Historical information

Railway tracks are produced straight. They may appear to be easy to bend and may appear flexible, but are required to be bent for curves, at rail joins on curves and at point (turn-out) junctions. For a safe transition around curves and in the finer areas of the point, this was required to be done with a manual rail bender. Sometimes referred to as a Jim Crow, the rail bender attaches its two claws to the rail. In the middle of the two claws is a screw that is slowly tightened using a crow-bar to bend the rail. Tightening the screw too fast or too tightly may not give the structure of the rail time to redistribute and the rail may break if not done properly.

Significance

Victorian Railways Permanent Way and Works track equipment Light Rail Bender narrow Gauge

Physical description

Cast iron semi-circular tool, with hooked ends and central screw shaft.