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  • April 1, 1878
  • Page 37
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The Masonic Magazine, April 1, 1878: Page 37

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    Article ON THE TESTING AND STRENGTH OF RAILWAY MATERIALS, &c. ← Page 3 of 6 →
Page 37

Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.

On The Testing And Strength Of Railway Materials, &C.

Ill creosotiug timber for Railway Avork , the standard quantity specified by the Great Western ancl Great Northern Railways , is 35 gallons to one load of 50 cubic feet , being 0 . 7 , or gallons , or 71 bs . to a cubic foot ; the oil to be 1 , 000 specific gravity . When railway sleepers and telegraph poles are properly creosotecf , they undoubtedly receive a prolonged life . Sleepers should be specified to be of good , sound , Avell-groAvn Baltic redwood timber , free from sap , shakes , large or unsound knots , aud other defects ,

and to be creosoted Avith at least 35 gallons of creosote per load , to the satisfaction of the company ' s engineer . The preservative properties of creosote appear to be threefold : First , it prevents the absorption of moisture iu any form or under any change of temperature ; secondly , it is noxious to animal ancl vegetable life , thereby repelling the attacks of insects and preventing the propagation of fungi ; thirdly , it arrests the vegetation or living principle of the tree after its separation from the rootwhich is one

, of the primary causes of dry rot and other species of decay . Wherever creosoted timber can be applied it Avould seem advisable to do so , because it not only resists the changes of Aveather , but also adds to the strength of the Avood . On the authority of Messrs . Armstrong and Forster , of Sunderland , we know that a series of experiments proved this to be the case .

The size of the pieces tested was 2 ft . Gin . by 2 in ., by l ^ iu ., and the pressure Avas applied midway betAveen supports 2 ft . apart . Not Creosoted broke Creosoted broke Gain through Avith . with . being Creosqted . Memel fir llcAvt llf f , Scotch fir 13-kwt 15 j- H In each of the above cases the breaking Avei ghts are the average of six tests .

TELEGRAPH POLES . iVcw-creosoted telegraph poles are very short-lived , 7 years being the maximum ; some have decayed in 3 . A fair average Avould be about 5 years . Creosoted poles , on the contrary , are very durable , and as yet sufficient time has not elapsed since the process was applied generally to telegraph poles to say positively ho , v long they will last—certainly twice as long as wcm-creosoted . Much depends upon

circumstances , quality of timber , description of soil in Avhich they are erected , and the way they are creosoted . Under very favourable circumstances 20 years life might be expected ; but an average life of 14 years may safely be taken . The folloAving , from the Architect , well deserve noting : —

"In most of the specifications for Avorks in London , as Builders knoAV , the usual description given for timber is ' Best Memel , Riga , or Dantzic . ' This clause is for the most part liberally interpreted to -mean timber fit for the Avork that has to be done , and it is not the custom to require any positive evidence that the timber supplied to any building is best timber in the timber merchants' application of the Avord ; in point of fact , not 10 per cent , of the timber used in ordinary building contracts is of that particular qualityancl there are no good reasons Avhy it should be .

, " Best Timber , in a timber merchant ' s specification , means timber exceptionally straight-grained ancl free from knots ; and of timber so selected a large percentage'is subject to heart shakes and cuts up unsound , and from the very straightuess aud softness of its quality is not so Avell adapted to sustain 'heavy AA'eights as the second quality , Avhich is not so clear of knots , but as a general rule is sounder and stronger . . 1 n p- > iut of fact , Avhat are called the second qualities of Memel and Dantzic timber do most of the

London Avork of high class , and come into the market as ' Second Memel , ' and ' Good-Middling Dantzic' In some cases , Avhere the timber is used as whole timber , as for piles or heavy Avarehouse girders , the ' Thirds' in Memel or the ' Common iu Dautrie may be used ; but , except for these and similar purposes , they are too coarse for good Avork . And here let me say that the great secret of buying timber to advantage is personal inspection , as different parcels submitted under the same description add specification Avill vary so much in quality as to make a difference in the HCIUHI -V > , n , the builder of 20 to 25 per cent .

