Solid Dowel, Barbed, & Knurled Pins

With so many types of industrial standard pins to choose from, the challenge for the designer is to select the most cost-effective pin that meets the specific application requirements. While more than one type of pin may meet certain requirements, here are some general guidelines when a Solid Pin may be most suitable:

• When a head is required for a positive stop or to retain a thin member to a thicker member of the assembly
• When a smooth, uninterrupted surface is required such as when used in conjunction with a pawl or other angular component
• When a hollow pin is not suitable such as when the designer is looking to plug a hole (i.e. Restrict passage of liquids)
• When there is a need to manually align several clearance holes
• When increased bending or shear strength is required
• When precise hole locations need to be maintained

Solid Pins are commonly used as permanent fasteners in a wide range of applications. They are retained by the harder Solid Pin displacing material in the softer host component(s). There are two primary methods of accomplishing this:

• Press-fit: Press-fit dowels and straight pins are typically retained in the assembly by being pressed into holes that are smaller than the pin diameter. The pins are retained by compressing the host material.
  
• Retention features: Retention features (i.e. knurls and barbs) are often preferred over press-fit dowels because they allow for wider hole tolerances and lower insertion forces during assembly. Knurls and barbs carve into the softer host component, and displace the host material into the valleys of the knurls and barbs. This results in more frictional contact area between the pin and hole, and thus higher retention as compared to simple press-fit doweling.