Guessing Shear Center Location: Tips & Tricks

[Payam30]

Hi,
This is a question about shear center location. I know exactly how to calculate the exactly location. But I have trouble quessing the first "Imaginary" location.
I have this picture

http://i46.tinypic.com/16jesgo.jpg

http://i49.tinypic.com/2v30xlk.jpg

Now you see that the shear center in the solustion is between the fat sides. How do you guess that? Sometims it is totally outside the structure. It makes me very confused and I hope someone can help me.

 

[SteamKing]

Here are some rules of thumb about locating shear centers:

If a section is open, the shear center will lie sometimes outside the section.
Open sections are angles or channels, for example.

For the case of an angle, the shear center is usually located where the two legs intersect.

If a section has an axis of symmetry, the shear center will lie somewhere on that axis.

 

[Payam30]

But if it is outside, where in outside? left, right? up, down? Could you please take an exampel?

 

[SteamKing]

On a channel, for example, the shear center is located thus:

* [
where [ is the channel and * is the shear center.

Since the channel is symmetric, the shear center is located vertically midway between the two flanges.