Why Are Rails Shaped Like That?

An overview of the wheel/rail interactions and part of the railway engineering series. Errata: At 6:52, the graphic should show the dimension of the wheel's diameter (not radius). In the 19th century, railway engineering was all about how to build railroads. Modern rail engineering focuses on getting the most out of the system. It might not look like much when you see a train passing by, but a huge amount of research, testing, and engineering went into the shape of those rails and wheels. Watch this video ad-free on Nebula: https://nebula.tv/videos/practical-engineering-why-are-rails-shaped-like-that Signed copies of my book (plus other cool stuff) are available here: https://store.practical.engineering/ Practical Engineering is a YouTube channel about infrastructure and the human-made world around us. It is hosted, written, and produced by Grady Hillhouse. We have new videos posted regularly, so please subscribe for updates. If you enjoyed the video, hit that ‘like’ button, give us a comment, or watch another of our videos! CONNECT WITH ME ____________________________________ Website: http://practical.engineering Twitter: https://twitter.com/HillhouseGrady Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/practicalengineering Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/PracticalEngineering Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PracticalEngineerGrady​ Patreon: http://patreon.com/PracticalEngineering SPONSORSHIP INQUIRIES ____________________________________ Please email my agent at [email protected] DISCLAIMER ____________________________________ This is not engineering advice. Everything here is for informational and entertainment purposes only. Contact an engineer licensed to practice in your area if you need professional advice or services. All non-licensed clips used for fair use commentary, criticism, and educational purposes. SPECIAL THANKS ____________________________________ This video is sponsored by HelloFresh. Stock video and imagery provided by Getty Images, Shutterstock, Pond5, and Videoblocks. Music by Epidemic Sound: http://epidemicsound.com/creator Tonic and Energy by Elexive is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6fBPdu8w9U Video by Grady Hillhouse Edited by Wesley Crump Written and Produced by Ralph Crewe Production Assistance from Josh Lorenz Graphics by Nebula Studios