Information on 'Short Bolting' Page 1 of 2

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Information on 'Short Bolting'

Short bolting is a term frequently used to describe the situation

when a bolt is installed and the thread does not fully protrude
through the nut.

In order that the full strength of the nut is to be realised, it is

vital that the bolt thread protrude through the nut. Failure to do
so runs the risk that thread stripping will occur.

It is common practice to specify that two thread pitches must

protrude. Typically the first few pitches of the thread can only
be partially formed because of a chamfer etc. Nut thickness
standards have been drawn up on the basis that the bolt will
always sustain tensile fracture before the nut or bolt thread will
strip. If the bolt breaks on tightening, it is obvious that a
replacement is required. Thread stripping tends to be gradual in
nature. If the thread stripping mode can occur, assemblies may enter into service which are partially failed, this
may have disastrous consequences. Hence, the potential of thread stripping of both the internal and external
threads must be avoided if a reliable design is to be achieved. When specifying nuts and bolts it must always be
ensured that the appropriate grade of nut is matched to the bolt grade.

In cases of when a threaded fastener is tapped into a plate or

a block it is usually the case that the fastener and block
materials will be of different strengths. If the criteria is
adopted that the bolt must sustain tensile fracture before the
female thread strips, the length of thread engagement
required can be excessive and can become unrealistic for
low strength plate/block materials. Tolerances and pitch
errors between the threads can make the engagement of long threads problematical.

In summary the full height of the nut is to be used if you are to avoid thread stripping - that is - ensure that the
thread protrudes through the nut. Also use a standard height nut as this is designed so that the bolt will break
before the threads start to strip.

For more details about thread stripping and related failures - click on this link.

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http://www.boltscience.com/pages/shortbolting.htm 7/18/2007