Dowel pins, less commonly known as straight pins or lock pins, are straight, headless, cylindrical pieces of solid material. Used in drilled holes to join or align components to absorb lateral stress ensuring a stable assembly. If we don’t have them on the shelf, we can source them fast.
Design
Deceptively simple looking in their design, dowel pins have been machined to very specific tolerances ensuring a precise application every time. One great benefit of this accuracy is the range of sizes in which dowels can be sourced. Where a common metric fastener may increase in length by 5mm at a time as standard unless very short, dowel pin lengths can increase by as little as 1 or 2mm even on some larger sizes. This sizing allows for a smooth finish and consistent application process in both large and small quantities.
While dowel pins are headless and designed for a secure fit, there is one type of dowel which is designed with removal in mind. Known as extractable dowels, or pull-out dowel pins, this specific fastener uses the same design principles as a standard dowel, but with a threaded hole at one end of the rod for simple removal.
Specification
All specifications of dowel pins are available in a wide range of materials. The most common include hardened steel, stainless steel and nylon, though others are available. Hardened steel is generally used in machinery which plays a large role in the manufacturing, construction and automotive industries. Stainless steel could also be used in these instances, particularly if the assembly is to be used outdoors due to the corrosion resistance of this metal. Nylon and other plastics are more commonly used in woodwork, so are often utilised in furniture and shelving.
Availability
Dowel pins are available in a large range of sizes and lengths, in both metric and imperial, and in a wide variety of materials. For any obscure sizes or specifications not available off the shelf, we have partner manufacturers who can to produce to specific requirements.
