Recognize This Rail Bolt?
- Thread starter BFC
- Start date
In the absence of other replies....
it looks stainless?
It is a type of tri-wing drive "security bolt" of which there are many forms.
These days the Chinese will make you short runs of anything you come up with, so it might be proprietary, though a few years ago that would have been unusual.
Point being, if you need a bolt, any allen socket flat head of the correct size - pitch- thread will work & not look much out of place. A full box is probably not costly, to keep all the heads the same.
If hope is that the head design will help lead to the table mfg'r, look toward asia. Google security bolt, tri-wing drive, and various combinations.
Or maybe, having posted this, the guy who knows will finally pop in to tell us the maker. :thumbup:
What size is the table?
Is it steel framed?
smt
it looks stainless?
It is a type of tri-wing drive "security bolt" of which there are many forms.
These days the Chinese will make you short runs of anything you come up with, so it might be proprietary, though a few years ago that would have been unusual.
Point being, if you need a bolt, any allen socket flat head of the correct size - pitch- thread will work & not look much out of place. A full box is probably not costly, to keep all the heads the same.
If hope is that the head design will help lead to the table mfg'r, look toward asia. Google security bolt, tri-wing drive, and various combinations.
Or maybe, having posted this, the guy who knows will finally pop in to tell us the maker. :thumbup:
What size is the table?
Is it steel framed?
smt
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That would be a very small tri-wing bit to fit in those bolts. The torque would be very small. I see a few tri-wing screws in the commercial aviation industry, but not quite like that. I'm not really understanding this application at all. These bolts come down from the top of the rail, so the heads are where the sights are with some type of cover over them?
It looks like there may be foreign debris in the head of that bolt maybe?? I have never seen a fastener that did not follow a symmetrical pattern for tool use.
That made me wonder, too. Since i make tools, including broaches sometimes. (I start thinking, not always a good thing, "Now how would i grind the punch to broach that shape?")
Looking closer, maybe it's like you observed, just a common hex with some sort of dirt or filler residue in it?
smt
Nah, I don't think it's a common hex. It's way out of proportion though. The internal wrenching portion is way to small for the head. It wouldn't withstand much torque before the tool bit would snap, or strip out the head. My bet is designed and made in China and a nightmare to deal with. Nothing worse than substandard design and materials.
Lawnboy-
Look at the bottom of the shape.
Initially, i took the whole thing for somebody's weird idea at branding. Or selling the installers a high priced custom tool.
But after your note, looking more closely, the bottom looks like 2 sides of a common hex, and the rest could be remaining filler. The "wings" might only be digs from someones pen knife or screw driver being twisted in it.
Another one of those online puzzles where the photos and details really don't give enough info to do more that speculate with reckless abandon.
Yeah, I'm bored again and should be making my own fasteners in the shop but for the moment this is more fun...:sorry:
smt
Look at the bottom of the shape.
Initially, i took the whole thing for somebody's weird idea at branding. Or selling the installers a high priced custom tool.
But after your note, looking more closely, the bottom looks like 2 sides of a common hex, and the rest could be remaining filler. The "wings" might only be digs from someones pen knife or screw driver being twisted in it.
Another one of those online puzzles where the photos and details really don't give enough info to do more that speculate with reckless abandon.
Yeah, I'm bored again and should be making my own fasteners in the shop but for the moment this is more fun...:sorry:
smt
Lawnboy-
Look at the bottom of the shape.
Initially, i took the whole thing for somebody's weird idea at branding. Or selling the installers a high priced custom tool.
But after your note, looking more closely, the bottom looks like 2 sides of a common hex, and the rest could be remaining filler. The "wings" might only be digs from someones pen knife or screw driver being twisted in it.
Another one of those online puzzles where the photos and details really don't give enough info to do more that speculate with reckless abandon.
Yeah, I'm bored again and should be making my own fasteners in the shop but for the moment this is more fun...:sorry:
smt
Oh I see what you are talking about, and I think you are right. It does appear to be a hex head with a bit broke off in it. Hopefully it's not something like an easy-out broke off in there. I've seen that happen a time or two and that is where quality tools like Snap-On, Matco, or equivalent, are worth their weight in gold. It usually happens when young, inexperienced mechanics use HF tools and extractors on the aircraft. I just hand them the diamond burr and die grinder and let them get a taste of grinding the broken screw extractor out themselves. This is the kinda thing they don't teach in school, but man can this kinda thing can be a real show stopper when you are trying to get a safe, reliable aircraft ready for that early morning takeoff. Sorry about getting off the subject, but I guess I'm a bit bored to. LOL
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Nothing worse than the sound of a tap snapping in a blind hole :shocked2::shrug::angry::yikes: