A method and apparatus measure or gage worn railroad wheel profiles for the purposes of ascertaining the location of the new profile relative to the worn profile. The new profile is to be produced by a reprofiling operation such as a truing. For this purpose characteristic points on the worn profile are contacted in a radial and axial direction by a sensor and the respective displacement of the sensor is measured or gaged relative to a zero or null point. The location of the sensed points is then compared in a computer with a given reference location on a corrected profile. The corrected profile is then contacted with the sensed or gaged point which will make it possible to restore a correct profile with the least possible material removal in a milling or machining operation. In the apparatus for performing this method the sensor for the contacting or gaging of the worn points is preferably supported on a cross-slide enabling the sensor to perform a sensing movement in the axial direction and in the radial direction, preferably under a computerized numerical control.