Metallics SDS3M 6 x 1-1/4 in. Bugle Head Phillips Drywall Screws - Steel Zinc - Fine Threads - Each

Yes. The SDS3M is a self-drilling and tapping screw with a drill point, so it cuts its own hole through light gauge metal framing as it drives. No pilot hole needed. The fine thread at 18 threads per inch is the metal-stud thread pitch, not the coarse pitch used for wood studs.

Fine thread, which is what the SDS3M is, belongs on steel framing. The tighter 18 TPI pitch bites into light gauge metal and the drill point starts the hole itself. Coarse thread screws are what you want for wood studs, where the wider pitch pulls better in soft material. Putting a fine thread screw in wood tends to spin without drawing the board tight.

No. The SDS3M is not Buy American compliant and is not ARRA compliant, and country of origin is listed as multiple. On a federally funded job with domestic sourcing language, this screw will not satisfy it.

A #2 Phillips bit. The SDS3M uses a Phillips drive with a recess 0.106 in. deep and 0.176 to 0.201 in. across, which is standard #2 geometry. A power bit ships with the box, so you are not buying one separately.

That is what the bugle head is for. The head is 0.315 to 0.347 in. wide with a head height of only 0.020 to 0.031 in., and the curved underside of a bugle profile compresses the paper face rather than tearing it, so the head seats just below the surface and takes joint compound cleanly.

The SDS3M ships as a 1000 count box, which is also the order minimum, and the box runs about 4.04 lbs. Other sizes and quantities are available by request if 1000 of this size is not what the job needs.

Keep them inside. Zinc plating on steel is a dry interior finish, which is all the SDS3M carries, and it will corrode in exposed or persistently damp conditions. For exterior sheathing or wet locations, specify a coated or stainless fastener instead.

There is no single industry standard for bugle head or drywall screw dimensions, so the head width, head height, and recess figures given for the SDS3M are a guide and slight deviation batch to batch is normal. The things that stay fixed for ordering are the #6 diameter, the 1-1/4 inch length, the fine 18 TPI thread, and the #2 Phillips drive.