Metallics JDS191 14 x 5/8 in. 3/8 Indented Hex Head Slotted Sharp Point Tapping Screws - Steel Zinc - Each

The JDS191 is a Type A tapping screw with a gimlet (sharp) point, meaning it pierces and forms its own thread in thin sheet metal without a pre-tapped hole. It is a #14 diameter, 5/8 inch long screw with 10 threads per inch and an indented hex head. Use it where you are fastening into light-gauge steel, enclosures, and sheet metal; it is not a machine screw and will not run into an existing tapped hole cleanly.

It stands proud. The indented hex head is 0.172 to 0.19 inch tall and the integral washer face runs 0.480 to 0.520 inch outside diameter at 0.030 to 0.050 inch thick. That washer face spreads the clamp load over thin sheet so the head does not pull through, but it means this is a surface-mount head, not a countersunk one. If you need the fastener flush, use a flat head screw instead.

Either works. The head is a combination hex/slotted drive, so a 3/8 inch nut driver or socket seats on the hex, and a flat blade fits the slot for tight spots or final snugging. The hex measures 0.367 to 0.375 inch across the flats and 0.409 across corners, and the slot is 0.064 to 0.075 inch wide and 0.083 to 0.101 inch deep.

JDS191 ships in a jar with a 100-count minimum order. If you need a different size or a different count, Metallics offers other sizes and quantities in the JDS line by request.

Yes, the JDS191 is flagged compliant for both Buy American and ARRA. Country of origin is listed as multiple, so if your specification requires a single documented origin for a given lot, request the certification with the order.

Head and body dimensions follow ASME B18.6.3-2010 and the thread follows ASME B18.6.4. The screw is made from AISI 1016 to 1024 steel, case hardened to Rockwell C28-38, with a minimum torsional strength of 125 lb-in. One caveat from the manufacturer: dimensions for #9 diameter screws in this line are independent of ASME B18.6.4.

The JDS191 is carbon steel with a zinc plating, which is a general purpose indoor and dry-location finish. Zinc plate gives sacrificial protection against incidental moisture but it is not stainless and it is not hot dip galvanized, so for wet, coastal, or corrosive environments specify a stainless or galvanized fastener instead.

Usable thread length on the JDS191 is 5/8 inch minus the head, and the gimlet point consumes part of that as it forms thread. At 10 threads per inch the screw needs several threads engaged, so it suits light to medium gauge sheet and thin steel members where total stack thickness leaves enough depth behind the sheet. For thicker material or a deeper stack, step up to a longer screw in the same JDS series.