Well, either would work: Steel can be easily fitted to take tension loads; Or the wood could be oriented to be in compression, with the ends butted against othe

Well, either would work: Steel can be easily fitted to take tension loads; Or the wood could be oriented to be in compression, with the ends butted against other structure thus relieving the bolts of most of the load. Here's one that combines both techniques: https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Ftse4.mm.bing.net%2Fth%3Fid%3DOIP.e3DLYJkxlxYOH4FmJu1mpwAAAA%26pid%3DApi&f=1&ipt=17c2ef43a960d997e565187191c5e989c8a94ba8cc53a30b24990b42fa45d011&ipo=images https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2F... What was done instead concentrated the tension stress onto a small central core section of the member, with rest transferred to wood grain-aligned, therefore weak, sheer faces within the timber. Thanks for the video: To anyone who's spent some time working with wooden garden gates, that's enough to tell the story.