UNIT 13

FASTENERS
In discussing fasteners or connectors, we will make a distinction between permanent fasteners, such as
rivets and weldments, and detachable fasteners, such as screws, bolts ,cotter pins, and so on.

PERMANENT FASTIENERS . A RIVET. A rivet may be described as a cylindrical body,

known as the shank, with a rounded end called the head . When used to join two plates together, the
rivet is heated to a red glow, and the shank is placed in the hole that has been made in the plates. If the
rivet is heated before being placed in the hole, it is known as a hot-driven rivet ,whereas if it is not
heated ,it is known as a cold-driven rivet. The preformed head is then supported , while a hammer or
some other means of applying pressure is used to form the shank into another head. Upon completion
of this operation ,the rivet will have two heads and look something like the one shown in Fig 13-1 .
Thus, the purpose of the rivet is to join two plates together while ensuring proper strength and
tightness. The holes in the plates are either punched or drilled. Rivets are used in many application,
such as for boilers, buildings, bridges, ships, and so on. Because of the danger to human life that could
result from a failure of such applications, the designs of riveted connections are rigorously governed
by construction codes.
Lap and Butt Joints. Axially loaded riveted joints are of two types, lap joints (Fig 13-1) and butt joints
(Fig13-2). A comparison of these two figures makes clear why the joints are called lap and butt joints.
In a lap joint, the two plates to be joined overlap each other, whereas in a butt joint, the two plates to
be joined (the main plates) butt against each other.
The most efficient joint possible would be one which will be as strong in tension, shear, and bearing as
the original plate to be joined is in tension. This can never be achieved, because there must be at least
one rivet hole in the plate, and the joints allowable load in tension will thus always be less than
strength of the plate with no holes.

DETACHABLE FASTENERS. SCREW FASTENERS. Since most machine parts that require
connection must usually be made in such a way that they can easily be disassembled as well as
assembled, nonpermanent fasteners or so-called detachable fasteners are required. Screws and bolts
are examples of these. The only difference between a screw and a bolt is that the bolt needs a nut in
order to be used as a fastener, whereas a screw fits into a threaded hole.

BOLTS. Through bolts are the most satisfactory form of screw fastening, since they can be easily
renewed when broken or when the threads strip. A stud bolts (or a stud) has threads on both ends and
particularly useful in applications where a plate is to be bolted to a larger part and a through bolt
cannot be used.

SCREWS. Sems are preassembled fasteners that eliminate the need for hand assembling of screws
and washers. Set screws are a type of semipermanent fasteners used to prevent relative motion
between sliding surface. In general, they are useful in low torque applications involving rotary motion.
Set screws are made in variety of heads and points.
To prevent nuts from working loose, many types of special washers, pins and nuts are used as locking
devices. Some of the most common locking devices are lock nuts, split pins, spring washers, etc.

The Pitch and the Lead. The pitch is the axial distance between corresponding points on adjacent
threads and is equal to the reciprocal of the number of threads per inch. The lead is the distance a
screw moves axially during 1 revolution of the screw. The lead of a single threaded screw is equal to
its pitch, a double threaded screw has a lead equal to twice its pitch, a triple threaded screw has a lead
3 times its pitch, and so on. (See Fig 13-3)