Hello -

I am relatively new at timber frame engineering but I am really enjoying digging into the engineering and providing solutions for my clients. With that being said, this particular post is about providing solutions when the pegged connection is the weakest link and a reasonable/industry standard solution for the issue. To preface this issue, and the solution I have been providing t my clients, I have assumed the shear wall resistance is negligible for these when providing lateral resistance against earthquake and wind loads. The main reason is that the architect / contractor / owner does not provide the exterior covering that is planned for the job: OSB, SIPS, etc. Therefore I have to make conservative assumptions, i.e. negligible lateral resistance. I know this is an important part of the resisting system for the structure, but it doesn't change the question of how to provide a solution to this particular issue.

I am calculating the failure modes based on TEFC paper by Joe Miller from FTE, Capacity of Pegged Connections. This paper is well written and based off of the TFEC-1-2019-standard-&-commentary. I have noticed that the pegged portion of the connection often shows insufficient capacity in failure mode V with a standard M&T connection with two equal cheeks. This failure mode shows insufficient capacity based on the shear strength of the peg. I find that when I use the specific gravity of steel it easily passes, so I have been specifying steel dowels in place of normal wooden pegs.

A couple questions:
- Is this standard practice within the industry?
- How have others solved this issue when encountered?

All feedback is appreciated, thanks!