Bolts Types and Terms

  • Aircraft bolts are made from cadmium to prevent corrosion and have threads rolled or pressed into the bolt, which make the bolt much stronger than the cut threads in a hardware bolt. Aircraft bolts are also tested in smaller batches for quality and are used primarily by the military and aircraft industries.
  • Anchor bolts are long "L" shaped-style bolts that are set in concrete to anchor columns or other supports to a foundation.
  • Bolt manufacturers produce bolts for various uses.
  • Carriage bolts are bolts with a round head and are used for timber. Carriage bolts are threaded on only part of the shank and are inserted into pre-drilled holes.
  • Expansion bolts have an attachment that expands as the bolt is driven into a surface.
  • Eye bolts are bolts with an eye at one end in place of a standard head.
  • Lag bolts are heavy woodscrews that have a square or hexagonal head, which is driven in by a wrench.
  • Metric bolts are used by the international community and are measured using the metric system as their defining classification.
  • Reduced shank bolts are bolts whose shank diameter is smaller than the normal dimensions for the bolt.
  • Shoulder bolts are used primarily for location of pivot mounting. The shaft that is not threaded has a wider diameter, giving the bolt a shouldered appearance.
  • Stainless steel bolts are used for applications where strength and resistance to corrosion is desired.
  • Step lock bolts are made to resist vibration loosening. Step lock bolts have several portions of horizontal threads called steps.
  • Stove bolts are small-sized machine bolts.
  • U-bolts are U-shaped bars that have bolts and threads at both ends but not in the middle. U-bolts are primarily used in suspension areas of vehicles.

Angle Controlled Tightening - A tightening method in which the surfaces are pulled together by tightening the fastener with a pre-selected (snug) torque. The nut is given an extra measured rotation, further tightening the fastener, often beyond its yield point to ensure the achievement of a precise preload.
 
Anti-Friction (AF) Coating - Dry lubricants that are comprised of suspensions of solid lubricants of small particle size, such as graphite or PTFE.
 
Anti-Seize Compound - A compound that is applied to the threads of fasteners and whose purpose depends on the application. Anti-seize compounds can prevent galling or mating surfaces, improve corrosion resistance or provide a barrier to water penetration by sealing the threads.
 
Bearing Stress - The surface pressure acting on a joint face, resulting from the clamping force applied by a fastener.
 
Black - A term that refers to the comparatively wider tolerances employed in the manufacturing of nuts and bolts, not necessarily the color of the surface finish.
 
Clamping Force - The compressive force exerted on a joint by a fastener.
 
Class of Fit - The measure of the degree of fit between mating external and internal threads. There are three main Classes of Fit for metric screw threads: fine, medium and coarse.
 
Creep - The permanent deformation of a bolt or other fastener resulting from the application of stress and heat.

Cut Threading - Forming threads on a fastener by cutting away and actually removing the unneeded metal.

Eccentricity - The degree of difference between the centers of the surface of a bolt at different points.

Fatigue Strength - The fracture resistance of bolts during subjection to stress variations.

Grip - The thickness of all materials that a bolt is designed to secure.
 
Head - The top portion of a bolt. A head also refers to the portion of a fastener that forms its largest diameter.

Joint - The material(s) that the fastener (bolt) connects together.
 
Nut - A small metal piece with a hole in the center that fits over a bolt or over the end of a bolt. Nuts are often hexagonal (6-sided) in shape.
 
Pull-Out - The amount of force required to pull the fastener out of the base material.
 
Shank - The portion of a headed fastener that lies between the head and the point.
 
Tensile Strength - The amount of longitudinal load/elongation a fastener can withstand without failure of the fastener or joint.
 
Thread - A raised helical pattern going around the shank of a bolt. The thread is measured by pitch, which is the distance from one peak of the thread to the next, expressed in mm or threads per inch.
 
Ultimate Torque - The amount of force at which a threaded fastener, an insert or nut begins to strip or otherwise fail in a joint.