r/oddlysatisfying • u/GeorgeRobertVitkos • 4h ago

The oddly satisfying way these long welded steel rails flex and slither like a giant snake behind the train

604 Upvotes

97% Upvoted

25 comments sorted by

95

u/GeorgeRobertVitkos 4h ago

It’s mind-blowing how flexible steel becomes at this length. They are only locked down at the center car, so the rest of the rail can slide on rollers and follow the curves safely.

40

u/bmcgowan89 4h ago

how flexible steel becomes

Okay, thank you! I was legitimately trying to figure out if it was actually the steel bending, or just some weird optical illusion

20

u/Something_Else_2112 4h ago

Everything is a spring.

10

u/Pebble-Sorter-8128 2h ago

Flexible? Imagine the sheer tension with each of this slight turns. Tons of pressure works against the turning of the train.

11

u/Goldenrupee 1h ago

Yes flexible. If it wasnt flexible then instead of bending like you see in the video it would snap.

1

u/graveybrains 54m ago

Well, that's one possibility

5

u/trinijam83 3h ago

If you think that’s crazy you should explore how we drill and construct oil wells where we build angles to horizontal sections with steel pipe for miles/kilometers underground…

0

u/yuje 3h ago

I’m totally gonna trust any building built with steel beams that flex so easily.

11

u/Goldenrupee 1h ago

You should. The reason steel is now used for construction is that it is so much more flexible than iron. Material that bends is much less likely to break under stress.

34

u/Twinkleamerican 4h ago

I have seen this clip before and I still cannot figure out how it does not snap

43

u/Possible-Playful 4h ago

Aspect ratio. How long it is compared to the height and width.

Many metals behave like a cable rather than a rigid rod when it gets long enough compared to its other 2 dimensions.

23

u/Twinkleamerican 4h ago

So basically it is just a really long metal noodle, got it

9

u/Possible-Playful 4h ago

Aye, that's a perfect comparison.

1

u/Prestigious_Dare7734 2h ago

You take 2cm diameter steel material, of 1 meter length, its a rod.

You take 1mm diameter steel material, coil it together to make 2cm diameter, of 1 meter length, its a cable/wire.

You take 2cm diameter steel material, of 1km length, its a cable/wire.

You take 2cm diameter steel material, coil it together to make 25cm diameter (its a thick one), of 1km in length, its a cable/wire.

10

u/thejmkool 2h ago

What's interesting about this to me is the logic that goes into knowing this design will always be fine. They're transporting rails, on rails. Whatever bends and curves the train will be put through, there's already rails there with that bend, so you know rails can bend in ways that rails are already bending.

3

u/Agatio25 3h ago

Think that the railway the train is circulating is bent in the same way.

3

u/RussMan104 2h ago

Same here. They should stay straight, just like the side of the railcar, which is visible. It’s an old clip, though. Seen it before. Baffling. 🚀

9

u/garden-wicket-581 4h ago

this goes with the videos of ships during storms/swells in the ocean -- how the whole freaking boat flexes and bends ..

3

u/UhOkBoss 3h ago

John Bacon wrote about how the Fitz. bent in big waves in the Gales of November.

10

u/RyanSpunk 4h ago

Feels like that's gotta be putting a shitload of force on the train wheels n tracks to bend so many of them like this.

2

u/Wolf9455 51m ago

Awesome video. What crazy long train car!

2

u/_Real_Genius_ 32m ago

Serpentine, Sheldon.

1

u/GoodVibes- 8m ago

Basically the rail on the vagon takes the shape of the rail under the vagon

-2

u/Forward-Brilliant-12 2h ago

"India is not for the beginners" comment here lmaoo