If you know a good tip or technique to help get through a construction "stumbling block", please post it here. If you have questions concerning building problems, please post them on the "Builders' Forum".
After trying to find some long brass bolts locally, and not wanting to mail order, I decided to try making my own. They worked out well so I thought I'd post a tip on here for anyone else who might be interested.
I used 1/4 brass threaded rod and 1/4" brass hex nuts from the hardware store. When you buy nuts make sure you get brass ones, not brass plated. I cut the threaded rod to the length I needed, threaded a nut on the end just so the last thread on the rod sticks proud of the nut. I then held the rod loosely in a bench vise with the nut supported on the top of the vice jaws. Now using a punch and hammer, peen the end of the brass threaded rod until it deforms enough to hold the nut. File the top smooth. I actually peened 4 spots fairly aggressively around the edge of the rod to be sure that I deformed it and the inside edge of the nut. Since I'm countersinking the heads I really didn't care what they looked like - as long as they hold, which they do. Here's kind of a poor picture I took with my camera phone. If anyone would like better photos, just let me know.
Sorry if I misunderstood your inquiry - what type of pic were you looking for? Or, were you thinking that I was going to leave these above the gunnels, like carriage bolts? If that's the case, I believe one could peen them sufficiently that you could grind them into a dome and polish them, but I didn't try that, so I don't know for sure. If you did, this though, there would be no shoulder below the head to prevent them turning. Just let me know if it was a different picture you were after.
