The cylinder edge failure of the steel cone-to-cylinder socket connection subjected to uniform compression was investigated by means of experiment and FEM. The FEM analysis revealed the friction coefficient between cone and cylinder as well as the shape imperfections of the socket which well follow the experimental load-displacement curves. The previously proposed model for the yield load was found satisfactory, while the models for the full-plastic and ultimate loads were modified to Eason-Shield model which provides better predictions.