaces

32 and 33 forming said chisel edges.

In that form of spike shown in Fig. 9 the chisel edges 34. are inclined slightly u wardly in order that the spike may be rea ily started into the tie. i

The various embodiments ofmy invention shown herein are intended to be merely illustrative, since changes in the structure presented herein ma' readily be made without departing from t e spirit and scope of this inventionfwithin the term of the appended claims.

I claim:'

cross section, substantially helical edges extending lengthwise of the spike, a air of reentrant surfaces inclined to said ges extending across the faces of said spike and meeting to form a continuous groove therein at a pitch substantially equal but 0 posite in direction to the pltchjofthe helical edges of said spike.

2. A rail spike comprising a twisted shank s uare in cross-section substantiallyhelical 'e es on said shank, a tapered lower end on extremity of said spike undercutting said edges for forming cutting edges at said lower extremity.

4. A rail spike comprising a shank twisted 1. In a rail spikeof substantially square from the lower extremity thereof to a point spaced from the upper end of said spike,

and surfaces near said lower. extremity undercuttin the edges of said spike for sharpening sai edges into cutting edges, the faces of said shank having continuous helical grooves therein, the pitch ofv said grooves being substantially the same as, but 0 posite indirection to that of the twisted ges of said shank.

Y -5. In a'r ia-il spike, a shank squarein cross section, helical ed es on said shank'fromthe lowerj endthereo toa point below the up;

per end-"thereof, the lower parts of said edges being sharpened "into cuttin dg an the faces of said shank being 1agonal- 1y grooved .to form continuous helical; eves of substantially-the same pitch' assaid' helical ed es, but oppositerin direction.

5 ND KBONENBERGER;

EERDIN