Cushioned fastener joint

A joint construction including:

• composite material workpieces each defining a hole therethrough of a first prescribed diameter;
• a fastener through said holes having a bearing section within said holes of a second prescribed diameter smaller than said first prescribed diameter;
• a metal sleeve member within said holes around said bearing section of said fastener and including a radially expanded continuous tubular side wall in bearing contact with said bearing section of said fastener, said tubular side wall having a third prescribed outside diameter smaller than said first prescribed diameter and having a prescribed side wall thickness less than the threshold thickness of the material of said sleeve member below which insignificant material flow within said side wall occurs under load;
• and
• a compressible cushion within said holes between said sleeve member and said workpieces and substantially filling the space between said sleeve member and said workpieces within said holes, said cushion having been placed in said hole while on said metal sleeve member while said cushion was uncompressed and had an initial outside diameter smaller than the hole diameter and subsequently forced into contact with the hole surface and compressed by radially and circumferentially expanding said tubular side wall of said sleeve member, said fastener maintaining said sleeve member radially and circumferentially expanded so that said cushion is compressed to a compressed thickness such that insignificant material flow within said cushion takes place under load and so that said cushion is maintained under sufficient compression between said sleeve member and said workpieces to cause the operating load of the joint to be transferred from said workpieces to said fastener through said cushion and said sleeve member.