I’ve been the Operations Manager here at Portland Bolt since 1987.

This is an inch and a quarter diameter by 48 inch long, galvanized

F1554 grade 36 hex head anchor bolt.

We just completed 356 of these anchor bolts for

the Caney River Substation project

in Howard, Kansas.

We've been manufacturing bolts like these by hand since 1912

and we would like to take you through our shop

to show you how a bolt like this is manufactured.

The first step in the manufacturing of any bolt

is to cut the round bar to length.

Our Peddinghaus shears function much like a guillotine

and chop the steel, rather than using a saw blade to cut through it

We are capable of shearing round bar up to 2 inches in diameter

and up to 100" in length.

Bolts that are larger in diameter or longer in length are cut using a band saw.

Next, A hex head is hot-forged onto one end of the steel rod

An induction heating coil heats the end of the rod

to approximately 2000 degrees Fahrenheit.

A National Upsetter is used to forge the heated end of the rod

into a hex shaped head.

Gripper blocks clamp the round bar securely in place

while a plunger or die compresses the heated end of the rod

reshaping it into the hex head configuration.

A second position in the gripper block is used to stamp the head

with the manufacturer's logo and grade symbol as required.

The hex head of this anchor bolt will be embedded in concrete

and is intended to provide pull-out resistance.

High speed cutting blades apply a chamfer

to the ends of the bolts prior to threading.

This beveled end will help facilitate easy assembly of the nut

once the bolts have been threaded and galvanized.

Landis threaders are used to cut 8" of thread

onto the end of these anchor bolts.

Rotating heads contain chasers which cut away steel from the round bar

to produce the threads.

A constant stream of cutting oil is applied to reduce friction

and prevent overheating.

Threads are gauged by the threading operators

to ensure conformance to dimensional tolerances.

The bolts must be pickled prior to galvanizing.

This process cleans the bolts and prepares the

surface of the steel to accept the zinc.

Parts are first submerged in caustic soda

which removes cutting oil and other organic materials

that accumulate during the manufacturing process.

The bolts are then rinsed and submerged in sulfuric acid,

which removes any scale from the bolts and etches the surface of the steel.

The bolts are rinsed again and then submerged in flux

which is a chemical that assists in the bonding of the zinc to the steel.

After pickling, bolts are placed in racks

and lowered into our 12 foot long by 4 foot wide

by 7 foot deep tank of 840 degree molten zinc.

The bolts remain in the zinc for between 2 to 4 minutes.

When the bolts are removed from the zinc,

they are spun in a high speed centrifuge

to remove excess zinc from the threads.

Due to the proprietary nature of this process,

we have not included it in the video.

Finally, the bolts are cooled in quench tanks

so they can be inspected and packaged

as soon as they are removed from the galvanizing tank.

Blue paint is applied to the threaded end

of each F1554 grade 36 anchor bolt to identify the grade,

as is required by the specification.

In preparation for shipping,

bolts are banded to pallets, shrink wrapped, and clearly labeled.

The morning after your order leaves our facility

you will receive an email that contains shipment tracking information

in addition to a copy of full mill test reports.

Portland Bolt provides complete certification documents

free of charge with every order.

Portland Bolt products ship nationwide and internationally.

Refer to this page of our website

to learn about the geographical distribution of the bolts we manufacture.