“The Masonic Magazine: 1878-04-01, Page 37” Masonic Periodicals Online, Library and Museum of Freemasonry, 31 March 2023, masonicperiodicals.org/periodicals/mmg/issues/mmg_01041878/page/37/.
  • List
  • Grid
Title Category Page
IMPORTANT CIRCULAR. Article 1
Untitled Article 2
SONNET. Article 3
AN HERMETIC WORK. Article 4
EARLY FREEMASONRY IN IRELAND. Article 7
THE CHAMBER OF IMAGERY. Article 10
THE ADVENTURES OF DON PASQUALE. Article 11
PAPERS ON THE GREAT PYRAMID. Article 13
In Memoriam. Article 17
THE WORK OF NATURE IN THE MONTHS. Article 18
FROM IDEALITY TO NATURE. Article 24
THE TRUE MASON. Article 25
AMABEL VAUGHAN. Article 26
"VALE PONTIFEX MAXIME!" Article 30
JILTED. Article 34
ON THE TESTING AND STRENGTH OF RAILWAY MATERIALS, &c. Article 35
MORITZ GRAF VON STRACHWITZ. Article 40
STANZAS. Article 41
LEBENSANSICHT. Article 42
A SONNET. Article 43
DU GEHEST DAHIN. Article 43
A PRAHLEREI. Article 43
I WOULD I WERE A POET. Article 44
GERMANIA. Article 44
THE TRUE HISTORY OF FREEMASONRY IN ENGLAND. Article 45
NOTES ON LITERATURE, SCIENCE, AND ART. Article 47
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Page 37

Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.

On The Testing And Strength Of Railway Materials, &C.

Ill creosotiug timber for Railway Avork , the standard quantity specified by the Great Western ancl Great Northern Railways , is 35 gallons to one load of 50 cubic feet , being 0 . 7 , or gallons , or 71 bs . to a cubic foot ; the oil to be 1 , 000 specific gravity . When railway sleepers and telegraph poles are properly creosotecf , they undoubtedly receive a prolonged life . Sleepers should be specified to be of good , sound , Avell-groAvn Baltic redwood timber , free from sap , shakes , large or unsound knots , aud other defects ,

and to be creosoted Avith at least 35 gallons of creosote per load , to the satisfaction of the company ' s engineer . The preservative properties of creosote appear to be threefold : First , it prevents the absorption of moisture iu any form or under any change of temperature ; secondly , it is noxious to animal ancl vegetable life , thereby repelling the attacks of insects and preventing the propagation of fungi ; thirdly , it arrests the vegetation or living principle of the tree after its separation from the rootwhich is one

, of the primary causes of dry rot and other species of decay . Wherever creosoted timber can be applied it Avould seem advisable to do so , because it not only resists the changes of Aveather , but also adds to the strength of the Avood . On the authority of Messrs . Armstrong and Forster , of Sunderland , we know that a series of experiments proved this to be the case .

The size of the pieces tested was 2 ft . Gin . by 2 in ., by l ^ iu ., and the pressure Avas applied midway betAveen supports 2 ft . apart . Not Creosoted broke Creosoted broke Gain through Avith . with . being Creosqted . Memel fir llcAvt llf f , Scotch fir 13-kwt 15 j- H In each of the above cases the breaking Avei ghts are the average of six tests .

TELEGRAPH POLES . iVcw-creosoted telegraph poles are very short-lived , 7 years being the maximum ; some have decayed in 3 . A fair average Avould be about 5 years . Creosoted poles , on the contrary , are very durable , and as yet sufficient time has not elapsed since the process was applied generally to telegraph poles to say positively ho , v long they will last—certainly twice as long as wcm-creosoted . Much depends upon

circumstances , quality of timber , description of soil in Avhich they are erected , and the way they are creosoted . Under very favourable circumstances 20 years life might be expected ; but an average life of 14 years may safely be taken . The folloAving , from the Architect , well deserve noting : —

"In most of the specifications for Avorks in London , as Builders knoAV , the usual description given for timber is ' Best Memel , Riga , or Dantzic . ' This clause is for the most part liberally interpreted to -mean timber fit for the Avork that has to be done , and it is not the custom to require any positive evidence that the timber supplied to any building is best timber in the timber merchants' application of the Avord ; in point of fact , not 10 per cent , of the timber used in ordinary building contracts is of that particular qualityancl there are no good reasons Avhy it should be .

, " Best Timber , in a timber merchant ' s specification , means timber exceptionally straight-grained ancl free from knots ; and of timber so selected a large percentage'is subject to heart shakes and cuts up unsound , and from the very straightuess aud softness of its quality is not so Avell adapted to sustain 'heavy AA'eights as the second quality , Avhich is not so clear of knots , but as a general rule is sounder and stronger . . 1 n p- > iut of fact , Avhat are called the second qualities of Memel and Dantzic timber do most of the

London Avork of high class , and come into the market as ' Second Memel , ' and ' Good-Middling Dantzic' In some cases , Avhere the timber is used as whole timber , as for piles or heavy Avarehouse girders , the ' Thirds' in Memel or the ' Common iu Dautrie may be used ; but , except for these and similar purposes , they are too coarse for good Avork . And here let me say that the great secret of buying timber to advantage is personal inspection , as different parcels submitted under the same description add specification Avill vary so much in quality as to make a difference in the HCIUHI -V > , n , the builder of 20 to 25 per cent .

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