Turning End Bolts

[Don Taylor]

18 minutes ago, Dana Johnson said:

But I’ve seen too many broken brass and NS screws, so I bailed on them for non traditional  stainless steel socket head bolts ( sick of people scratching things up with slipping screwdrivers, or buggering up the slot with a bad fitting screwdriver.).

S!otted screws are the work of the devil.

[alex_holden]

Personally I prefer the look of traditional bolts, though I will of course fit modern stainless bolts if a customer asks for them. I'm considering shipping a well-fitting screwdriver with each instrument.

[Little John]

The bolts on my Dipper have slots so narrow they grip the tip of my jewellers' screwdriver. No slipping!

 

LJ

[MartinW]

And having had the pleasure of owning one of Dana’s concertinas since last December I must say that I think his socket head bolts are brilliant!

Martin

[Dana Johnson]

A lot of people do like the slotted head bolts.  At least I didn’t use torx .   Hmmm...?.  Hey Alex, you are one of those I admire.  It has probably been done, but i’d Like to see an engineering encyclopedia full of all the ways things like this have been done.  I “ invented “ a gear version of the Chinese windlass, only to find that it was in a friend’s engineering textbook.  At least it was a good idea!

Dana

[alex_holden]

17 hours ago, Dana Johnson said:

A lot of people do like the slotted head bolts.  At least I didn’t use torx .   Hmmm...?.  Hey Alex, you are one of those I admire.  It has probably been done, but i’d Like to see an engineering encyclopedia full of all the ways things like this have been done.  I “ invented “ a gear version of the Chinese windlass, only to find that it was in a friend’s engineering textbook.  At least it was a good idea!

Dana

 

Thanks Dana. Not having any relevant formal training or much money, I often find myself coming up with unorthodox ways to do things. I love to study the ways craftsmen of the past made incredible things with far more limited resources than we have today. I'm sure a great deal of ingenuity was never written down or passed on.

[Theo]

On 9/28/2018 at 10:27 PM, Dana Johnson said:

 But I’ve seen too many broken brass and NS screws, so I bailed on them for non traditional  stainless steel socket head bolts ( sick of people scratching things up with slipping screwdrivers, or buggering up the slot with a bad fitting screwdriver.).  

 

... I just have a soft spot for screws that don’t break.

 

Sadly the hamfisted who break brass screws and chew up slots will always find a way.  Socket headed screws are so secure, and ss bolts so tough  that they may just overtighten till the wood gives way under the pressure.

I'm not saying that your changes are not improvements Dana, just that it's not possible to combat ignorance with stronger tools!

Edited October 1, 2018 by Theo

[alex_holden]

1 hour ago, Theo said:

Sadly the hamfisted who break brass screws and chew up slots will always find a way.  Socket headed screws are so secure, and ss bolts so tough  that they may just overtighten till the wood gives way under the pressure.

 

When I see vintage instruments with stripped end bolts and nuts, they often also have a lot of leakage caused by things like warped boards and/or loose reed pan support blocks. I suspect some people try to cure leaks by cranking the bolts down tighter and tighter until something breaks.