×
INTELLIGENT WORK FORUMS
FOR ENGINEERING PROFESSIONALS

Log In

Come Join Us!

Are you an
Engineering professional?
Join Eng-Tips Forums!
  • Talk With Other Members
  • Be Notified Of Responses
    To Your Posts
  • Keyword Search
  • One-Click Access To Your
    Favorite Forums
  • Automated Signatures
    On Your Posts
  • Best Of All, It's Free!
  • Students Click Here

*Eng-Tips's functionality depends on members receiving e-mail. By joining you are opting in to receive e-mail.

Posting Guidelines

Promoting, selling, recruiting, coursework and thesis posting is forbidden.

Students Click Here

Jobs

Historical shapes

Historical shapes

Historical shapes

(OP)
I am looking at a building circa 1967 that some of the beams are labled 21B44.

I have looked in AISC's historical database, and this shape is not shown. I called AISC and they indicated that there might have been some manufacturer specific shapes at that time that was used.   I have been doing a search and apparently there is a document called Bethlehem Steel Structural Shapes Catalog" from this era.   Anyone know where to find it, or what the beam properties could be?  There are a couple of other sectons like this as well.

Thanks.

RE: Historical shapes

Same thing as W21x44.  Several lightweight shapes were introduced at about that time, and when brought into the AISC manual, they were just called a W shape.

RE: Historical shapes

That was standard nomenclature back then. They were heavy "I" shapes. If you can find an AISC manual from back then, you should find it. There may have been a separate group for heavy shapes. We used to use them for trolley beams.

Back then, in the nomenclature, the beam depth came first, then the type of shape and then the weight/foot.Wide flanges were WF shapes. It was all changed to work better on the computer

Michael.
Timing has a lot to do with the outcome of a rain dance.

RE: Historical shapes

I recognize it now you print it hokie, and yet I have a clear picture of sloped flanges. In some ways, memory being one, getting old sucks.

Michael.
Timing has a lot to do with the outcome of a rain dance.

RE: Historical shapes

Michael,

On this, we don't agree.  We cross-posted.  W21x44 is a very light shape.

RE: Historical shapes

No, I agree with you, I recognize the name in your post, it trumps my dimmer recollection of using it as a trolley beam  

Michael.
Timing has a lot to do with the outcome of a rain dance.

RE: Historical shapes

(OP)
Thanks.  Thats kind of what i thought, but i was confused because some of the beams have a 21B44 designation, then others have a WF designation, so i wasnt sure.  I called AISC and they said that it may have been a detailing convention between different detailers.  I did find an old Canadian Steel Shape standard that actually has a 21B44 called out.   Looking at it, and the current AISC W21x44 properties, they are extremely close.  

I am going to go to the site and measure the beams, and compare them to the different tables, but just wanted more references.

 

RE: Historical shapes

strguy11, measuring  has some problems, firstly there are tolerances, and in the mid seventies, there was a large scale change of shapes, some disappeared, some new ones came in and some stayed at the same weight and nominal dimensions but with slight thickness differences.

Michael.
Timing has a lot to do with the outcome of a rain dance.

RE: Historical shapes

There were a number of new lightweight beam shapes introduced at about that time.  I remember a flyer, probably from Bethlehem, listing the properties of 12B14, 14B22, 16B26, 18B35, 21B44, etc.  They were all then listed in the next Manual as W sections, or maybe WF.

RE: Historical shapes

The "B" was a Bethlehem steel designation, I believe.  Someone had posted a table of the "B" shapes on this forum a couple of years ago.

Red Flag This Post

Please let us know here why this post is inappropriate. Reasons such as off-topic, duplicates, flames, illegal, vulgar, or students posting their homework.

Red Flag Submitted

Thank you for helping keep Eng-Tips Forums free from inappropriate posts.
The Eng-Tips staff will check this out and take appropriate action.

Reply To This Thread

Posting in the Eng-Tips forums is a member-only feature.

Click Here to join Eng-Tips and talk with other members!


Resources