Effective Shank Length of Bolts Under Lateral Loading

Additional lateral load tests, with improved techniques, were conducted on M22 stainless bolts to supplement the series of metric system stainless bolt tests which were conducted previously. Using the strain gage-deflection data collected from the entire set, i.e., of different sizes and different lengths, of the bolt tests, the “rigidity coefficient”, which is used in calculating the deflection of the bolts under lateral loads, using the conventionally assumed effective shank length, is derived.

Alternatively, a new analytical effective shank length, which is more accurate than the conventional assumed effective shank length, derived from the test data, is proposed.