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comment by wasoxygen
wasoxygen  ·  1652 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: September 18, 2019

You say they wiggle out like that's a bad thing. Any fastener has a failure mode. A spike that gradually wiggles out still has some holding power (mainly needed horizontally) while clearly advertising its weakened condition to a casual inspection. A bump wouldn't increase spike-to-wood contact area much, and could weaken the connection above the bump.

Screws are also used, the cost of pre-boring holes reduced by automated equipment.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rail_fastening_system