Tempered Warrior Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 So I want to buy some rr spike on ebay to make knives but i don' t know if they're legally obtained and how would I tell if they r. Thanks for any answer you guys can give I know it's probably hard to answer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGGUNDOCTOR Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 You can buy them new from various vendors, and they are not that expensive. McMaster Carr will be pricier than some, but they had them the last time I looked. There really is no way of knowing how they were obtained, unless they have some documentation from who they got them from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 No way to tell on ebay/craigslist,flea market/etc. especially if you are relying on the seller to provide the details "Let the buyer beware" was a well known *Roman* saying...(caveat emptor) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattcush Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 Walk some tracks. Get them for free. That's what I do. ADMIN NOTE: Why are you confessing to committing a felony? We do not support thievery. Walking the RR tracks IS trespassing. Picking up anything from RR track property is considered stealing by the RR police, and a felony in many places. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 sending a PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempered Warrior Posted January 20, 2016 Author Share Posted January 20, 2016 Yeah I'm pretty sure just grabbing them is illegal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 In practical terms: Pick up a few from the tracks: technically illegal, but unlikely to result in prosecution (unless the RR cops are right there and in a bad mood). Pick up a whole lot and try to sell them to a scrap dealer: expect a call from the cops. Purchase the railroad in a leveraged buyout, liquidate the assets (including the spikes), and restructure the debt as securities derivatives that ordinary folk then loose their savings on: retire to a golf course community outside Austin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malice9610 Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 I bought a few from FLT Geosystems last year. I think i paid 1.06 each for them back then but now they are 1.99 each. I started with Spikes as well, and quickly moved away from them when I realized I could not properly harden and temper them, Still have like 6 of them floating around my shop, they make excellent wedges for splitting logs, And plan to forge weld high carbon bits into them to make some tomahawks with once I have the ability to drift something larger then the current hardie hole on my anvil will support which is about 1/2 inch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 "retire to a golf course community outside Austin" Sounds like a punishment to me! Also note that "conspiracy to commit a misdemeanor" may be a felony too. If they are going to be a standard item for you, buying a keg new will get you a lot of very nice one of known properties. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 20 minutes ago, ThomasPowers said: buying a keg new will get you a lot of very nice one of known properties. Both legally and metallurgically! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natenaaron Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 This is not meant to hijack the thread but I had almost the same question. I know rusted old spikes are a crap shoot but how do you know if the new ones are HC? The description from McMaster Carr says "These steel spikes are manufactured according to AREA (American Railroad Engineering Association) specifications." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGGUNDOCTOR Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 Even high carbon spikes are considered mild steel. They are just higher carbon than regular spikes. As I understand it, the HC spikes are used on curves, the regular ones on the straights. They do not make good knives. If you want an edge, you will have to forge weld a better steel to the edge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natenaaron Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 I wasn't planning to make knives just to play with or make tools. None of the descriptions I saw say whether they were HC or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkDobson Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 if i remember correctly rr spikes are .18% carbon (1018 aka mild steel) and hc spikes are around .3% carbon (1030) both of which are considered mild steel. you would be better off cutting up a piece of track to make your tooling. IIRC track is similar to 1050 series, still not hc but good for tooling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natenaaron Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 Various tongs. Seems silly to cut up RR track for tongs. Tad over kill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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