Metallics JDWS4CD 6 x 15/8 in. Bugle Head Phillips Drywall Screws - Steel Black Phosphate - Fine Threads - Each

Fine thread, sharp point drywall screws are the metal stud choice. The JDWS4CD runs 18 threads per inch with a fine thread spacing and a sharp point, and Metallics lists its field application as hardwood, light gauge steel and light gauge aluminum. For standard softwood framing, coarse thread drywall screws pull in faster and hold better; use this one on light gauge steel track and stud, or on hardwood where a coarse thread would chew out.

No. Metallics lists the JDWS4CD as not Buy American compliant and not ARRA compliant, even though country of origin is the United States. If you are bidding federally funded work with a domestic preference clause, you need a fastener carrying the compliance flag, not just a US origin.

A #2 Phillips bit. The recess on the JDWS4CD is 0.106 in. deep with a 0.176 to 0.201 in. diameter, which is standard #2 Phillips geometry, so any collated or hand driver set up with a #2 bit and a depth-sensitive nose will seat these.

These ship in jars of 100, and 100 is the order minimum, so the jar is the smallest unit. Pack weight is 0.56 lbs. Metallics does offer other sizes and quantities by request if a job needs a different length or a bulk box.

Black phosphate is a mild corrosion coating meant for dry interior work, not wet or exposed conditions. The JDWS4CD is AISI 1018 steel with a black phosphate finish, so keep it inside the building envelope. For exterior sheathing, soffits, or anywhere moisture is expected, move to a coated or stainless exterior screw instead.

That is the point of the bugle profile. The head on the JDWS4CD measures 0.315 to 0.347 in. across with a head height of 0.020 to 0.031 in., so it is a wide, shallow curved head that compresses the paper face and sets just below flush ready for compound. There is no single industry standard for bugle head dimensions, so slight deviations from those figures are normal.

Within limits. Metallics rates the JDWS4CD for hardwood, light gauge steel and light gauge aluminum, so it will pull light gauge metal together, and the sharp point will pierce thin stock. It is a sharp point screw, not a self-drilling point, so for heavier gauge or layered steel you want a self-drilling (drill point) screw instead.

The JDWS4CD is heat treated to Rockwell C44, which is the normal hardness range for drywall screws and is what lets a sharp point bite light gauge steel without the tip rolling over. Drive it with a #2 bit and a clutch or depth stop; over-driving is what snaps heads, not the hardness.