PECM Issue 50 2021 | Page 58

Key Huck ® Fastener supplier to Rail , Engineering & Fabrication Industries

FASTENERS & FIXINGS SKILLS , EXPERTISE & EXPERIENCE

STAR FASTENERS
Key Huck ® Fastener supplier to Rail , Engineering & Fabrication Industries
The UK is at the forefront of rail development , liberalisation of the market has fostered competition from global manufacturers and has helped with the generation of new projects and infrastructure improvements . Star Fasteners are a key supplier to the rail and heavy engineering industries and supply fastening solutions to projects around the world . We have the skills , expertise and experience to support customers from design stage through to production and beyond if required , and also have a reputation for being innovative and providing best-in-class products and services .
Huck ® BobTail ® - various sizes and finishes available
Star Fasteners are the largest UK distributor for Huck ® fasteners , and have been specialists in the sales and distribution of Huck fasteners for over 30 years . Huck fasteners have been designed to cope with extreme stress and vibration , providing strength and facilitating lighter , stronger , more durable structures , they are widely used in a wide variety of tough engineering applications including railcars , rolling stock and track , aerospace , trucks and trailers , bridge construction , mining / quarrying and automotive , in fact anywhere that fastener failure is not an option .
Huck fasteners offer a clean and safe alternative to welding and a more efficient fastening method than standard nuts and bolts , they have additional advantages such as , quick and easy installation , elimination of re-checking / replacement , and ultimately cost reductions . For years , welding was seen as the only way to ensure the integrity of joints in demanding loadbearing or high-vibration structures ; companies manufacturing heavyduty equipment or fabricating large , metal structures continued to employ the universally accepted process of welding joints together . However , today there are alternatives to welding , one of the foremost being direct-tension installed , swaged Lockbolts , such as the HuckBolts ®. Each Huck Fastener has its own unique characteristics ensuring that there is a product for every application .
THE NEXT STEP IN LOCKBOLT EVOLUTION
Huck ® BobTail ® cross-section
A fastener that has become increasingly popular in the UK market is the Huck BobTail ®. Regarded as the next step in Lockbolt evolution , the BobTail installs in only two seconds , up to twice as fast as any other large diameter Lockbolt on the market . BobTail has the additional benefit of no pin-break . This not only reduces material waste , it also ensures an improvement in corrosion resistance by eliminating the exposed surface resulting from the pintail break .
The installation system provides a smooth , shock-free process with significantly reduced maximum noise levels , typically less than 70dB . The elimination of the shock load and reduced noise can offer real and significant health and safety benefits .
Declared by DIBt ( Deutsches Institut für Bautechnik ) as ‘ maintenance free ’, the 12mm , 14mm , 16mm , 20mm and 1-inch diameter BobTail is now approved to be used in both static and dynamic civil engineering applications . HuckBolt fasteners are now being specified into a wide range of applications that once solely belonged to welding .
HUCK STRUCTURAL BLIND FASTENERS AND STANDARD RIVETS
As well as Huck Lockbolts , Star Fasteners stock a large range of blind fasteners . There are two classes of blind fasteners ; structural and non-structural . Huck structural fasteners retain and hold their mandrel after installation , they also have predictable and quantifiable shear and tensile strength . These fasteners can be differentiated from non-structural standard rivets by their overall increased level of strength . Installed Huck structural blind fasteners remain tight up to their minimum mechanical values creating vibration-resistant joints . Many attributes make structural blind fasteners ideal for fastening dissimilar materials , they are also available in a variety of materials , diameters , head styles , coatings , structural strengths and join material through either hole-fill or surface bearing . Easy installation procedures and quick visual inspection guidelines help ensure that each joint is fastened properly , every time .
58 PECM Issue 50