Metallics DWS3MD 6 x 1-1/4 in. Bugle Head Phillips Drywall Screws - Steel Black Phosphate - Fine Threads - Each

Not for light gauge. The DWS3MD has a sharp point, which pierces 25-gauge and 20-gauge steel studs without pre-drilling, and Metallics rates it for light gauge steel and light gauge aluminum. If you are fastening into heavier structural steel, you want a self-drilling point instead, not a sharp point drywall screw.

No. Black phosphate is a dry interior finish only, it gives mild handling corrosion resistance and a paint-friendly surface, nothing more. The DWS3MD is steel with a black phosphate finish, so keep it inside the building envelope. For exterior sheathing, soffits, or wet rooms use a coated or stainless fastener.

Country of origin is the United States and Metallics states they are made in the USA, but they are listed as not Buy American compliant and not ARRA compliant. If your project carries a Buy American or ARRA clause, these will not satisfy that documentation requirement even though they are domestically made.

A #2 Phillips. The DWS3MD recess is 0.176 to 0.201 inch in diameter and 0.106 inch deep, which is what a standard #2 bit is cut for. Run them with a dimpler or depth-setting nose cone so the bugle head seats just below the paper without tearing it.

They ship in a jar, with a minimum of 1,000 pieces, and the jar weighs 3.75 lbs. If you need a different size or count, Metallics offers other sizes and quantities on request.

That is what the bugle profile is for. Head width runs 0.315 to 0.347 inch and head height only 0.020 to 0.031 inch, so the tapered underside pulls the paper down and the head seats in a shallow dimple you can skim with one coat of compound rather than build up over.

They are case hardened to Rockwell C44 and made from AISI 1018 steel, which is the standard combination for a drywall screw that has to thread its own hole in light gauge steel. Keep the driver clutch set and the bit square to the head; most snapped screws on steel come from over-torquing past seat, not from the screw itself.

Treat them as a guide. Metallics notes there is no single industry standard for bugle heads or for drywall screw dimensions generally, so the published ranges, head width 0.315 to 0.347 inch and head height 0.020 to 0.031 inch, may vary slightly lot to lot. For distributors cross-referencing, the ordering identity is Metallics DWS series, part number DWS3MD, UNF fine thread at 18 TPI.