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Originally Posted by Wyhog:
Let's see... modern locos have ~17 tons per driver. So that would mean we need to use 170 lb/yd rail. Wow! All of the railroads had better replace all of their rail pronto. 
You see! That Lionel Rail IS the appropriate height after all. 
No doubt, this formula developed by some salesman? 
I don't know where the writer came up with that "formula" but it is WAY off. Each driving wheel on the 765 carries roughly 16 tons. That equates to 160-pound rail! They don't even MAKE rail that big.
The largest rail I've seen is 155 pound rail, and there is not a lot of it in use. A very common size is 132 pound rail, which is considered HEAVY rail in the real world of railroading.
Yeah...must have been a rail salesman.
Be interesting to see when and where that was first published. Offhand, judging by the typeface and the term "four-wheel-connected" where the axle weights aren't the same, suggesting a 4-4-0, I would bet it's at least 120 years old.
"This rule is only approximate..."
Sums it up pretty well.
