Metallics JDS88 10 x 5/8 in. 5/16 Indented Hex Head Slotted Sharp Point Tapping Screws - Steel Zinc - Each

Type A is a sharp gimlet point sheet metal screw, meant to be driven into a pre-punched or drilled hole in thin sheet metal where it forms its own thread as it goes. The JDS88 is a #10 diameter, 5/8 inch long version with 12 threads per inch and an indented hex head, the pattern electricians use for attaching straps, brackets and boxes to sheet steel. It is not a wood screw, a machine screw or a self drilling screw, so the hole has to exist before you drive it.

No. The JDS88 is not Buy American compliant and is not ARRA compliant, and country of origin is listed as multiple. If your specification carries a domestic sourcing clause, this part will not satisfy it.

Yes, the indented hex head carries an integral washer with an outside diameter of 0.384 to 0.414 in. and a washer thickness of 0.019 to 0.031 in. That extra bearing surface spreads load over sheet metal and oversized holes, which is why this head style shows up on box and strap work. Head height itself is 0.105 to 0.12 in.

48 lb-in minimum torsional strength, with the screw heat treated to Rockwell C28-38 from AISI 1016-1024 steel. That is the figure to respect if you are driving with an impact or a high torque drill; back the clutch off, since a #10 tapping screw in thin sheet will strip the material long before you reach that number.

The JDS88 is carbon steel with a zinc plated finish, which is a general indoor and protected corrosion coating. It holds up fine in dry interior electrical work and in normally dry boxes, but it is not stainless and not hot dip galvanized, so for exterior, wet or corrosive locations you want a stainless or hot dip fastener instead.

They ship in a jar, with a minimum order of 100 count. So the smallest purchase is one 100 piece jar rather than a loose handful.

Dimensionally it should. The head conforms to ASME B18.6.3-2010 and the thread to ASME B18.6.4, the two standards that govern tapping screw threads and head geometry, so a #10 x 5/8 Type A from another maker built to the same standards will use the same 5/16 driver and the same pilot hole. Note that Metallics states dimensions for #9 diameter screws fall outside ASME B18.6.4.

No. This is a Type A sheet metal screw with a sharp gimlet point and 12 threads per inch, sized for thin steel. It has no anchoring provision for masonry and a coarse wood thread profile is a different screw entirely. Use a wood screw for framing and a proper concrete screw or anchor for masonry.