How many spikes per railroad tie?
A railroad tie typically has four spikes on straight track, with two on each side of the rail. However, this can increase to six or eight spikes per tie on curved sections to handle increased lateral forces, especially on the outside of the curve.
Spikes per tie
- Straight (tangent) track: Four spikes per tie is standard practice, with two spikes on each side of the rail.
- Curved track: Six to eight spikes per tie may be used, adding extra spikes on the outside of the curve where the forces are greatest.
How it works
- Spikes fasten the tie plates to the tie, and the tie plates are what hold the rails in place.
- In straight track, two spikes on each side hold the tie plate down and prevent the rail from shifting.
- In curved track, more spikes are needed to resist the stronger lateral (sideways) forces from the train.
Comparison of Dog Spikes and Screw Spikes
Among dog spikes, the dog screw is a special one. In order to fix rails straight to rail sleepers, it is necessary to have a flange with a radius. During insertion, with the help of the patented wave thread form and better pull-out resistance, the dog screws can reduce damages to railway sleepers.
Screw spikes can provide more than twice the fixing power of dog spikes. Because of the greater power, and the feature that can be combined with spring washers, the cost of manafacturing screw spikes is higher than dog spikes or dog nails.
| the types of Ss Series Sleeper Screw | Product Name | Specification | Material | Surface | Standard | |
| 1 | Fishtail Bolt | M8-M64 | Q235,45#,55#,etc | Zinc,Plain, Black Oil | UIC,AREMA,JIS,GB or according to your requests. | |
| 2 | Screw Spike | Square Head Screw Spike | M16-M22 *145-200 | |||
| Hexagon Head Screw Spike | ||||||
| Other Types | ||||||
| Type | Specification | Weight/kg | Surface | Standard | ||
| 3 | Sleeper Screw | Ss 1/130 | M22*130 | 0.451 | Zinc,Plain, Black Oil | UIC,AREMA,JIS,GB or according to your requests. |
| Ss 1/150 | M22*150 | 0.478 | ||||
| Ss 2/180 | M22*180 | 0.595 | ||||
| Ss 5/150 | M24*150 | 0.545 | ||||
| Ss 6/130 | M26*130 | 0.658 | ||||
| Ss 6/150 | M26*150 | 0.702 | ||||
| Ss 6/170 | M26*170 | 0.385 | ||||
| Ss 7/180 | M24*180 | 0.636 | ||||
| Ss 8/140 | M24*140 | 0.528 | ||||
| Ss 8/150 | M24*150 | 0.548 | ||||
| Ss 8/160 | M24*160 | 0.568 | ||||
| Ss 23/160 | M23*160 | 0.645 | ||||
| Ss 24/165 | M24*165 | 0.59 | ||||
| Ss 25/165 | M25*165 | 0.625 | ||||
Railroad spikes are used to ensure the safety of railway fastening systems and transportation. If railroad spikes are used in the right place, it will have a striking effect.
GNEE RAIL can supply railroad spike with customization, as a professional railway fastener manufacturer, we also provide steel rail, rail joint bar, rail clip, rail pad, rail bolt and other part of railway fastening system.
