The design of the structural connections is important from the standpoint of reducing system vibration amplitudes or enhancing joint damping capacity. A state-of-the-art review was performed and a generic experimental model was developed and constructed. The test model consists of two concentric circular cylindrical shells and four vanes connected by groups of bolts. First, a finite element model was developed and analyzed, using the MSC/NASTRAN computer program. The first analysis was a modal survey of the model to investigate dynamic characteristics of the whole system. Secondly a frequency response analysis gave the input/output relationship between an input point (excitation) and an output point (response) in the frequency domain, which depends on the damping characteristics of the structure.