Giant Drills - Railway Sleepers ?

[rustyric]

This is my latest find giant drills. I have been told that they were used to drill holes in railway sleepers. What do you think ?

[mikeswrenches]

I kind of doubt it. They used spikes through a tie plate to hold the rails down.

Mike

[kwoswalt99]

They look like they were intended for use in a machine.

[EVILDR235]

Check out the WRANGLERSTAR website on You tube. He just did a video about beam drills used in timber framing. I also have one of those large auger bits.

EvilDr235

[Chillylulu]

They look like regular auger bits.

We use similar today, when drilling holes through wood joists. And much bigger. In fire protection the smallest steel pipe is 1", copper and plastic the smallest is 3/4". In reality we havent used 3/4" in over 10 years. We get kind of snooty  and look down on 3/4" pipe users.

For residential applications we carry auger bits up to 2-1/2" in diameter.

The top one has a modern shank. You can buy similar at any well stocked hardware store. I would guess that the other two are post war, again, based on the drive end.

Chilly

[wvtools]

The one on the bottom is a counterbore bit typically used in an application with a sunken bolt head, like a ship deck.

[rustyric]

Thanks for your answers. Ship decking, Railway Sleepers infact anywhere you need a really big dia. drill I suppose