"Percival P. Cassidy" wrote in message
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On 04/27/08 08:04 pm RBM wrote:

"Percival P. Cassidy" wrote in message
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How much does a railroad tie weigh? We are thinking of using some for a
landscaping project but are wondering how difficult they might be to
handle.

If you're referring to real RR ties, and not pressure treated landscape
ties, they're not only heavy, but they're dirty and messy, and I'd guess
about 100 lbs each. More important, they're soaked with creosote, which
stinks, and it's sticky, and you certainly won't easily get it out of
your clothes


I did rough calculations and guessed maybe 150 lbs. I know about the
creosote and have no problem with the smell. But are RR ties still sticky
by the time they are "pensioned off" by the railroads?

Perce

Walter Johnson, and "Death Valley Scotty" bought up the old railbed from a
train that ran from Rhyolite, Nevada past their ranch in the desert. They
bought and stacked thousands of ties intending to use them for firewood.
They spent a lot of money, time, and effort.

When they burned the first tie, they realized that they could not use any of
them because of the acrid smoke from the creosote.

They still sit stacked at Death Valley Ranch, about 100 years later.

Steve