Reprint from Fastener World Magazine, Vol. 151

In Part 1 of this series we explored the fundamental concept of Pre-Load and what this means to the fastened joint. Although understanding this concept is a fundamental fastener engineering tenet, one likely cannot stop there and is led to ask the question of how one practically achieves this Pre- Load in the bolted joint. This is where the subject of “tightening strategies” arises. Before we look at the different tightening strategies, let’s briefly review the concepts of pre- load and torque-tension.